Beer. Wine. Vodka. More beer. Orange juice. Soda. Purple stuff. Even more beer.
It was a bartender's dream, and it was the reality of what lie within Berry Punch's fridge.
Nurse Redheart shook her head, disappointed that the vast amount of alcohol within the fridge did not surprise her. Finding a beverage to go along with the lunch she was making for Berry was going to be somewhat difficult if she intended to avoid alcohol at all costs. She sniffed the orange juice. Sure enough, there was already vodka mixed in. The soda was already mixed as well, with rum. As for the purple stuff, she didn't even know what it was. It certainly didn't look like any grape juice she'd ever seen.
"Berry?" Redheart called from the kitchen. "What is this purple stuff in the fridge?"
"Raspberry liqueur, grain alcohol, and club soda," Berry called back. "It's called a Leg Spreader."
"Classy," Redheart muttered. She searched the fridge some more, finally happening upon a drawer full of boxed juice, which she assumed was for Pinchy. She pulled one out of the package, poking the straw into its opening and setting it on the tray she'd placed Berry's salad on. It would have to do. She took a breath and equipped her best patient smile. Somehow she had a feeling that she'd need a lot of patience to deal with Berry.
"Really?" Berry said with a scowl as the tray was placed in front of her. "A box drink. Do you think I'm eight or something?"
"It was the only non-alcoholic thing in your fridge," Redheart said, with as much calmness as she could muster.
"I guess running water doesn't exist," Berry shot back. "I should write to the water company! Dunno why I'm paying a water bill when it's apparently not working!" Redheart gritted her teeth just a bit beneath her smile. It was going to be a long 30 days.
"The water works just fine," Redheart said, her voice deceptively cheery. "I just figured you'd like something flavorful with your meal. And before you say anything, I mean something flavorful and non-alcoholic."
"Uh-huh," Berry said, clearly unamused. "You do realize that I keep these around for Pinchy, right?"
"I figured as much," Redheart replied, sitting herself down at the opposite side of the table.
"So you're wasting my daughter's drinks," Berry said. "Gee, thanks. What a help you've been so far."
Redheart felt her neck muscles tense up. Her response came without thinking.
"You know, it's probably not the only way your drinking is affecting her," Redheart said. She regretted the words the instant they came out of her mouth; she had been trained better than to commit such a rookie mistake. She slowly turned her gaze up towards Berry, and was greeted with an expression exactly as angry as she'd expected.
"How dare you speak like that to me about my daughter?" Berry shouted, both front hooves planted firmly on the table. Redheart sighed inwardly; it was definitely too soon to be saying things like that. Perhaps this was a battle that she should stand down from.
"You're right," Redheart replied. "That was inconsiderate of me. I apologize."
Berry opened her mouth to yell again, but stopped. She glared at Redheart for a few brutally-silent moments before nodding.
"Yeah, you better be sorry," Berry said through a sneer, though Redheart could tell that her frown had diminished somewhat. Then she turned to her salad and began digging into it. Redheart considered beginning a conversation, but give the small blowup from a moment ago, she decided it best to wait and let Berry initiate. It was important to let the patient feel as comfortable around her as possible. It would be no easy feat, but it was one which she hoped to do her best to accomplish. She simply ate her own salad in silence.
Redheart looked at Berry calmly as Berry looked up from her meal. Her mouth began to open, and Redheart prepared herself for whatever Berry had to say. Perhaps it would be something helpful for the situation. It was certainly too early to expect a huge revelation or anything, but maybe whatever she decided to say would be a step towards making their relationship easier.
"This salad tastes like shit," Berry said. Redheart's mouth contorted into a frown, but she took a breath and did her best to keep her cool.
"It's just regular vegetables," Redheart told her. "I didn't even do anything to them."
"Uh-huh," Berry said. "You coulda used some better vegetables."
"I used the vegetables in your fridge," Redheart replied, forcing a serene smile onto her face. "But I guess I could pick up some other vegetables soon." She decided to attempt a joke to lighten the mood. "Are you sure you don't dislike it just because I made it for you?" She smiled to Berry, expecting...or at least hoping for a little chuckle.
"Yeah, that's probably it," Berry said matter-of-factly, taking another bite of salad.
Redheart rolled her eyes, but kept her smile. That could have gone worse.
"How about we let you decide what you have for dinner?" Redheart offered, trying to get on Berry's good side.
"Oh gosh, really?" Berry asked, her eyes wide with mock excitement. "You mean I get to pick my own meal just like a real grown-up? Gee, thank you so much for the privilege!" She then scoffed as she took the next bite of her salad.
Redheart let out a deep sigh and rested her chin on one hoof, her ears falling. She hadn't expected this to be easy, but she also hadn't expected it to be this hard.
Berry, meanwhile, looked back up from her salad and at the dejected Redheart. She sighed lightly.
"Okay, okay, now I'm sorry," Berry said. "You might be doing this job that I don't need you for, but I can admit when I'm being a sarcastic bitch. Thanks for the lunch."
"You're welcome," Redheart said, a relieved smile crossing her face. "See? We can be friends again."
"Don't push your luck," Berry replied. "Just because I'm gonna try to not yell at you constantly doesn't mean we're all buddy-buddy, got it?"
"Uh-huh," Redheart answered, her smile a distant memory.
Minutes passed like they were hours as the two ate in silence, and Redheart began to wonder if she had made a mistake in taking this job. She had tried so many times when they were younger to dissuade Berry from her destructive behavior, and she had clearly never managed to find success, or else they wouldn't be here today. From all the signs that she'd been exhibiting, Berry did not want Redheart's help, leaving the nurse wondering if it was even worth trying.
Then she shook her head. Throughout her tenure as a nurse, she had never given up on a patient. Berry might have been more stubborn than most of her patients, but there was no way that she would give up on her. Perhaps a rekindling of their friendship was out of the question, but as long as she had a say in it, Berry would receive the help that she didn't realize she needed. She nodded resolutely as she steeled her mental resolve.
"What are you shaking your head and nodding at?" Berry asked. "I thought you said I was the one with problems."
"Nothing, nothing," Redheart responded, a bit embarrassed.
"Uh-huh," Berry responded. "You always were weird." And then she was back to eating.
Redheart steamed. She was not weird. It frustrated her to no end to hear that, and even more that Berry knew how much it frustrated her. Part of her was crushed to hear those words from her, and from the look Berry had given her while speaking those words, she knew exactly what effect they had. Within moments, the anger she felt from those words had faded into something completely different.
"...I'm going to go do the laundry,. Redheart said softly. She got up from her seat, leaving her plate half-full.
Berry looked up from her meal as Redheart dragged her hooves out of the room. Part of her wanted to feel good about getting the verbal one-up on Redheart, but for some reason, she just couldn't muster up the urge to be happy about it. Once Redheart was out of the room, Berry looked back down at her partially-finished meal. Her appetite had seemed to leave just as Redheart had. With a sigh, she combined the two plates of food into one and put it in the fridge. She eyed the various bottle of alcohol as she did so. Something inside her was screaming for her to grab one and down it, and she spent a good few moments trying to decide which she was in the mood for. She finally decided on the Leg Spreader, and poured herself a glass.
Berry stared at her glass once it was full. She could almost hear Redheart's voice of disapproval, and the thought of it made her frown. The battle in her mind only lasted a brief few moments before she picked up the glass and downed its contents. The fact that there was a battle to begin with might have made some manner of impact on Berry if she hadn't been so enamored with the refreshing taste flooding her mouth. The empty glass quickly found its way into the sink. Berry figured she'd do the dishes later; right now, she had to take care of the little niggling thoughts of regret popping up in her mind, and she had to do it now, before the alcohol's influence cleared them away. Besides, Redheart didn't even know where her laundry room was. She exited the kitchen, forgetting to even shut the refrigerator door. She'd take care of that later, too.