Small Wonders

Iris was blissfully distracted for most of the day, running between the front counter and the back door as the first of several shipments arrived. Jessica, Chris and Alexandra were the main workers with her that day, and she was so thankful to have at least one guy since majority of the boxes weighed more than Iris's total body weight. Alex had been the only one to really react when she'd spotted Iris's soulmark on the back of her hand, but Jessica had been quick to shoo her away. Her work gloves had been pulled on after that, since they would be dealing with boxes and books and Iris would rather go without any unnecessary cuts than prove a point to her parents.

Alex had even shown up later on, looking thoroughly chastised, and apologized for her reaction to Iris's mark. When she'd glanced into the aisles, she'd spotted Jessica watching Alex with an intense stare and was overwhelmed with gratitude toward the other woman.

"Have a great day," Iris called as she waved to a mother and son on their way to the exit, "Hope to see you soon!" The mother turned back with a smile as her son darted outside to show his father his new book, cheering about superheroes.

"Finally quieting down?" Jessica called from her place on a ladder, neatly organizing the new displays that they were putting up around the front entrance and registers. "Of course the busiest day we have in a month is the same day we get a huge shipment."

"Fate plays cruel games," Chris teased from the other side of the shelf, out of view but still clearly heard due to the natural strength and volume of his voice. "At least you two are almost done!"

Iris shook her head with a smile as she resumed scanning through the new books and inputting them into the system, or recording the increased number for the items they already had. "You're the one who never wants to do the opening shift because you'd rather sleep in," she called back, getting a snort from Jessica as the woman got off her ladder to move on to the lower shelf.

"Hey, I am a night owl, okay? I work better when it's dark."

"It is dark when we get here," Jessica snapped back. "And Iris usually beats me by half an hour most days."

Pushing the finished box aside for Alex to pick up when she finished organizing free space on the shelves, Iris grinned into her work. "Are you guys still jealous of the perks of being a manager?"

"No," the chimed in simultaneously, with Chris poking his head around the shelf.

"Thought so," Iris mumbled smartly while carefully slicing her x-acto knife through the tape atop a new box, parting the folds of cardboard while dialing the blade back so she didn't cut herself when slipping the knife into her pocket. "Alex, new box for you!"

"Jeez, slow down!" Alex called from deeper in the store, before she rounded the shelves with a tired expression. "Give some to Chris, would ya?"

"These are for your section," Iris explained with a grin, pushing the finished box closer to Alex's approaching form. "And it's a small box, see?"

Sighed in withheld complaint, Alex hefted the new box into her arms and turned back to her own work as the bell over the door chimed with a new customer. Iris called her usual greeting as she looked up to the older man that entered, walking carefully with a cane as he smiled back. "I'm hoping you sell journals; my granddaughter's birthday is coming up and she has about a dozen of those things."

Smiling at the man's thoughtfulness, Iris pointing down the far aisle that had 'Journals, Sketchbooks, Creative Paper' hanging at the front. "You can find all you're looking for down aisle one, and we even have an assortment of pens and other writing utensils she might like. They're at the back wall at the very end of the aisle."

The man thanked her happily before he disappeared around the shelves, leaving the three coworkers alone at the front once more.

Jessica descended from her ladder and commenced with cutting the bottom of her empty box open as she approached Iris's busy form. "Hey, how are you feeling?" she asked quietly, not wanting to draw Chris's attention. He already knew that there had been something from yesterday; being a guy, he unofficially assumed the responsibility of keeping everyone safe, and had been informed that someone had caused trouble for the morning shift.

"It's nice to keep busy," she answered honestly, looking up from her screen. "Hey, I forgot to ask earlier but do you want to talk home together today?" Jessica's face pinched slightly in discomfort, not wanting to turn Iris down—the whiskey eyed woman already knew her answer from that expression alone. "You have plans," she guessed.

"Yeah, I'm sorry."

"That's fine, I just wanted to ask in case you were free."

"I can cancel-"

Shaking her head, Iris held up her hand to interrupt. "Don't you dare. Honestly, it's fine. It's still broad daylight, and I'm a grown woman; walked home alone many times before."

Jessica was still frowning, but nodded her head as she folded her flattened box awkwardly. "If you're sure…"

With only a half an hour left on their shift, Iris and Jessica both worked quickly to get through the rest of their work, arranging for the others to take over once they'd left. Chris gladly came to the counter to take over Iris's work, while Alex relieved Jessica of her display work. Sarah was going to be arriving to help with the evening shift as well, so Iris wasn't so worried about the work load. Jessica continued to give her worried glances as they were preparing to leave in the breakroom, but she didn't say a thing more about Iris walking home.

"I'll see you tomorrow?

"Yea, have a good evening," Jessica answered quietly, offering a small smile as Iris pulled her bag over her shoulder and left the younger woman to herself. Waving to Chris as she passed the front counter, Sarah was just arriving at the front entrance and happily held the door open for her.

"Have a good evening, Iris!" Sarah called happily as Iris stepped out into the chilly air, waving at the other woman over her shoulder before she turned her attention to the sidewalk before her.

For once, she was relieved that the streets were filled with people as she made her way into the thick of the crowd. Most people were finishing their own jobs for the day, making it the perfect time for Iris to blend in with everyone else. However, that didn't stop her from darting her attention between the faces around her, desperately hoping that neither of her parents showed up in the midst of everyone.

Adjusting her bag and slipping her hand into her pockets, Iris did her best to try and relax her muscles. The business of the store had kept her distracted throughout the day, which also helped her to forget just how tired she was. Her back and shoulders ached from sitting up all night, and her head was throbbing faintly with an oncoming headache. It made her worry that she was distracting Barry at work, but she knew that there was nothing she could do about it until she got home.

A warm tea and a thick blanket were in her future, and she sighed softly against the cold air at the thought.

Darting from the path of someone else rushing passed her, Iris couldn't help the abrupt lock of her muscles from momentary fear.

This was not how she wanted to live! She had left that life behind years ago, taking hold of her own fate when she decided that she could rather face the streets than her own family. The decision to live how she wanted, even now with the return of her parents, was something she was not going to give up.

However, making the decision to no longer fear them and to actually stop being afraid were two very different things. As much as she wished she could mentally will away her fears, it was going to take much more than that. She knew that it was at least a start. Going out in public, seeing men who somewhat resembled her father, showing her marks; she wanted the chance to live through things without the same paralyzing fear that was with her now.

Swallowing against the sudden dryness in her mouth, Iris shook her shoulders gently to relieve some of the tension that was causing them to ache.

Arriving at her building a few minutes later, Iris tried not to tense up again after having remained at ease for majority of her walk home. However, the reminder of what she had come home to the day before caused her heart to speed up suddenly and her hands began to sweat. Taking the stairs more slowly than usual, she dreaded what she might find on her door.

Pushing open the stairwell exit, Iris nervously glanced up and down the hallway, coming up with an empty corridor.

Once she was sure that there was no one else around, especially her father, Iris stepped toward her apartment door and sighed with relief to see that there was no note taped in place. Unlocking her door and slipping inside as her body sagged with relief, Iris couldn't help but to feel the overwhelming urge to cry.

She tried to be brave, she tried to fight this, but facing her greatest fear wasn't without its struggles.

Inhaling deeply to calm herself, she shrugged off her coat gently and placed her cellphone on her bed as she toed off her boots. Hanging the garment up carefully, making sure that the buttons were done up to keep the coat in good shape, Iris snatched her cellphone up as she moved to the kitchen to heat some water for the tea she had been fantasizing about.

Pulling up her email once it was on the stove burner, Iris quickly messaged Barry with assurance that she was home and nothing eventful had happened throughout the day. She also made sure to tell him not to worry if she did not reply to him later on, since she was intending to go to sleep once she'd eaten something.

At least she knew that if her night was uneventful, Barry and the others would get a full night of sleep as well. "My fault," she muttered quietly.

Another email was sent to BT, thanking him for telling Barry what she could not.

She wasn't sure how she would have felt throughout the day if Barry hadn't been there to make her feel more confident in her decision that morning. Watching the beginning wisps of steam coming from the spout of the kettle, Iris thought back to her morning walk to work. He'd been a solid and warm assurance, soothing her doubts and livening her tired, dulled mind.

Ducking her head and placing her fingers to her lips, Iris pressed down a smile as she thought of Barry's lips almost ghosting hers. He'd caught the corner of her mouth, by accident she knew, and the thought of it made her tingle with a new, foreign excitement.

It wasn't a kiss. Not exactly. Yet it made her flush in happiness and her heart was dancing in her chest, pounding out a rhythm that she found she didn't mind one bit. Before she had met Barry, the only thing to make her heart race was fear, but now he was giving her new reasons to feel dizzy and warm, flushed with happiness instead of shame.

Making her tea and leaving it to steep on the counter, Iris plugged in her phone to charge as she selected a pair of warm, comfortable sleep pants and large sweater to wear. Brushing her hair and tying it out of her face, Iris began the usual routine of preparing to settle down for the night. She knew she still needed to eat, but she wanted to just lie down and enjoy her tea with a good book.

The temptation of a shower was very pressing, but she's already had one that morning and knew that she needed to resist.

Pulling her sleeves up to her elbows and grabbing the thick throw that she'd stashed in her closet, Iris paused as she looked at the scarred, damaged mark along her forearm. Even Jessica had reacted when she'd seen it, not even needing to ask what caused just a scar as she taken a count of the marks covering Iris's arms. She'd only seen seven of the twenty-three—almost twenty four—and she'd still reacted like someone had committed the worst sin before her eyes.

Placing the throw on her bed and gently caressing the scar, Iris pondered the words. He's told us about you, little one, he really likes you. It seemed that her soulmates favoured pet-names and nicknames to call her: Sweetheart, sweetie, doll, dear, little one. The simple endearments made her smile; it surprised her that she rather liked them. They made her feel welcomed and wanted.

Collecting her tea and the book she was presently reading, Iris curled herself against her pillows and wrapped the throw tight around her body—making sure to cover her chilled feet.

It was simple and mundane; something she'd done before she'd met Barry—before she'd even considered looking into people who might know why she has so many marks. When times were, at least what she might have considered, simpler. However, the more she spent time with her soulmates, the more of them that she met, the happier she was to have gone to Karen Fletcher's office that day.

Slipping into the comfort of her novel, Iris let herself forget about the day as her headache steadily subsided, the smell of peppermint and green tea encasing her tenses as her mind becomes lost in a fictitious world.

Across town, Barry sighed in relief as he stood in front of his work locker, looking down at his phone. He wasn't allowed to have it on him during meetings, so he'd nearly run back to the locker room to check for Iris's email about getting home safely. Thankfully, she'd sent him an email as soon as she had returned home, thanking him for that morning while assuring him that she was home and safe. He answered her email quickly, even though she warned that she may not answer due to being asleep, and tucked his phone into his pocket.

He still had an hour left before he got to leave, but it was be a much easier hour now that he knew his soulmate was safe and her father had tried anything.

"Hey, Barry!"

Turning to one of the handlers, Barry nodded in greeting with a smile as he closed his locker and clipped the small lock in place again. "Hey, Alice, what can I help you with?"

"We're pretty sure some kids cut some of the locks near the back gate, probably to try and sneak in later tonight. Tom found them when he was doing his rounds before heading home. You got time to replace them?"

Barry let out a soft sigh. He hated when people did that. The animals weren't these adorable things that they could just walk up to whenever they wanted; that's the reason for all of the thousands of yards of fencing that surrounding the park and each enclosure, doubled. "Yea, no problem. You heading home?"

"Yup, I'm free for the night!" she cheered, passing him to get to her own locker. "Hey, you doing anything later?" she asked suddenly, the words rushed as she spun on her heel to face him again, looking embarrassed.

Barry jerked to a halt and turned to face her again.

What?

He'd worked with Alice for years, and she'd never really given him the time of day. Not that he'd been looking; he and the others decided a long time ago that they were going to wait for their soulmate, and not waste time with someone who wasn't meant for them. And now, after he'd met her, Alice decided to try and ask him out?

"Uh…yea, I was gunna go and visit my soulmate," he answered slowly, deciding at the last second that calling Iris his girlfriend wasn't true, and calling her his soulmate was much more honest and meaningful anyway. He knew that he probably wouldn't see Iris that night, but it would give Alice a clear idea of his relationship.

Alice's expression went slack in surprise before she clapped a hand over her mouth. "Oh my God, I'm sorry! I didn't know!"

Barry smiled in assurance and waved away her concerns. "That's okay, I don't exactly broadcast it." Alice flushed in embarrassment as she nodded her head. "Have a good night, Alice."

"Yea, you too, Barry," she called after him, before silently cursing herself as she banged her head against her locker once he was out of sight. Barry flinched once he had turned the corner, feeling bad when he knew she'd be embarrassed about asking him out now. However, he couldn't bring himself to regret what he had said to her. He could never pass Iris up for another—his soulmate would come before anyone else, not matter how kind they might be.