Fighting My Orc

A loud pounding on the door was my wake up call the next morning. I didn’t have time to ready myself as the knocking continued to grow.

I checked the camera and shook my head. I should’ve guessed that it would be Osiris on the other side of my door. I open the door, he takes a step back, “Olivia. Good morning,” he brings his hands from around his back, “I brought you something. For your bruises.”

I take the small canister and smile at its contents, “Lotion?”

Osiris runs the back of his next, “Kind of. It’s a healing gel for your bruises. Mom made it and told me I should help you apply it.”

His face begins to turn a funny shade. For an orc, I’m always consciously aware of their green skin but Osiris’s was starting to turn dark. Right around his cheeks...

I begin to laugh, “Are you blushing?” I continue laughing when he begins to look shocked and uncomfortable. I take a step closer and admire his changing skin color, “That’s so interesting! In all honesty you’re turning blue!” I start to crack up again and Osiris just rolls his eyes with a smile.

“So?” Osiris begins, but at my questioning look he points to the gel, “Would you like help putting it on?”

I was too busy playing with the gel to respond so I made out an affirmative hum and then walked into my house with Osiris close behind.

I laid on the floor of the living room as Osiris lifted up my sleep shirt to reveal my bruised back. He sat on one side of me and began to rub in the gel. Earning a displeased grunt from me as my bruises ached and screamed.

He apologized as he continued kneading my skin with the gel until the result was a massive sheet of goop on my back. I could feel that it spanned from my shoulders to my waist. I really didn’t think the bruises were that bad, but Osiris knows more about this orc gel than I do so maybe it healed differently than human lotions.

Osiris smiled at his work and rubbed his hands together, “Perfect. Now it just needs about three hours to dry.”

A noise came out of my mouth. Something in between a hiccup and a snort that represented my astonishment.

“I can’t just lay on the ground for three hours,” my voice rose in pitch until Osiris raised his hands in defeat.

“It’s okay, I can- ummm,” he looks around the room as if searching for the answer in the walls.

I became exasperated, “What about the orcs? They must put this stuff on all the time.”

Osiris shakes his head, “Men walk around without a shirt, and women have a special shirt made for this kind of situation.”

Osiris continues to look around my house before patting my arm, “Do you have a spare towel?”

I give him directions for the item and watch from the ground as he grabs one. He then uses his large tusks that protrude from his bottom row of teeth to tear it into shreds.

“Woah! I meant spare as in ‘not being used.’ Not spare as in ‘can be destroyed.’”

Osiris doesn’t listen as he steps closer and continues tearing and tying fabric together. In my grumpy mood I grumble, “You know that’s bad for your teeth, right?”

“You sound like my mother.” He holds out a bundle of shredded fabric, “This should work.”

He helps me put the shreds of a towel on, before I remove my actual shirt. Much to my surprise the towel could be tied around the neck, shoulders, and waist to create an open-in-the-back shirt.

I did a quick spin, “How do I look?”

Osiris gives my whole body a once over before nodding, “Good... good...” When his gaze reaches my eyes, he clears his throat, “I’m um.. going to... head home. I ugh- got some work to do.”

I’ve never seen an orc leave a room so quickly. And that’s saying something since an orc is never found at a social gathering.

I check the bathroom mirror and find the towel to look even more horrendous than it feels. Osiris probably left in a hurry just so he could laugh at my appearance.

With a sigh I make my breakfast before laying on the floor again, but this time for three hours. And two movies later, this option really put a knot in my neck.

I remove my towel shirt and jump into the shower. I need to wash this hardened goop off my back immediately. At first the water wouldn’t remove it and I started to panic. So I began to wiggle against the shower wall in hopes to get the cement-like substance off my back.

“What the hell?!” Not a single stain was left on the shower wall. Which meant the substance was still on my back and not about to go away easily.

I get out of the shower with my hands in fists. Maybe I could just rip it off. With that in mind I take a small corner and pull.

“Agh! Oh my fuck!” I continue to hiss out profanities until I give up. Grabbing my towel shirt and taking my car keys.

The walk to my small car was unbearably long, even though I ran. And I am barely in the car before I am out of my neighborhood.

Only one thing is on my mind. Find Osiris and get this damn healing gel off my back.