Finding Home

by K. L. Humphreys

  “They seem like good people,” he whispers as he kisses my hair.

  “The absolute best,” I whisper back, my arm tightening around his stomach. We lie like this for a while; my eyes fixated on the TV but I’m not paying attention to the movie. Neither of us has moved and once the movie finished, the next one started but I couldn’t tell you which scene we’re on.

  “What are you going to do about Riccardo? He doesn’t come across as the type of guy who deals well with rejection.”

  Frowning, I turn so he’s in my line of vision. “What do you mean?”

  He smiles at me, it’s that smile that makes my heart warm and my panties wet. “Babe, you’re fucking gorgeous. That man has never once been turned down in his life. He’s not used to it and he’s going to make it his mission to get you.”

  “Shut up, it’s not. He knows that I’m not interested in him that way. It’s fine, there’s nothing to worry about.” Even as I’m saying it, deep down I don’t believe it, Trent’s right about Ric, he acted differently yesterday. I didn’t like the side of him I saw and yes I do think he won’t let things lie, now that he’s watched Trent walk into my apartment, I think he’ll get angrier.

  “Just be careful around him, that’s all I’m saying okay?” I nod against his chest. “Good, so today’s been a rollercoaster huh?” I’m not sure if he’s joking or not, but he’s right, it’s been one hell of a day. “You doing okay now, babe?”

  It’s such a cliché but I love that he calls me babe. “Yeah, I’m sorry for freaking out.”

  He tilts my chin up and kisses the corner of my mouth. It’s gentle and chaste, but oh, so perfect. He’s getting me used to his touch. Getting used to him being around and that in itself frightens me. What’s going to happen when he leaves?

  “Don’t apologize, I get it. I totally understand.” God, he’s such a good guy! Who would have thought it? Particularly knowing where I picked him up from. It goes to show, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.

  “Do you think I’m wrong for hating my dad?” It’s his fault that Eddie was allowed into our house, that he was allowed to do that to me. I hate that he put me in that vulnerable situation and I hate that he’s in prison.

  “No, I don’t think you’re wrong. Your dad is wrong for allowing that asshole around you. I honestly believe that your dad misses you and wishes things were different.” Trent’s trying to stay loyal to us both, it’s weird to think he and Dad were friends, or are friends. “While I was inside he never had a drink, not once. So he may have changed.”

  “Maybe and in the future I may warm up to the idea of starting to try to get to know him. Right now, that’s the furthest thing on my mind.” I close my eyes and listen to the thump-thump of his heart beating. “Thank you for staying after my melt down.”

  “Babe, I wasn’t going to let you walk out of my life. Let’s face it, if I walked out of here, you weren’t going to chase me. In fact, you’d have washed your hands of me. I couldn’t let that happen. There’s something between us and it’s something I want to pursue.” He’s so sure about it, I agree there’s something between us, yet we only met a few days ago. “Michelle, breathe.”

  “I am.” I narrow my eyes at him, but of course, he can’t see it as I’m tucked into his body.

  “I get that, but at least you’re out of your head. You need to stop over-thinking things. It only makes things worse.”

  “How about you get out of my head?” He laughs at me. “Things are going a bit too fast.” My voice is small and it doesn’t help that as I said it I leaned farther into his body, my hands gripping his T-shirt.

  “They are and I don’t want to scare you but I’m not backing off either.”

  “What does that even mean?” I’m so scared right now, part of me wants him to leave, pretend nothing ever happened. Then the other part of me wants to stay like this, stay in his arms and learn more about him. These emotions scare me, I’ve never wanted to be around someone before, I’ve never wanted to lie in someone’s arms and fall asleep. That stuff doesn’t happen to me, and the fact it’s happening right now makes me want to run and hide.

  “It means that we’re going to get to talk, find out about each other and once you’re completely comfortable around me, I’m taking you out on a date.”

  I pull out of his arms. A date? “You’re sure of yourself aren’t you?”

  A cocky smile graces his lips as he shrugs. “I’ve been locked up for five years, I’ve lost years of my life, I’m not going to sit back and not act on what I want and right now I want you. To do that I need to gain your trust, so I’m going to learn everything about you. One day at a time.”

  My heart warms at his words; he really does say the right things. “Sounds good to me,” I whisper as I lie back against him and close my eyes. He kisses the top of my head and goes back to watching Taken 2.

  My eyes open as the phone rings. Groaning, I roll over in bed and check the clock. It’s seven a.m. Who the hell is calling me at this time? I jump out of bed and rush toward the phone, mad that I’ve been woken up. “Hello?”

  “Did I wake you? Sorry.” It’s Riccardo and he doesn’t sound the tiniest bit sorry at all. “I have a leak and I would fix it myself, but I have work to do.” He’s a condescending asshole, implying that firstly he wouldn’t ask me normally and secondly that I don’t have a job to do. “Can you do it?”

  There’s a knock at my door and I open it, seeing Michelle standing there with a smile on her face makes my day, seeing her makes me not want to punch Riccardo. I return the smile when she lifts her hands, she has a brown paper bag and coffees. Damn she’s a lifesaver.

  “Hello? Are you listening?” Shit, I forgot about him.

  “Yes I can do it. I’ll be up at nine.” That gives me time to have breakfast, shower, and then go to his apartment.

  “Nine? It’s seven now and I have to leave.” He’s getting agitated.

  “I’ll have a look at it in a while and see what needs to be done.” I end the call and open the door wider for Michelle to enter. “Good morning, you’re a mind reader.”

  “Ha-ha, actually I’m not, I was hungry and thought we could have breakfast.” She shrugs like it’s not that big of a deal when in fact it is. She’s in my apartment with food.

  It’s been four days since we had a movie and pizza date and we’ve been around each other every day since. We’ve not kissed as I don’t want to scare her again, but I’m crowding her so she gets used to me. Now we’re having an impromptu date.

  “What was that call about?” Nothing gets by her. “Was someone seriously asking you to do a job for them at this time of the morning?”

  “Yes, Riccardo has a leak.” I roll my eyes. He’s a jackass, and I’ve no doubt whatever the leak is can be fixed in seconds and he’s just trying to wind me the hell up.

  “I don’t care if the entire apartment had one giant leak. Everyone was told that your hours were between nine a.m. and seven p.m. and if there was an emergency to call me.” Her face has gone bright red with anger. I don’t understand why she’s mad, especially when I’m not. “Let’s go see this leak.” She storms out of the apartment and takes the stairs two at a time.

  I quickly close my front door and follow her up the stairs, damn, the girl is fit as she’s not slowing down as we make our way to the top floor. I just manage to catch up to her two steps from the top. “Michelle, why are you so upset?” My breathing hard; it shows me that I need to get some exercise in.

  “It’s about respect. He wouldn’t like to be called in when he’s off work. I set hours and he’s being an ass.” She bites out and bangs on Riccardo’s door, she’s riled as hell and I’m glad I’m not on the receiving end of it.

  The door swings open, and a pissed off Riccardo is standing there but as soon as his eyes land on Michelle he goes from pissed off asshole to a true gentlemen. “Oh, hi Michelle, is everything okay?”

  Thankfully, Michelle isn’t stupid and can see through his bul
lshit. “Yeah I’m here to see this leak.”

  His eyes land on me and narrow, yeah, if looks could kill I’d be ten feet under right now. “It’s nothing much, it’s just a leak but I was hoping Trance here would be able to fix it before I had to go to work.”

  I lean against the wall and let Michelle say what she has to, she’s fidgeting like crazy, dying to go in on him. “Trance? Really Ric? You damn well know that’s not his name!” Michelle spits out with anger.

  “Sh-Shell…” He stammers, appearing shocked that she’s mad at him, just as the door behind us opens.

  She holds her hand up, stopping him before he can say anything else. “Don’t Shell me anything. What did I tell everyone would be Trent’s working hours?”

  “Nine a.m. until seven p.m., Ms. Nelson,” a little voice says, and I turn my head instantly and spot a boy. Ms. Whitley is standing there with her son. He seems to be about five or six. “Hi, I’m Bryson.” His eyes wide as he takes me in.

  “Hey dude, I’m Trent.” I stick out my hand as I glance to his mom, seeking approval before I approach him. She gives me the go ahead with a small nod but a bright smile. I walk over to Bryson and shake his hand. “Whoa dude, you’re really strong.” I tell him and his face breaks out into a goofy smile. “You’ve got to be what? Ten? Eleven?”

  He laughs as does Maggie. “No! I’m only six. You’re like a giant.”

  Giant? This little guy is hilarious. “Nope, I’m not a giant. So tell me little dude, what’s it like around here?”

  He stares at his mom, who gives him a nod, and he walks up close to me. “I catch Pokémon.”

  “What? No way? Little dude, I used to catch Pokémon! Who’s your favorite Pokémon?” I’m genuinely interested in this. Bryson seems like a really cool kid.

  “Pikachu is my favorite but I like Arcanine.” He reaches into his backpack and pulls out his trading cards. “Look, I have both of them. Ms. Nelson bought them for me last week.”

  I turn to Michelle who’s staring at me with an expression I’ve not seen before. “It’s because Ms. Nelson is great. Mewtu is my favorite.”

  “I’m sorry but I’m in a hurry,” Ms. Whitley tells me as she presses the button to call the elevator and I instantly put my fist out so Bryson can bump fists. “Sorry and thank you.”

  “No need to be sorry, ma’am, I apologize for holding you up. Little dude, I’ll see you around!”

  Bryson waves as he and Maggie enter the elevator. “I’ll try to catch a Mewtu for you!” He calls out as the doors begin to close.

  “If you don’t mind, I’ve to leave soon.” Riccardo says, and it’s a wonder any words came out with how hard he’s gritting his teeth.

  “Yeah sure, while I’m here I may as well check out this leak,” I tell him and as I begin to walk toward his apartment Michelle walks ahead of me, she’s still mad that he called me so early.

  Michelle motions for him to lead the way, as Riccardo walks ahead of us into the bathroom. Michelle turns to me. “You were really good with him, not many of the residents interact with him but you went out of your way to.”

  “He’s a great kid, anyone can see that.” I walk into the bathroom and see Riccardo impatiently waiting for us. There’s not much of a leak. In fact, it seems as though he threw water onto the floor.

  “Are you going to take a look at it?” The smirk on his face makes me want to punch him. He thinks he’s better than me, that I’m beneath him. I knew that I would get this reaction, but I don’t believe he’s doing it because I was in prison. I believe he’s doing it because I’m getting close to Michelle. “Well?”

  I get onto my hands and knees where the toilet is, and feeling around it, I figure out where the water is coming from. There’s a crack in the porcelain. I turn to Michelle. “It needs to be replaced.”

  “Okay, I’ll get a new one here today,” she tells me as I stand up. “Next time Ric, call during his work hours. This wasn’t an emergency.” She dismisses him. She told me some of what happened between them, but the way she’s acting tells me something more has happened.

  “I gotta go, just have it sorted.” He walks out and leaves Michelle standing there staring as though she wants to go after him.

  “You okay?” I ask tentatively.

  “Yeah, how about we finally have breakfast?” She’s still seething, but at least she’s not letting it interfere with the plans we had.

  “Sounds good. I need to wash my hands.” Or maybe even take a shower.

  “Yeah, you’ve got his pee and God knows what else on your hands right now. I’ll sort breakfast while you wash?” The laughter in her voice is all I need to hear, she’s okay and that asshole hasn’t affected her day but I’m going to get to the bottom of what’s happened.

  I quickly shower and as I start getting changed. Michelle’s singing in the kitchen, the walls are paper thin and I can make out the lyrics. She’s singing Kelly Clarkson’s ‘Because Of You.’ Growing up, this was Tina’s favorite song. She used to sing it every day without fail. Michelle singing it has me sitting on the bed. It brings back good memories and at the same time it brings back the betrayal of what both she and my parents have done to me. What I went through for sticking up for her.

  Michelle stops singing and that snaps me out of my musings. “Do you want coffee?” She calls and it sounds as though she’s getting closer to my room.

  “Yes, please,” I reply as I search for some clothes to wear, thankfully I’ll be able to get some next week with my paycheck. I pull the towel off and pull on my boxers.

  “Oh shit, I’m so sorry.” I turn at her voice. Michelle’s standing in the doorway, her face bright red as she gazes at the floor. “I’m really sorry.”

  “It’s fine. Are you okay?” I change the subject and hope that her discomfort eases as I pull on a pair of jeans.

  “Yes, um, I think so,” she mumbles, her eyes still staring at the floor.

  “Did you need something?” This shit is way too funny, but I refrain from laughing as she’s embarrassed.

  “Yes, I was just going to tell you that I was running over to my apartment. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She sprints out of my room like she’s in a hundred meter race and up against Usain Bolt.

  I finish getting dressed. For some reason, the way she and Riccardo acted today is stuck in my brain. It may seem like they were just in a bad mood, but it was more than that, especially after what she said to me the other day. I’m contemplating talking to Mrs. Ethington and seeing what she makes of Riccardo. She has been acquainted with Michelle for years, and if she too believes there’s something off with him she may ask her son to do a bit of digging.

  “Hello?” Michelle calls out as she returns to my apartment, and the apprehension in her voice cuts the air.

  “Yeah, I’m coming.” I pick up my Kicks and walk into the sitting room. Her back is to me as she putters around in the kitchen, and the sight of her in my place doesn’t make me want to run for the hills. In fact, quite the opposite. “Did you get what you needed?”

  She jumps and turns around to face me, her hand on her heart. “My God Trent, you scared the crap out of me.”

  I throw my shoes onto the floor and walk toward her. “I’m sorry,” I whisper as I get close.

  Her eyes dilate, and her breathing starts to become shallow.

  “Michelle.”

  She keeps gazing at me through her lashes, and if she carries on I’m going to kiss her and as much as I want to she’s not ready.

  “I know,” she whispers back, and I do the only thing I can to make sure I don’t push her away by kissing her; I pull her into my arms and hold her. “I had to call about getting a new toilet and I needed to get coffee. You don’t have any.” She’s actually admonishing me. “We need to rectify that immediately.”

  “No we don’t. I’m fine to live without coffee for a few weeks. Let’s have breakfast, shall we?”

  She pulls out of my arms and narrows her eyes at me. “Do I even know you
? You can live without coffee for a few weeks?”

  “I’ve gone without a lot for the past five years,” I quip, and her mouth forms an ‘O’. “Want to eat?” She nods and I can’t help but smile at her awkwardness, she’s not sure what to say or do right now.

  Sitting down in the sitting room we begin to eat, she’s got us a continental breakfast. “Thanks,” I tell her quietly, I’m waiting for the day I have enough money so I can pay her back, she’s gone out of her way to not only make me feel comfortable but to make sure I’m looked after and that is something money can’t repay.

  “You’re welcome. I know you don’t cook so I need to make sure you eat.” She’s laughing at me, the way her lips twist as she takes a sip of coffee is her biggest giveaway, but her eyes are dancing with humor.

  “What’s going on with Riccardo?” I ask, wanting to get it out of the way and we can continue on with our day.

  Frowning, she seems shocked and confused by my question. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, has anything happened since you told me about what the asshole said?” Pressing my lips tightly together, I don’t want to cause an argument, but something has happened. Michelle was spitting mad and wanted his head on a platter.

  She sighs, she’s not going to lie and pretend nothing happened. Good.

  “Yesterday, I’m not sure if I’m making a bigger deal out of it but something felt off. I mean Bar Harbor is a small town but he was at the store the exact same time I was. I may be imagining it but I felt as though he was following me.”

  I’m instantly on edge. “What did you say to him?”

  She shrugs. “Nothing, what could I say, ‘oh are you following me?’ He’s a cop for goodness sake.”

  “Like that matters, what else happened?” I demand, and I clench my fists as I try to calm down. That asshole is definitely up to something and whatever he’s done, he’s scared Michelle. I think talking to Mrs. Ethington is the way to go. Her son could help me out.

  “You’re not going to let this lie are you?”