Brady gave me a thumbs up. “I’ll go check on Aanya and Jenny, see how they’re doing.”
“Sure thing.” As part of his volunteer duties, Brady had to check in on us once in a while and make sure we were all doing well since all of us had some or the other shit to deal with. It had been a year since I’d escaped my hell and I felt like I was finally at a place where I could stand up on my own without needing the help of Mama D’s community. Though that didn’t mean I wouldn’t miss them, and I was glad they wouldn’t be too far away from my new place. I owed everything to them and I knew there would still be times when I’d need their support. Mama D has drilled it into my head that I could ask her for help at any time and I believed her.
As I was pulling out the trays and placing them into the cooling racks, Brady stumbled into the room, eyes wide and cheeks flushed. I was immediately beside him, grabbing his arm. “What’s wrong?”
“Did you…” He swallowed hard before continuing, “Did you know that Jenny and Aanya are…”
“Dating?” I asked when he didn’t continue.
His cheeks flushed darker and he managed to roll his eyes before replying, “That looked more than dating to me.”
It was then that I caught what he’d been trying to say and I started laughing at his slightly horrified, slightly aroused look. Poor guy.
“I’ll make sure to tell them to close their door when they’re at it,” I said with a chuckle once I managed to stop laughing. “Did they see you?”
Brady shook his head vehemently, “I opened my mouth to call out to them, then my eyes fell on...on what they were doing and I whirled around and ran back here.”
“Aw, poor you. Sit down, I’ll make some tea and then we’ll eat some soft, melted choco-chip cookies.”
Brady brightened as if someone had flipped a light on inside him and clapped his hands, completely forgetting his earlier embarrassment. “Perfect.”
Putting the kettle on, I turned to face him. “Will you visit me at my new place?”
Brady smiled softly at me, “Of course, I will. But I’ll visit as friend-Brady, not volunteer-Brady. I don’t think you need him anymore, sweetie-pie.”
His words warmed my heart and I smiled. I knew I was up for this new chapter in my life, but it still felt good to have someone else confirm it. “Thanks. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Well, duh,” was his genius reply. Despite being such a warm and loving person, he lost all cool when the emotions were pointed in his direction. He was adorable.
Shaking my head, I poured the tea in two cups, his with a dash of cream and sugar like he preferred. I plated some still-gooey and warm cookies and took the whole thing to the tiny dining table Brady sat at.
As we ate, we talked about the cafe. His cafe was his second baby, the first being his annoyingly cheerful dog, Cherry. He’d discovered Voice Out from one of his part-time employees, and now he only employed kids under the NGO’s care and spent all his free time helping out Mama D. Back when I’d first met him, I’d asked him why he helped out at the NGO when he had nothing to gain, especially since he was already so busy running his cafe. He’d just smiled at me and told me that he did it because he knew not everyone in the community got acceptance as easily as he had from his parents, and he hoped to give that love and acceptance to kids who hadn’t been lucky enough. It was at that moment that I’d realized we were going to be the best of friends.
After we’d finished our tea and almost all of the cookies, Jenny and Aanya drifted into the kitchen, probably following the warm cookie fragrance.
“Oh, hey Brady!” Jenny smiled as she spotted Brady, giving him a half hug.
Brady barely stopped himself from choking on his cookie and sputtered, coughing as he tried to dislodge the piece of cookie he’d swallowed.
I bit my lip to keep from smiling and looked at Jenny cheekily. “Maybe lock your door next time before you go at it, huh?”
“Oh,” Aanya said as Jenny’s face turned beet red. Spotting the cookies, Jenny rushed towards them.
“Did you make cookies? You did! Thank you! Okay, now I’m gonna go die of embarrassment. After I finish eating the cookies.” Jenny blabbered, before grabbing a few cookies and dragging a stupefied Aanya out of the room behind her.
We stared at each other for a few seconds before bursting out laughing. God, I was going to miss them so much.
3 | Scott
The bell rang as I was setting up the table and I checked my watch. Seemed like Luke was a punctual guy. Straightening up my shirt and running a hand through my hair, I made my way to the door. I knew Luke had asked for this dinner because he wanted his friend’s opinion, on the room and maybe on me, too. Honestly, I didn’t fault him for that. From what I’d observed when we met, he wasn’t the type to trust someone easily. And if meeting his friend made him feel comfortable with trusting me, sharing an apartment with me, then I had no problem meeting her. Plus, Angie Grace was the writer of my favorite column, so meeting her was going to be a pleasure anyway.
My eyes fell on Luke the moment I opened the door and I gave him a soft smile. He was dressed much like the last time we’d met, except his jumper was a baby blue color instead of gray. I smiled at the woman I presumed was Angie, who observed me with a blank face as I stepped back to let them in. I took a moment to process the fact that Angie looked nothing like I’d expected her to. Where I’d expected a bubbly, cheerful woman, Angie gave out a definite ‘stay the fuck away from me’ vibe.
Closing the door, I turned around to face them. “Can I get you anything to drink? Water, wine, beer?”
“Um, water would be fine,” Luke said and I could see that the ease he’d found on his last visit was gone and he was back to his nervous self.
“Beer for me, thanks.” Angie glanced around the room as she spoke and I hoped she found the place good enough for her friend. It wasn’t a huge place, but it was in the nice part of Boston, so I counted that as a plus. I’d bought it two years ago from the money I’d received from my godfather and I loved the place. The living room was just big enough to entertain a few friends without it getting cramped, not that I did much entertaining. My favorite part of the room was the electric furnace and the deep, mahogany couch I’d invested in because of its comfortable, huge size. I could easily fall asleep on it while reading without the fear of an aching back in the morning. I really hoped Luke and Angie liked the place as much as I did.
I grabbed two bottles of water and a beer out of the refrigerator, handing them out to Luke and Angie.
“Um, you can check out the room while I serve dinner, if you want?”
Angie nodded and stalked off down the hallway without another word, Luke following while shaking his head. “You don’t even know which room it is.” He sounded amused as he reached her and led her towards the correct room.
Grinning, I dished up the chicken casserole, mashed potatoes and ginger bread I’d finally decided on a couple of hours ago. The casserole was a recipe Rochelle—my best friend’s wife—had taught me and I hoped it tasted as good as hers did.
They walked into the room just as I finished slicing the bread and I gestured towards the table. “Take a seat. Would you like some wine with dinner or would you prefer the same?”
“The same, please,” Luke murmured as he took a seat. Angie asked for the same too, without the please, obviously. Honestly, I couldn’t figure out how this goth-emo girl wrote those pieces that almost always made me tear up. I guess that was my fault for judging someone by their looks.
I placed the beer and water by their dishes before getting seated. We ate in silence for a while, and though it wasn’t uncomfortable, it seemed like Luke and Angie were having some kind of debate without speaking a word. With a glare at Luke, Angie turned to face me and Luke dropped his eyes to the dish before looking up at me. “This is really good. You made it?”
I nodded, glad to see that small smile curving his lips. “Yeah, I’m glad you like it.”
“Okay, Scott. I have some questions for you.” She stated in a no-nonsense voice and I straightened up and gave her a nod even as Luke glared at her. She didn’t look away though, her focus completely on me. I felt as if a Spanish Inquisition was in my near future.
“Do you have a problem with homosexuality or anyone in the spectrum?”
Luke buried his face in his hands with a groan and I sympathized with him even as I scrambled to answer. “I’m part of the community too, so my answer would be no.”
Angie tilted her head but I didn’t elaborate. My sexuality had nothing to do with her friend, so I didn’t think it was something she needed to know about.
“I noticed the room is fully furnished. It’s a pretty big room, too. Why are you charging such low rent then? What’s the catch?”
I almost laughed, but reined myself in to reply seriously, “No catch. I own this place. The room was lying useless and empty so I figured renting it out would be better than leaving it to rot.” I wasn’t about to tell her that I was looking for a roommate because I felt lonely. Nuh uh, especially not in front of my future roommate.
Angie stared at me for a few seconds as if trying to decide if I was lying before she nodded. And then the next question came.
“Do you drink a lot?” I shook my head, wondering if Angie was just extremely protective of Luke or if he had a past that made it necessary for her to be. I had a feeling it was the latter, given how nervous Luke always seemed to be. I really hoped he’d feel more comfortable around me once he moved in.
“Drugs? Pot?”
“No and no. I don’t have any kind of addiction unless you count coffee.”
Angie nodded. “Do you get a lot of visitors? The stay-the-night kind?”
At that question, Luke looked up, though he glanced anywhere but at me as he chewed his lips raw.
“No, not really.”
“Okay, then.” Angie declared, pushing her empty plate away and turning to look at Luke. “I think it’s a good place. You have my approval.”
Luke rolled his eyes, but I knew her approval meant something to him. Then Angie turned to give me another look and I easily translated it to hurt him and I’ll nail your balls to the wall. And I didn’t doubt she’d do exactly that. I nodded in understanding before standing up and clearing away the plates.
“Let me help,” Luke offered, standing up too.
“Nah, it’s okay. Tomorrow, we’ll divide the chores. Enjoy the last day as a guest in this house.” I said with a wink before carrying the plates into the kitchen.
“Ice-cream for dessert?” I called out as I put the dishes in the sink and washed my hands.
“I almost forgot,” I heard Luke say from behind me and turned to find him standing with a Tupperware box in his hand. He extended the box towards me. “I made cookies. I hope you like choco-chip.”
I smiled widely as I took the box from him. I opened the lid and my mouth watered when I saw the delicious looking cookies and inhaled the chocolate-filled fragrance of it. I broke off a small piece and put it in my mouth, almost moaning at how quickly it melted on my tongue.
“Could you maybe pay rent in the form of cookies instead?” I asked him, completely serious, once I’d savored the bite.
Luke’s face lit up with a smile and I almost gasped again at how beautiful he looked with a smile on his face. I mean, he was gorgeous without it too, but the smile made him look almost angelic. “I’m glad you like them.”
“I do. Which is why I’ll still be serving ice cream for dessert and eating all of these later by myself.”
Luke chuckled as I put the box away and grabbed the ice-cream. There were no more questions after that and they left soon after dessert. Once they were gone, I did the dishes and then grabbed a few cookies, got myself a glass of milk and headed into the living room.
With the thriller I’d been reading, I lounged on the couch and devoured the cookies and enjoyed my last day alone in my apartment. Though I had to admit I couldn’t wait for Luke to move in, and it had nothing to do with how good of a baker he was. Nothing at all.
4 | Scott
It had been a week since Luke moved into my apartment and I’d barely seen him. I was a morning person and he definitely wasn’t, so I always ended up making breakfast and leaving his in the oven with a post-it reminder on the door. In return, he did the same with dinner, even though I knew he wasn’t sleeping when I came home from work because the lights in his room were always on. I couldn’t help feeling he was avoiding me. I’d known that he was wary of strangers from the times I’d interacted with him, but the whole point of getting a roommate had been to have someone to hang out with, to not feel so lonely anymore. I didn’t need the money, but I did want the company. And here I was, alone again.
Being alone for most of my life, you’d think I’d be used to that. But I wasn’t. I was tired of it, though. Tired of always being alone, of never having anyone to connect with or even simply having someone to talk to. And now Luke was avoiding me and I was regretting giving him the room. But I wouldn’t give up so easily. I had to make him see that hanging out together once in a while wouldn’t be so bad and that he could trust me.
Which was why I was on my way home early today. It was Saturday, so I hadn’t exactly needed to be at work, but I’d had some backlog issues that had needed sorting. The firm I worked at was owned by my best friend, and though we’d originally planned to be partners, I hadn’t wanted all the hassle and all the added stress that came with the position. And a part of me had been afraid to make that commitment, to start something so permanent with him. So, I’d given up on the partnership and decided to work as the Project Manager for the advertising firm instead.
When I reached my apartment, I unlocked the door as softly and quietly as I could. I tried to be sneaky as I opened the door, not because I wanted to scare Luke but because I wanted to know whether he holed up in his room even when I wasn’t around or if he made use of the rest of the house. My question was answered when I spotted Luke lounging on the couch, a book in one hand and a cookie in the other. He’d baked a new batch. Perfect.
I squinted at the book as I started closing the door behind me and realized it was the first Harry Potter book. I also saw that he wasn’t many pages into it yet. Well, wasn’t that just lucky?
I softly knocked on the door once I’d closed it behind me so I didn’t startle him. He craned his neck to look over and his eyes widened when he spotted me.
“Hey, Luke! I got off work early. Just gonna grab a shower. Please don’t disappear again.” I gave him a teasing smile before disappearing into my room. If I had to guilt him into staying, then I would. Enough was enough.
Though I hoped he’d stay, I still rushed through the shower and dressed up in an old t-shirt and sweatpants in record time. I grabbed the copy of Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone I’d bought a few days ago—along with the rest of the series—and headed into the living room. I smiled when I spotted Luke on the couch. He was sitting now, the book in his lap and the cookie gone.
His eyes fell on me as I took a seat on the armchair and then the book in my hand. He looked up at me with a raised brow and I leaned back in my chair as I spoke, “A colleague recommended me to read the Harry Potter books and when I made the mistake of asking why she’d want me to read a children’s book she made me buy the whole series and promise her I’d read it.”
Luke’s lips tilted into a small smile and I marveled again at how much that smile brightened his face. “Well, if you said that then she definitely did the right thing.”
I made a face that made him chuckle and I smiled before replying, “So anyway, I noticed you were reading the same book and I wondered if we could read together. You know, narrating alternate chapters. It would give us a chance to hang out s
ince we didn’t have an opportunity to do it all week,” I didn’t point out that it was because he’d taken every opportunity to avoid me, “and it would be good to get to know each other a bit. Or at the very least be comfortable in each other’s presence so we don’t tiptoe around each other whenever we’re both home.” Whoops, did I say too much?
Luke chewed his lower lip for a second before nodding hesitantly. “Would you like some cookies?”
“Of course!” I said excitedly, making him smile. Those cookies were going to be the death of me. Or that smile.
Once Luke had a plate of cookies set on the coffee table, he sat back on the couch with his book, choosing to curl up in the corner this time.
“Shall I start?” I asked once we were both comfortable with a book in one hand and a delicious cookie in the other.
“Yep,” Luke said around a mouthful of cookie. I cleared my throat before opening to the first chapter.
“Chapter one. The boy who lived-”
“Wait. Read the dedication too. You don’t read the dedications?” He outrage in his voice made me grin, but I obediently went back and started again.
“For Jessica, who loves stories, for Anne, who loved them too, and for Di, who heard this one first.”
Yeah, I got why he read dedications. That was damn sweet.
Sipping a glass of water, I resumed reading. “Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much…”
We read for a long time after that, one of us reading while the other munched on a cookie and sipped water. I usually read thrillers and general fiction, so it wasn’t as easy for me to get into the story as it seemed to be for Luke, especially since the story was about the adventures of three eleven-year-olds. Still, I kept reading because I didn’t want Luke to think I was bored. If this was the only way we could spend some time together, then I’d take it.
Finding You Page 2