Nobody Else

by Jaxson Kidman

  “Kins, are you okay?” I asked when she answered.

  “Not really.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “There’s no power here,” she said.

  “Shit,” I said.

  “That means I have no heat.”

  “Right. I, uh, Kinsley…”

  “Ben’s not here,” she said in a low voice.

  “Okay. So you’re home alone.”

  “Yeah.”

  “There’s no power and heat.”

  “I’m sorry for bothering you,” she said. “I didn’t know who to call.”

  You didn’t call Ben, right? What would he do for you?

  “Listen to me. Pack a bag.”

  “Pack a bag?”

  “I’m coming to get you.”

  “Brice. It’s dangerous.”

  “You’re staying in that house alone, Kins. I don’t know how bad this is going to get. You’ve already lost power. It’s fucking freezing.”

  “I have blankets.”

  “Why’d you call me then?”

  There was silence.

  I shook my head.

  I didn’t want to get mad at her.

  But she called me because I was the first person that popped into her mind.

  “Kins, listen to me. If you’ve lost power, there’s nothing you can do.”

  “We have a gas fireplace,” she said. “I could turn that on.”

  “Yeah. You can turn that on. Sure.”

  “I’m scared to be alone right now, Brice.”

  I nodded. There it is. “That’s why I’m coming to get you.”

  “It’s dangerous. Just stay on the phone with me.”

  “If this gets bad enough… I’m going to get you, Kins. There’s no arguing it. I’ll bring you back here and drive you home in the morning. Okay?”

  “I didn’t mean to call you and make you think you have to come here.”

  “Too late. Now, let me ask you a question.”

  “Sure.”

  “I assume the power is out next door.”

  “I would assume, yeah.”

  “Call Linda and tell her to pack up too. I’ll bring you both here so you have a warm, safe place. I have plenty of candles, oil lamps, and fire wood. Don’t argue with me, Kins.”

  She was silent for a few seconds. Then she said. “Thanks, Brice.”

  Anything for you, love. You’re home, alone, in the dark, scared, and you called me. And my first instinct is to come save you. Rescue you from the darkness and worry. Hold you to keep you warm. Prove to you that I’ll forever protect you. No matter what I am to you, Kins, I’ll always be there to protect you.

  The roads were shit. And getting worse by the second. Having a vehicle that could drive through snow was one thing, but ice was a different monster. I held the door open for Linda as she climbed into the back seat of my truck and helped Paige get her seatbelt buckled tight. I looked at the worry on Paige’s face and all I could do was smile and nod.

  “You good?” I asked Linda.

  “We’re good,” she said.

  I shut the door and walked around the truck and got into the driver’s seat.

  The streets were pitch black thanks to the power outage. It seemed like whatever had happened was fairly widespread.

  The back end of my truck did a little dance as I drove out of the cul-de-sac.

  Kinsley reached across the seat and grabbed my hand.

  I looked over at her and nodded. “We’re good, Kins. I promise. I’ll keep you safe. Everyone safe.”

  I said the words, even though I knew I couldn’t promise that would happen. I was at the mercy of Mother Nature, and she was throwing quite the shit fit at the moment. For a second, I wondered if it was the universe telling me to stay the hell away from Kinsley. Or maybe it was the universe challenging me. To give me a chance to prove my love.

  Then again, I’d never believed in any of that bullshit before. There had been a small sliver of that hope a long time ago when I was first with Kinsley, but the second Lindsay was taken from us, the universe and anything it contained or anything beyond it… well, it could simply kiss my ass.

  The drive was white-knuckled as expected. A few turns were a little wilder than I hoped they would have been. I cut the wheel left, right, looking in the rearview mirror, catching sight of Paige looking right at me, knowing her trust was in me to get her to safety. As the winds picked up, my truck danced across the road with even more ease. One good thing was that nobody else was on the road. I was the only crazy fool to be out driving in a major winter storm like this.

  I rubbed my jaw at one point and took a deep breath.

  I wanted to talk, but figured I’d keep my focus on the road and nothing else.

  When we finally made it to the turn to my dirt road, relief washed over me. But only for a quick moment. The dirt road was covered in snow, ice, and bumpy as always. My headlights shined with high beams, showing the ice collecting on the trees. Branches were already hanging super low thanks to the weight.

  “Brice…” Kinsley whispered at one point.

  “I know,” I whispered back.

  A branch was down.

  I had to slow to almost a complete stop, needing to drive over it.

  “Just a little speed bump,” I said with a grin.

  My truck got over the front but the back tires started to spin. I jammed the gas pedal and cut the wheel. The truck turned enough that the back right tire caught the branch and basically threw the rest of my truck over it. Paige let out a little yell as I cut the wheel in the opposite direction to keep us from hitting a tree.

  “How far?” Linda asked.

  “One minute,” I said.

  I wasn’t sure how long that one minute actually lasted, but the sight of my place had never been so welcoming before.

  Especially considering that Kinsley was with me again.

  “Okay, here’s what we’ve got,” I said as I carried a cooking sheet with drinks balanced on it. “Three adult drinks and one hot chocolate with extra marshmallows.”

  “Look at you,” Linda said. “Just like at the bar.”

  “I expect a big tip,” I said as I crouched.

  Paige was cuddled up next to her mother. I took the mug off the tray and handed it to her.

  “Thanks,” she said.

  “You’re good here,” I said to her. “I promise. I’ve got plenty of firewood and food.”

  “She doesn’t like storms,” Linda said.

  “Mom,” Paige growled, her cheeks flushing.

  “I don’t like them either,” I said. “But up here, it’s kind of nice. Just wait until you see what it looks like in the morning.”

  “We’re sleeping here?” Paige asked.

  “Of course,” Linda said. “We can’t go home.” She looked at Kinsley. “What about the pipes? Are they going to freeze?”

  “I don’t know,” Kinsley said.

  “Don’t think about that stuff right now,” I said. “Just be here.”

  Right on cue, the power flickered.

  Paige let out a whimpering sound.

  Then the power went out.

  “We’re okay,” I said. I pointed to the fire in the fireplace. “We’ve got light there. I’ve got flashlights and oil lamps too.”

  “Thank you, Brice,” Linda said as she wrapped her arm around Paige.

  I handed Kinsley her drink and smiled.

  “Thanks,” she whispered.

  “Did you… check in…”

  Kinsley licked her lips and shook her head. “No.”

  “Why don’t you go do that real quick? Let him know you’re safe.”

  “And say what?” she whispered to me. “That I’m here with you?”

  I touched her leg. “Kins, just let him know you’re safe.”

  Did he even bother to check on you yet? Probably not because you called me instead of him when you needed help. Even still, if that was me and I was far away from you, I’d want to be on the phone unt
il I got home.

  “He’s right,” Linda said. “Not that it’s my place to talk.”

  “Fine,” Kinsley said. She stood up and looked around. “I’ll be in the kitchen.”

  Kinsley stormed away, and I stood there with a weight on my chest.

  “Hey, it’ll be okay.”

  I looked down at Linda. “What?”

  “Whatever happens. You’re a good guy, Brice.”

  I laughed. “Not the time or place for that talk.”

  “Well, you’re alright in my book. I was not prepared for this kind of weather.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I’d do it for anyone.”

  I walked to the fireplace and tossed a couple more logs into the flames, even though it didn’t need it. The silence in the room was just like before. I had to look over my shoulder a couple of times to make sure that Linda and Paige were really there. I finally turned and walked back to the table.

  “How’s the hot chocolate?” I asked Paige. Is it too hot? Or is it more like cool chocolate?”

  She smiled and sipped her drink. “It’s okay.”

  “Just okay?”

  She shrugged her shoulders.

  “Paige, don’t be rude.”

  “No, it’s okay. It’s the cheap boxed stuff,” I said. “So, Paige, you play soccer, right?”

  She nodded. “Yeah.”

  “Doing anything through the winter?”

  “Besides eat, sleep, and think about boys?” Linda said.

  “Mom,” Paige growled, her cheeks turning red again.

  I laughed. “Don’t listen to her. I think she does the same thing.”

  “There’s only one boy I think about,” Linda teased.

  “You mean man,” I replied with a wink. I looked at Paige. “Hey, do you want me to get you a flashlight? Just so you have something in case?”

  “Okay,” she said.

  “Do you want a tour of the place?” I offered.

  “That would be nice,” Linda said, standing up. “Come on, Paige.”

  We stood there as I smiled big. “That was sort of tongue in cheek.”

  “Oh,” Linda said.

  “The kitchen is back there. This is the main room. Bedroom and bathroom are through that door. And there’s a small loft above us that I’ve been up to maybe three times since I bought the place.”

  “This is your house?” Paige asked.

  “Yeah,” I said.

  “Wow. Cool.”

  “I think so,” I said.

  “I just realized we didn’t bring anything to sleep with or on,” Linda said.

  “I’ve got it all covered,” I said. “I’ve got plenty of blankets. Pillows. Towels. We’re set. Might get boring as hell if we get trapped here for days.”

  “I doubt that would be a problem for you,” Linda said with a sly grin.

  Before I could say something back, Kinsley walked back from the kitchen. She clutched her phone to her chest and looked worried and guilty.

  “Everything okay?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” she said without looking at me.

  I walked to the front door and opened it to check the weather. It sounded like a million pieces of broken glass were hitting the trees, the cabin and my truck all at once. It was windy, cold, a complete and total mess out there.

  Not to mention the total mess behind me inside.

  “How’s it looking?” Kinsley asked as I shut and locked the door.

  “Oh, it’s about eighty and sunny,” I said.

  She snorted. “Funny.”

  I went to the kitchen, using my phone as a flashlight, and gathered up a bunch of flashlights from under the sink. I spread them out across the table in the living room.

  “Pick what you want,” I said to Paige.

  She took the biggest one, which was no surprise to me. She was nervous as hell. Rightfully so. Nasty winter storm and now spending the night in a stranger’s house.

  “Not to ask the obvious or make anyone uncomfortable,” Linda said, “but how does sleeping work around here?”

  Kinsley and I looked at each other. She quickly looked away.

  “Well, it’s pretty simple,” I said. “You shut your eyes…”

  “Smart mouth,” Linda said.

  “You and Paige can take the bedroom,” I said. “Get a good night of sleep. I’ll stay out here to keep the fire going and wait for the storm to pass.”

  “And Kinsley?” Linda asked.

  “I’m fine,” she said.

  Linda raised her eyebrow high.

  “Well,” I said, raising my eyebrow too, “Kinsley can sleep on the couch. It’s very comfortable. Right, Kins?”

  I asked without thinking.

  Her eyes went wide.

  “Is it comfortable… Kins?” Linda asked.

  “I don’t like you both,” she said.

  “Okay,” Linda said. “We’re going to bed. It’s getting late and we have no idea what tomorrow will bring.”

  “Can I charge my phone?” Paige asked me.

  “I would normally say yeah,” I said. “But the whole no power thing is going to mess that up.”

  “Great,” Paige said with a sigh.

  “You can play solitaire.”

  “What?” she asked.

  “Nothing,” Linda said, shaking her head.

  I had to laugh.

  Kids Paige’s age probably didn’t realize that solitaire could be played without a damn phone.

  “Goodnight everyone,” Linda said.

  “Sleep tight,” I said.

  “See you in the morning,” Kinsley said.

  Linda gave one last look back at us. She was thinking the same thing we both were.

  The storm inside the cabin was worse than the one outside.

  I put a stack of blankets and pillows on the table. “This should do you good. Unless you want me to cuddle with you on the couch again.”

  Kinsley swallowed hard. “I don’t think that would be a good idea. With Linda and Paige…”

  “I was kidding, Kins. Deep breath.”

  “Brice…”

  I showed my hands. “Tell you what. I’ll even put myself a mile away from you.” I grabbed my chair and dragged it across the floor toward the fireplace. “There. We all have space. And if that isn’t enough, I’ll go sleep in the damn loft.”

  I realized how annoyed I had suddenly gotten. I stopped myself and rubbed my jaw, reminding myself that this situation was my doing.

  “Sorry about that,” I said.

  “You didn’t have to move your chair,” Kinsley said. “And one blanket is fine. As long as the fire is going, it’s warm enough.”

  “Good,” I said. “As long as everyone is comfortable.”

  Kinsley touched the blankets and inched around the table. “I never really thanked you for what you did. I mean, coming to get me. And helping with Linda and Paige.”

  “No need,” I said. “Sitting home in the dark and cold isn’t a good feeling. It’s probably better to just forget about everything until you get home tomorrow. And if there’s any damage, insurance will cover it.”

  “I know that, Brice,” she said. “But you put yourself in harm’s way for me.”

  I laughed. “Like that’s new. Remember that time you picked a bar fight for me? With that gigantic guy?”

  “What? I did not do that.”

  “The hell you didn’t…”

  “I told you he was staring at me.”

  “Which was a cue for kick his ass,” I said.

  Kinsley smiled. She got even closer to me. “All I said was that he was making me uncomfortable. I didn’t even want to go into that bar. We weren’t even twenty-one.”

  “I got us in,” I said. “And I got us served.”

  “And I was paranoid the entire time.”

  “Yeah, I remember,” I said. “You had two drinks and got worse.”

  “Worse?”

  “Then you pointed out that gigantic guy and I couldn’t not fight him.�
��

  “We could have left,” she said.

  “That would have been the logical thing to do. Logic sometimes isn’t my best friend.”

  “So, getting your nose broken is?”

  “To be fair, I took him down,” I said. “It doesn’t matter that I had to kick at his knees to do it, but I took him down. And he was bleeding too when we ran out of there.”

  Kinsley sighed and shook her head. “The things we’ve done.”

  I reached for her hand - her left hand - the ring not on her finger. “Yeah. The things we’ve done, Kins. The things we have left to do.”

  Her eyes left mine. The fire reflected in them. I wasn’t sure if it was evil-looking or beautiful. Either way, it did something nasty to my heart.

  I pulled at her a little, bringing her close enough that I could smell her.

  She touched my chest. “Brice…”

  “I know,” I whispered. “Hey, what did you tell him?”

  “What?”

  “Ben. Did you actually call him?”

  “I sent him a text.”

  “Not even worth a call?”

  “He didn’t call me,” she said.

  “Right. How long does that go on for?”

  “What?”

  “You both attacking each other with dumb baby shit?”

  “As long as I want,” she said.

  “That’s nice to hear,” I said.

  “Don’t turn into this,” she whispered. “Not with Linda here. This is weird for me.”

  “Weird? Weird… how about when you get into trouble the first person you call is me? Is that weird? Or that you know in your heart that I’m the one crazy enough to drive through this weather to get to you. That you know that by being here, I’ll keep you safe. Warm. Make sure everything will be okay.”

  “And what do you want from me then?” she asked. “Huh? You want payment?”

  I shook my head. “Maybe start by telling him where you really are.”

  Kinsley stepped back.

  “You sent him a text,” I said. “And I bet you anything you didn’t tell him the truth.”

  “Fuck you,” she said.

  She walked away, and I gave her all of two seconds before following her.

  She went into the dark kitchen. I grabbed a flashlight off the living room table and turned it on. In the kitchen, I stood the flashlight on the table, giving a tiny bit of light.