“Sweet tea, if you have it. I’m a transplant from South Carolina and I’m addicted to it.”
“You mean the hummingbird fluid they call tea down here?” Grey shuddered.
Cort laughed. “It is pretty sweet. I didn’t think you were a local. No accent. Where are you from?”
“Oregon. Our tea is quite different. And in my family, it was usually hot.” He stood up. “I’ve got water or coffee. But I haven’t managed to figure out the coffeepot yet, so water okay?”
“Sure. I’ll just come with you.”
Grey had planned to grab him a water bottle from the refrigerator, but after feeling around, realized he didn’t have any. Sighing, he got a glass and held it over the sink to fill it. He wasn’t putting his finger in someone else’s glass, so when the water poured over his hand, he cursed and poured some of it out.
“Let me show you something,” Cort said as he made rummaging noises, then returned to stand close. He took the glass out of Grey’s hand and it thunked on the counter. Cort picked up his hand and placed a small device in it. “This is called a liquid level indicator. There are two sensors on the back. I’ll show you how it works.” He poured the water out of the glass.
He kept holding Grey’s hand while he showed him how to set the device on the far side of the glass. “It’ll beep when the water hits the sensors. This is a handy little device, and I brought it for you to keep. Try pouring the water now.”
Grey turned on the water and shut it off when the sensor beeped. He couldn’t help but release a small, reluctant smile at how easy it was. Okay, maybe this guy could stick around…for a little while. “Got any more of these little devices?”
“Like I said, that’s yours to keep, but if you mean other devices, sure. One of them will even tell you what color your clothes are.” Cort shifted around, his clothes whispering. “Also, you could think about getting a one-cup coffeepot. The pods make them easy to use.”
Grey hadn’t considered that. He hadn’t even tried to figure out how he could start rearranging little parts of his life to make them easier now. But Cort had been through this process. Knew the ins and outs. Maybe this rehabilitation wasn’t a waste of time. What if his sight didn’t return? The thought nearly sent him to his knees.
“Grey? You okay?” A hand touched his back, and Grey almost instantly calmed.
Still, he pulled away. “I’m fine. Tell me about these other gadgets of yours.”
Cort took him into the living room and rustled around in his bag. As he handed the different things to Grey, he explained how each worked. There was a color detector and a small recorder for appointment reminders and things like that. He had raised tabs for all sorts of things and also rubber bands to mark bottles and cans like shampoo versus conditioner or soup cans versus vegetable cans. Small tricks that would make things so much simpler.
“It’ll take a while for us to go over everything and to get your place situated, so I’ll come daily for a time.” Cort sat next to him, that fragrant cologne wafting past his nose. “Is there anything you’d like to start with? Or something you’re having a lot of trouble with?”
Here he sat without having even combed his hair, and this guy sounded all sorts of put together. “Clothes.” The word jumped from his lips without giving him time to even think about it. He’d always liked having nice clothes, had always cared about his appearance even if he wasn’t one for dating or socializing much.
Cort laughed. “Then let’s start there first. I’ll leave my color detector here for now, but we can make labels for your clothes that will help, too.” He went on to explain a few things as they walked into Grey’s bedroom, talking about the best ways to arrange his furniture and more. He kept talking as he made himself at home in Grey’s closet. Grey heard him draping clothes over the bed as he talked. The warm, relaxed tone of his voice was nice. Almost a balm on Grey’s wounded mind.
“Have you looked into Braille at all?” Cort asked, his voice muffled by the closet.
“No, it’s only been a little over a week.”
“I can help you start the basics for labels for your clothes, but I’ll also sort by color if you’d like. I brought dividers for your drawers, too. You’re a bit of a clothes horse, eh? This tiny closet is packed tight.”
He looked in that direction and was surprised when he got a glimpse of light. Staring hard, he tried to see it again, growing irritated when nothing happened. Had he imagined it? He looked toward where he knew the windows were and nothing. Not a damn thing. He blew out a frustrated breath and sat on the end of the bed, reaching out to feel the clothes Cort had laid in a pile.