His & Hers

by Francheska Fifield

  He nods, turns, and this time it is him that slams a door.

  I pack my stuff, find a cheap apartment, and move. I take on a couple more cleaning jobs to make ends meet. It doesn’t leave me with a lot of sleep time while still having writing deadlines to meet, but I am managing.

  A week after moving it is Friday night and I need to set up at Will’s house for the party. I’m planning a house warming party and have a bunch of invites I made and printed on my computer. I bring a bunch with me to give to the guys.

  When I get there I call the pizza place and start organizing the groceries Bobbi took me to get before dropping me off.

  “You’re here.”

  I nod as I unpack. “It’s Friday I had to set up.”

  “I didn’t think you would come.”

  “I’m not staying. I will be back tomorrow morning to make breakfast and clean up. I have a deadline looming.”

  “Oh.”

  He goes to his rooms and I hear the shower come on. I am still cooking and cleaning, but Will is moody every time I see him. He isn’t coping well with our fight. I am still mad, sort of. I feel like I want to be mad and that is enough.

  “Trisha! We miss you!”

  The guys all filter in as I am finishing the pizza set up, damn delivery was late. I stop to give hugs since I know I won’t be getting out of here without them and besides, they haven’t done anything to anger me.

  “Hey. I know guys I’m just so busy. I’m cleaning this couple’s house also and babysitting for a friend, plus trying to find time to meet my deadlines. I’m worried I will have to cancel a book deal.”

  “So move back in. We can help you pack. It will take no time at all.”

  I laugh and hug Tommy.

  “I’m throwing a house warming party. You are all invited, bring dates; and for those of you that don’t bring one I have single friends coming.”

  They all agree to come and I smile and quickly put on my shoes and my jacket.

  “I have to get back. I’ve got four hours before I’m behind on a deadline and then I need some sleep before I go to work tomorrow. Have a good night guys.”

  I go home, type, email my chapters to my editor and manage to get a few hours of sleep before getting up to clean a house and then heading back to Will’s to make a late breakfast, well late to normal people.

  When I get there they are unpacking an Ihop bag. What the heck?

  “Uhhh…”

  “Yeah we got up like an hour ago and ordered food. Do you know how long it takes to get meals ready for the Ihop to go if you order more than ten?”

  They don’t even look up just dig through the bag and hand stuff out.

  “A long while?”

  “Exactly. If I had known it would take so long I would have waited for your food.”

  “Well if I’m not needed…”

  “Oh no you don’t. Will is still asleep so you have no reason to run off. Besides you look like you could use some coffee and breakfast.”

  I haven’t had a chance to eat because I decided to sleep in instead. I miss the set up I had while living here with Will, but I don’t want to live with him anymore

  “You and I need to talk. Here we ordered the stuff you like. Let’s go in your old room.” Tommy hands me a plate and motions me to follow. The others ignore our movements, or pretend to. What the hell is going on?

  We sit on the bed, it is still there, all set up how I had it when living here. He hasn’t moved a thing.

  “Will isn’t eating.”

  “Yes he is.”

  “No, he is picking at it and throwing the rest out. He wants you to come back. He feels terrible about what happened. Everything. You have no idea how much he is beating himself up.”

  “I’m doing an independence thing here.”

  “If I believed that I wouldn’t say anything. What’s really going on is you are upset and making everyone suffer with you.”

  What an ass. “What do you know about it?”

  “A lot since usually I am the one to go with Will to those stuffy parties. I stopped going two years ago. They weren’t fun enough for me. His family, they started helping Marabelle follow him like a dog in heat after I stopped going. He had a miserable time after that. He was alone, with the people he hated the most ganging up on him.

  “I know he wouldn’t tell you himself, but he has actually enjoyed the dance classes you two went to. He has gone you know. Hoping you will show up. He really did want you to go to the party because he thought he would have fun that way. I’ve been a buffer before, and I didn’t get any dancing.”

  The look on his face and the ridiculous thought process makes me laugh. It is short lived though.

  “He still lied to me.”

  “He didn’t want you to treat him different. I don’t think he worried about this reaction but, well, people treat you differently when they learn you come from a certain background.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Because I knew Will long before that gaming tournament. We grew up together. The silver spoon babies that forged our own paths. Well sort of. Will is. I’m living off my trust fund.”

  “And you think I care how you get your money or how much of it you have?”

  He shrugs and stuffs food into his mouth looking at me as if trying to decide what he does think.

  “No. I think you’d be mouthy no matter what.”

  I smile. Yup that is me.

  “So Will didn’t trust me to not turn into a gold digger around him?”

  “No, he was worried you would think he was a different person, treat him different. He likes how honest you are. How open you are with your thoughts and feelings, even if they aren’t always the most flattering. He didn’t want you treat him like you did the people at the party. They had money. He told me you were nice and charming.”

  “I was trying to be polite so I didn’t leave people with a bad impression since we were there representing his company. I didn’t care how much money they had. I was only nice to them because I didn’t want to embarrass Will.”

  Is it okay to shake men if you happen to know for sure they are being dumb? I shove food into my mouth and continue to think about what Tommy said as I eat.

  “So will you move back?”

  “No.”

  He glares and huffs at me in frustration.

  “Why the hell not?”

  “Because Will should have known better. He should have trusted me. And because he shouldn’t have taken me in there to meet his ex-fiancée and parents without warning me things could get ugly. You weren’t the one called a prostitute.”

  “Wouldn’t be the first time one of them said something similar to me.”

  “Well I don’t have as thick of skin as you. We commoners love our families; we don’t develop thick skin to fend off verbal attacks from the people we care about the most.”

  “Oh I doubt that Will much cares for any of his family. Except maybe his sister.”

  “He has a sister?”

  Tommy flinches and sighs.

  “What has Will told you about himself so I can stop digging him a deeper hole while trying to help?”

  Because I know he means well I answer. “He said while in college he broke up with his girlfriend, but it wasn’t that serious to begin with so he wasn’t really upset about it. He said he didn’t get along with his family because they were controlling and wanted him to major in business, but he wanted to work with computers so he switched his major without telling them. Once he finished he moved out and started his own company and they barely ever see or speak now.”

  “He left out a few details.”

  “I’m starting to see that.”

  Tommy puts his empty plate down and rubs his face.

  “I’m not helping any and I meant to. He will be so mad if I make it worse.”

  “Why does he even care where I live?”

  “Don’t tell him I said so, but I think he enjoys being a part of your life. He
hasn’t really ever had much but his work. You are making him join the world. He doesn’t have the courage to do it alone. He likes being out there, he likes having a reason to go out and experience life.”

  “Why don’t you take him out?”

  “I get hounded by the press too much. He goes through a lot of hassle to stay out of the press.”

  I suddenly have the feeling Tommy is not at all like the man I know and instead is totally different than the young man he is while here. Do I even know the real him? He catches me staring and smiles a sad little smile.

  “That look right there is what Will wanted to avoid.”

  Am I judging Tommy? No, I am shocked by this completely different version of him, but then I’ve only seen him on Friday nights at the get togethers. It is different with Will, I lived with him. I thought knew him.

  “It’s different Tommy; I don’t know you outside of the gaming nights so I don’t have anything else to measure you by. Will and I lived together. We were friends, we worked together, and we were roommates. If he had just told me the truth I would have been okay. It wouldn’t have bothered me and I could have helped more at the party instead of being used like a punching bag for his mother and ex thing.”

  “Are you jealous?”

  I roll my eyes. Of blonde perfection? Is there a girl alive that wouldn’t be?

  “It’s not like that. I mean they attacked me. If it was physical I could’ve taken both bitches at the same time I know it and I’m not afraid to say so.”

  Tommy laughs and nods. Yeah, no one is shocked. Blondie would’ve been too afraid to break a nail to fight back.

  “I can hold my own in a verbal battle too, but I like to know I’m going into one before I do. He should have warned me. I could have even slapped blondie and told her to stay off my man so she would back off. I’m really not useless, but he brought me and treated me like a piece of luggage he was dragging along.”

  “I know he never meant for that to happen.”

  “I know, but come on Tommy. Admit it if you were me….”

  He sighs and looks out into the living room. No one is there but he is still watching.

  “I’d be mad too, but then I would admit to myself that I was so mad because I liked the guy. He broke my heart and now I had to put the pieces back together and it was making me cranky.”

  I swallow my last bite of food trying not to choke and smile at him. I am so not touching that one with a ten foot pole. Will and I are friends nothing else is going on. He was out of my league before I found out he was rich, now it is an impossibility.

  “Thanks for the talk and the food. And Tommy, get a head scan please.”

  When in doubt deflect. I’m not looking where I am going and walk into a half asleep Will heading straight to my old room.

  “Trisha.”

  “Will.”

  “Is breakfast all done?”

  I nod toward the kitchen

  “The traitors called Ihop. They all apparently beat you out of bed by at least an hour.”

  “Oh. So you are going home for now.”

  “I’m going to clean another house. I will be done in time to make lunch and clean up after last night.”

  “Okay.”

  We both stand there silent for an awkward moment before I decide I don’t want to be late and if I got there early I might have time to work on some pages before I have to come back here.

  I do finish early, but I’m so exhausted I just go straight to Will’s place, make a quick lunch, clean up, and go right home to fall asleep until dinner.

  It is the night of my house warming party so when I wake up I quickly shower and clean my place up a bit. Doesn’t matter though. It is a dump, but it is all I can afford right now.

  Soon people start arriving and I welcome everyone at the door. Until it gets to be too much and I just put a sign on the door that says come in.

  When the guys show up it is like always, in one large group. They head toward the snacks and I wish suddenly I had charged an entrance fee to cover food costs. Boys, no matter what age, are pigs.

  Tommy comes in last and gives me back the invite.

  “Like my date?”

  He grabs Will’s hand. Will scowls and takes his hand back. I can’t help but laugh a little at Tommy and a little at Will’s suffering. I think Tommy got it because he winks and comes in. Will stands in the doorway unsure.

  “Come on in.”

  “Are you sure?”

  I nod, put on my hostess smile, and let him in.

  Around midnight everyone starts to filter out. The guys stay to help me clean up. Then we are all dead tired so they crash on my living room floor. There is enough room because I have no couch.

  In the morning they all shuffle out the door in half woken states. I hope they aren’t driving. Will and Tommy leave last. They each hand me a gift, I thank them, let them out and am ready for bed again.

  I don’t go back to bed though. I need to wake up and get some writing done. But first, presents. I open the one from Tommy and it is a toaster oven. He always said everyone needs one, but between an oven and the toaster I could never figure out why he thought so. Sarcastic fool.

  I open the one from Will and inside is a velvet blue box. I open it and see the necklace and earrings he gave me to wear to the party. I left them there. Apparently he’s not okay with that. Inside is also a letter. I open it and read it twice before I begin to cry.

  Trisha,

  I know I messed up a lot, and I know Tommy attempted to get you to understand and only made it worse. He meant well and I hope you don’t hold it against him. I’m not like you. I’m not good with words in any form. I’m going to try though.

  I want to thank you. My life had been very dull and boring and monotone up until I met you a year ago. The last few months that you have been living with me I have experienced more in life than I ever have before. I never thanked you for that and if we never speak again I won’t blame you, but I want you to know that.

  Also, about Marabelle. It wasn’t serious. Our parents arranged the whole thing; dating, the engagement, everything. I never felt anything at all for her. That’s why I told you when we started talking about personal stuff that it wasn’t serious, because I didn’t feel anything for her. I was just going through the motions every day. Like brushing your teeth or combing your hair. You don’t feel one way or another about it you just do it.

  I didn’t tell you about my parents because I liked how real you were with me and people often get fake if they know you come from money, even if you don’t have it now. I didn’t think you would be after my money so please don’t think that. I thought you would feel weird around me. Then I saw how well you fit in at the party and I worried the money would matter to you.

  See, I’ve never fit in and I’m quickly learning you seem to be able to fit in anywhere. Like I said I always think I have you figured out then you shock me again. I miss that; not having you around has taken the surprises out of life. It’s gotten monotone all over again. If you ever want to come back and live with me I wouldn’t object. I’m sorry I hurt and offended you. The earrings and necklace are yours. I owe you that much at least. Do with them as you wish.

  Will

  It is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me, or written to me as is the case. So I did the only thing I can. I grab my keys, lock the door, and book ass outside. There are too many stairs and the elevator is busted. I make it down in record time. I see them getting into Tommy’s car and run out waving my arms and screaming. One or both of them must have heard me because they jump out of the car looking frantic. Thank God I caught them!

  I ran right to Will and have trouble stopping so I slam into him. I hug him so tight and start crying. He hugs me back and doesn’t say anything. Tommy smiles and looks up like he is thanking God or he finds the situation funny and ironic.

  “I want to come home.”

  “Let’s pack your things. We can take what we can and have Bobbi take t
he rest.”

  I smile and head toward the door.

  “Okay.”

  It takes me less than a day to get back into the swing of things. My agent is happy I won’t have to give up a book deal, Will is happy we aren’t fighting anymore and I am just happy to be home.

  While cleaning one day about a month after moving back in I notice stacks of applications. I look through. Housekeepers and cooks. Is he replacing me? After all he has gone through to get me to come back? He even talked to my landlord and I got all but one weeks’ worth of rent back. I don’t know what to say. I thought he wanted me to stay?

  Chapter Eight

  A couple more weeks go by and I am lazing around the house. Cindy wants to try clubbing again, at a different club, but I said no. I really need to save up my money if I am going to get a new place soon.

  “Trisha, are you okay?”

  I nod and flip through the channels on TV. I don’t know what to watch. I am feeling very…I don’t know.

  “I’m just feeling shut in I guess.”

  “So go out. You haven’t had a girl’s night in a while.”

  The guilt automatically kicks in and I wilt a bit. Will sighs and sits down next to me. He has been working a bit less and hanging out with me instead.

  “Trisha, stop feeling bad about that. It was forever ago. It’s no big deal. Go out, have some fun. It’s not like you to stay cooped up inside all the time. You haven’t gone to the Y in over a week.”

  Since he has been working less he’s been spending more time with me, watching anime, going walking occasionally. Sometimes we game. It was fun and temporarily made me forget how upset I am. The downside is that, because he isn’t always working he notices what I am, or am not doing. Like not going to the Y. I have frozen my account in case I can’t afford it.

  “I’m not going anymore. I don’t know if I will be able to afford it soon.”

  Will stiffens and stands, walking into the kitchen. He looks so out of place there, probably because he gets himself sodas and that is about all he does in there. He grabs a water bottle and starts drinking. After I start preparing to leave he finally listens to me about how he’s going to die of dehydration because soda doesn’t hydrate you. Isn’t that how life goes?