Chapter 25 ½
Old Phoebe comes over from the carrousel, holding her coat over her head to block out the rain, and comes to sit on the bench next to me. She sits there on the edge of the park bench, tucking her long locks behind her pretty ears. The goddam rain has stopped, and she begins to shift and shiver in her nice blue coat, which is now wrapped tightly around her tiny little body.
"Holden," she says. "Holden, come home."
I was too damn stuck between happiness and confusion to do anything but say, "Okay."
Old Phoebe gives a small smile and stands up. Taking my hand, she pulls me in the direction of our apartment.
"Okay," I say again. "I'll come home."
As we near the curb of cross street right before our apartment block, I stop walking and look down at the lousy, wet, cold pavement below our feet. Phoebe gives my hand a light tug and we both continue to walk across the street, me still looking at the sore, old sidewalk. I guess with old Phoebe here, I didn't need Allie to help pull me across the street to the other side. We enter the lobby of our apartment, and walk on over to the elevator where the bellboy gives us a curious stare. I'm guessing he was surprised to see me there with Phoebe. We make our way slowly out of the elevator and down the hall, stopping right before our door. Phoebe gently lets go of my arm, which she's been holding ever since the elevator, to fish the keys out of the pocket of her nice blue coat. As she puts the key in the lock, shakes the key around a good bit, and turns it at a glacial pace, I stand next to her all the while. She puts her hand on the knob, hesitating.
"I'm home, Allie," I whisper mostly to Allie, to the door, and to the flaps of my red hunting hat.
"Yes, Holden," Old Phoebe says with a sad smile. "You're home."