Here it is, Chapter 14, and on time as usual! Thanks for the awesome reviews, guys, enjoy!
-8x8-
Gar looked at the piles of boards and bolts and began to feel hopelessly lost as he tried to remember how it all went together. The last time had been so easy, but he'd also had the directions, and that had disappeared somewhere during the move.
Taking a seat on his recently reassembled futon, the teacher considered his options along with the other boxes around the room. There was still more unpacking he could do, the clothes hanging in the closet were the only ones in the right place, and he still needed to hook his old game station up to the small TV in the corner along with putting all his books on the shelves.
Making his decision quickly, Gar concluded he had too much else to do to worry about that particular furniture piece and that he'd return to it later on.
A week later, no progress had been made with no actions taken to change that any time in the future.
Timmy and Tommy had taken to visiting the loft whenever possible, despite their mother's constant reminders that it was now Gar's personal space and they should respect his privacy. Gar had reassured her several times that he didn't mind, and so Thursday Timmy trooped his way up the steps even though he knew Mr. Logan was at lacrosse practice with his mom so no one was up there.
He had been planning on playing the game station for awhile, perfectly convinced that the teacher wouldn't mind, but the pile of boards and bolts in the corner suddenly drew his attention. The pieces were like the parts of a puzzle, and quickly the boy's mind began to identify the different sections and how they fit together. Picking up the abandoned screwdriver, Timmy looked back at the pile and grinned.
-8x8-
Rachel and Gar returned at the same time as usual, finding Vic and Tommy embroiled in a Tetris war on the game station. Asking about her middle child as Melvin went to shower; the mother became mildly alarmed when her brother admitted there had been no so much as a peep from the boy in the last several hours. His room was empty, and he didn't answer when they called his name.
Gar suggested the loft when Rachel began to worry, and so there they went, through the garage and up the ladder as always. The teacher was the first one in, and he stopped in surprise, blocking the entryway in his shock.
"Gar?" Rachel asked, tapping his shoulder from behind. "Is he there? What's wrong?"
"Mom, come see what I did!" Timmy called when he realized he was being watched, Gar moving numbly out of the way to let the others come up behind him.
Gar's desk was no longer in several small pieces, but it also wasn't quite the way he remembered it being. He still wasn't sure how the boy had managed it, but the shelves definitely weren't in the same place they used to be, and the drawers didn't look quite right.
"Did you do that by yourself?" Rachel asked, clearly surprised.
The boy just nodded proudly, his smile stretching from ear to ear.
"It looks solid to me," Vic commented as he pulled one drawer open curiously. It slid on its track noiselessly, going back in place with only a slight push. "What do you think, Gar?"
"I think I feel really dumb," the man admitted with a self-conscious chuckle. "The desk looks great, Timmy!" And really, it did. It actually looked better than before, but the teacher wasn't quite ready to admit that aloud yet. "Thanks, Timmy, I really appreciate it."
"You're welcome," the boy replied before turning to his mother and declaring he was hungry. Downstairs the family went, leaving Gar alone with his new desk. Slowly, the teacher approached the furniture piece, half afraid it would collapse the moment he touched it. Putting on finger on the edge, the construction remained firm and he began to test the drawers and doors once at a time. Each opened and shut as it should, the shelves were properly balanced on their pegs and the top was perfectly level.
"These kids are freaking smart," Gar said to himself as he sat in his chair heavily. "Gees, were their parents rocket scientists or something?"
-8x8-
It was a few days later when Melvin made sure the rest of her family was occupied before she went searching for the missing teacher. The loft was the first place she looked, and a correct guess as she found the man at his desk testing out his new cell phone. The last one had been badly damaged in the fire, and he was lucky the internal chip had been whole enough to have all the information transferred to his new device.
"You kept my list, didn't you?" she asked after Gar noticed her standing in the doorway. "I thought a lot of things sounded familiar, but it wasn't until I really sat down and thought about it that it came together for me."
"I did," the teacher admitted after a moment of thought. "I'm sorry if you didn't want me to, but it's was a wonderful place to start in trying to help your family."
"It's ok," the girl replied with a brilliant smile. "Just…thank you. You've done a ton of great stuff for us, and I really appreciate it."
His smile stretched from cheek to cheek. "It was my pleasure, and I hope there's many such opportunities to come."
Melvin laughed, crossing her arms over her stomach comfortably. "If you give us surprises too often, you'll run out of ideas one day."
"That I sincerely doubt," the teacher replied with a wink. "Though if you insist upon it, I might take it as a challenge."
His guest snorted, but her smile remained firmly in place. "Well, anyways…thanks. I'll go now, I know you've got tests to grade once you figure out how to use your phone, I just…wanted to make sure you knew. That we appreciate it. And you. Yeah."
Gar's smile was warm as the girl left, wishing he could have gotten up and given her the hug he felt she desperately needed. Someday, he promised himself, she'd get that hug.
-8x8-
Mrs. Daniels was surprised to hear someone knock on her front door in the middle of the day, answering it curiously to find a somewhat sheepish Rachel standing on her porch.
"Well, I can't say this is expected," the older woman blurted out dryly. "Actually, that's not true. I expected either you'd quit two weeks in, or you'd tough it out to the end of the season. So, what's the problem?"
"You mean I can't have come to see you simply to catch up on things?" the librarian replied flatly, moving over as the previous lacrosse coach moved out onto the front porch.
"You haven't before, why start now?" her hostess replied tartly, taking a seat on one side of a worn and weathered chess board that sat on the only table outside. "But if you want to play that way, fine. How's the kids?"
"Melvin's on the lacrosse team, she's taken over the goalie position."
"You taught her the stare?"
"She's getting there."
"And the boys?"
"Timmy's finally out of his cast, and joined the county choir after Christmas. He has practice the same time the team does twice a week, a bus comes an takes him there and brings him back. Tommy is mainly hanging out, he's a little lonely, I think, with all of us busy. I might try and get him to try out for something so he'll have an activity of his own to do."
"Well, that's nice. Now sit and spit it out."
Rachel obeyed stiffly, setting her purse down at her feet as she relaxed into the wicker seat. The weather was chilly, it being late in January, but the wind wasn't blowing for once and it wasn't unpleasant to be outside. "I'm not quitting the coaching position."
The older woman nodded as she looked at the board, moving one pawn forward. "That's good, but that means you have a problem or you wouldn't have come to me. What is it?"
Rachel answered the question with another question, carefully moving a pawn in turn. "How did you develop leadership in the team?"
The retired Coach shrugged as she steepled her fingers for a moment, plucking a knight and moving it to the left. "I figured out who was too stubborn to take orders and put them in charge, a very simple yet mostly effective process."
Her guest hmmed softly to herself, moving a second pawn. "I see."
Mrs. Daniels scoffed, crossing her arms as she stared at her uninvited guest. "You've made the wrong girl Captain, haven't you?"
Rachel's reply was immediate and defensive, the younger woman gritting her teeth as she did. "I didn't have any basis to give the other girl Captainship; she was new to the team and hasn't really proven herself to be a team player up to this point. There were other members with more seniority…"
"To hell with seniority," her hostess cut in sharply. "You obviously didn't learn anything in the four years I coached you in high school."
The librarian bit back her retort and settled with, "I learned enough. What do you suggest I do?"
The older woman sighed in exasperation. "You can't do anything but wait. Either it will work itself out, or it won't. If the situation arises, though, you'd better not let it slip through your hands a second time."
"Yes, fine."
The ex-coach let it go with a wave. "So, other than that, how are they doing?"
Rachel leaned back in her chair and sighed, settling in for being scoured of every single detail her mind might recall. It was going to be a long afternoon.
-8x8-
Rachel was in her office when Casey, one of her new part-timers, knocked timidly on her open door. "Come in," she said without looking up.
"Sorry to bother you," the girl said quickly. "But…it's Jenny."
The librarian quirked a slight smile. "She didn't tell the toddlers another ghost story during reading hour, did she?"
The girl's own lips curled into a hesitant smile. "N-no, she didn't show up for work at all this morning."
Rachel paused, looking up slowly. "Run that by me again?"
"Jenny never showed up this morning, Ms. Roth," the girl repeated carefully. "I called her listed number several times, and no one answered. Noah said she never called in late or sick, and she didn't ask for any days off this month."
Rachel frowned, then sighed. "I'll take care of it. Can you file these book requests for me, and tell Sam to remember to fill them before Friday?"
The girl nodded, somewhat more confident now that she knew she wasn't going to be raked over the coals. "Yes, I can."
"Thank you."
Rachel waited for the girl to leave before she picked up her phone and dialed a number she hadn't used for a very long time. "Skinny? It's Raven, has Jinx had a heist around you for awhile?" Her brows rose slightly in surprise. "Three months? Really? Are you…ok, I get it." The librarian gave an amused smile. "Yeah, I know. Thank you, Skinny, I appreciate it."
Tapping her fingers against the desk, the woman paused, and then called three other numbers in quick succession. At each the answer was the same. Haven't seen her, not for months, no new jobs, and everyone seemed to have stopped asking for her help.
Calling Casey back in her office, the head of the library told the girl to rearrange everyone's schedules to make up for the loss for today. Everyone was to take an hour rotation at the desk, and if Rachel was needed to fill any gaps just let her know. The girl nodded and left, the pale woman passing through her day as she put the pick-haired assistant out of her mind for the moment.
It wasn't until she was cleaning up from dinner; Gar helping the boys put together a dinosaur model and Melvin reading a chapter for class at the table, that she remember. Vic, sitting at the kitchen table as he tried to figure out why the toaster wasn't working again, cocked an ear when she called his name.
Rachel asked him if he knew when the last time Jinx had pulled a heist was quietly. He frowned, and asked if that's why she hadn't been around for the last few days. She said she hoped not, but that the assistant had skipped work for the first time in a year, and all her contacts said the thief had been out of commission for the last three months.
Victor paused, then smiled. Really?
Yeah, really.
The mechanic glowed with the thought that his 'girl' might be leaning towards the side of good. Rachel added that the girl had probably taken a last minute mental health day, and would show up the next day on time with a thin excuse a bright smile.
Probably, he agreed, still smiling to himself.
One mental health day is fine. Unfortunately a week begins to border on the ridiculous.
Victor was worried.
Rachel was pissed.
I didn't stick my neck out and give her a job for her to blow it off like this; she fumed in private to her brother Friday night after work. If she didn't get in contact with them by Monday morning, there wasn't going to be a job for Jenny anymore. The joint supervisor from the school was asking uncomfortable questions; Rachel wouldn't be able to cover for her friend any longer.
Victor called everyone he could call, and even drove out to the house Jenny had been taking him to. The lights were out, and nobody answered when he knocked at the front door for several minutes. He didn't trust the neighbors enough to ask if they knew anything.
Saturday passed with no word from Jenny still.
Rachel was serving dinner when the phone rang, answering it with a frown as Victor took the crock pot from her hands. The voice on the other end was low and solemn, and the guardian's face turned grim.
"I'm on my way," she said after a moment's hesitation, hanging the phone up and grabbing her keys off the counter. "I know where Jenny's been."
Victor was on his feet in an instant. "Is she…?"
Rachel paused halfway out the door, giving her brother a firm but sincere nod. "She's fine. We'll be back soon."
-8x8-
Jenny stared at the sterile wall, nerveless hands laying palm up n her lap as she desperately tried to make sense of the last 48 hours. Had it been longer? She couldn't remember.
The doctor was talking to the nurse again, motioning towards her subtly with a nod.
Whatever.
Both left, though the door was left open and the library assistant felt her body slump forward another inch.
She was dead, she was dead, she was dead, she was dead, she was dead, she was dead…
Time was immaterial until a pale face framed by black hair appeared in front of her, warm hands pushing her shoulders back slightly.
"What are you doing here?" Jenny asked her voice hoarse with grief.
The look the person gave her was so full of compassion that the hurt being held tightly in her chest almost overflowed.
"I'm here for you."
-8x8-
Victor didn't eat as they sat there waiting, and he leapt to his feet again at the sound of the front door opening, two pairs of footsteps leading off to the side hallway where another door opened and closed. Rachel appeared a few moments later with a thoughtful look on her face, taking her seat quietly.
"She's fine Vic," she said as she glanced at her brother's plate. "Finish eating and you can go see her, alright?"
The man all but demanded, following her around as she went to fix herself some tea. "Where is she?"
"My room, probably sleeping." She noticed the incredulous look they were giving her and rolled her eyes. "Where else was I going to put her? She won't want to share a bed with Melvin, and the couch is hardly comfortable."
"One of the boys can stay in the loft with me if you need extra room," Gar offered.
"We're fine, thank you," Rachel replied steadily. "Finish what's on your plate, Vic, you were starving before, get to it.
The mechanic grin his teeth, having already moved towards the hall. "But Rachel-"
The look she gave him cut the rest of the protest off neatly. "Do it. She's resting, you can go bother her later."
Gar would have called the look Vic had in anything less than a grown man a pout. Of course, Vic would never pout. "Fine…"
"We're done," Melvin chirped from her seat, giving her mother a hopeful look.
"Go put your dishes in the sink," she said with a nod. "And get your homework out."
"I don't have any," Timmy replied.
"Me neither," Melvin added with a grin. "Seminar week. Can we go play the game station?"
"If you want."
"I've gotta read a chapter," Tommy said as he hopped from his seat. "Can I read it to Mr. Logan?"
"Only if he doesn't mind," his mother replied as she reheated her dinner.
"I'm fine with it," the teacher said with a smile.
"I'm goin' back," Victor announced as he got up, his plate clean. "Thanks, Rae."
She nodded over her cup of tea. "Anytime."
"Need any help cleaning up?" Gar asked as he got up as well and rinsed his plate in the sink.
"No, thank you," she replied, thoughts obviously elsewhere as she settled back in her seat with her tea.
The science teacher smiled and plugged the sink anyways, starting the process required to wash the dishes.
"What are you doing?" she asked a few minutes later when she realized he hadn't left.
"Helping," he replied with his usual bright grin.
She frowned, turning around to face him fully. "Aren't you helping Tommy read?"
Gar nodded, looking only at the suds in front of him. "He's trying to find his book."
Rachel decided to try it from another angle. "Why are you helping me?"
He shrugged, almost humming to himself as he washed and rinse a glass. "I feel like it. Are you going to stop me?"
The look she gave him was positively murderous. She also didn't move.
He beamed at her over his shoulder. "I didn't think so."
"I found it, Mr. Logan!" Tommy yelled from down the hall before he came charging into the kitchen.
"Ok." The science teacher dried his hands and sat back at the table as Tommy clambered into his lap eagerly. If Gar noticed the odd look Rachel was giving him as opened the short chapter book and shifted so him and the boy would be more comfortable, he didn't show it.
By the end of the second page, Rachel had gotten up and cleared off the rest of the table. Dishes were piled in the soapy water, food placed in the refrigerator, and one plate set aside with a fair helping of everything on it. A glass of milk was put beside it, and after she cleaned the counter both were picked up and carried to the back.
Victor met her halfway there, fuming as he pulled out his car keys. "I'm leaving," he announced shortly. "She's awake, the stubborn brat."
"Don't take it personally," she advised as she let him give her a quick hug. "Come back and see her tomorrow."
His brows rose in surprise. "She'll still be here?"
His sister nodded, a thoughtful look on her face. "I think so."
The mechanic hesitated, then nodded in return. "Ok. Goodnight, Rae."
"Goodnight, Vic."
Heading back to the bedroom, Rachel slowly opened the cracked door to find their guest seated uneasily on the bed. The lamp on the desk was the only light on in the room, giving it a hushed look with the night sky outside.
"Hungry?" Rachel asked as she set the plate and glass on the desk, Jenny's stomach answering loudly before her voice could. "Eat, we'll deal with the rest later." For once, the assistant was not inclined to argue.
Her boss disappeared into the bathroom right off the bedroom, rummaging around before she appeared with a towel. Dropping it on the bed, she added a clean shirt and shorts. "Shower," Rachel said firmly as she waited for Jenny to finish. "Clean clothes, then sleep."
Jenny paused with the fork halfway to her mouth. "You're not going to try and talk to me?"
Rachel blinked, staring back blandly. "Do you want to talk?"
The assistant's head dropped, her fork coming to rest back on the plate. "Not yet, no."
Her hostess sighed through her nose, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Then there's no point. You'll talk to someone when you're ready." Turning to leave, the librarian was stopped with her hand on the knob.
"Why did you come for me, Rachel?" The question was almost a demand, forcefully and perhaps even fearfully given.
The answer was steady and firm. "Because you're family."
Jenny's reply was almost whispered. "If I'm family, why did you leave me?"
Rachel hesitated, her hand slipping off the knob as she turned to full face her guest. "I was not the one who betrayed this friendship."
If possible, the young woman slumped over even further. "That's not fair."
Her boss shrugged, turning to leave. "Life is not fair."
-8x8-
Gar was at the sink, finishing the few dishes he hadn't washed yet, when his hostess came back and dumped the extra plate and glass beside him.
"No comment?" he asked as she picked up a towel and began to dry.
"Will it make a difference?" she replied flatly. "I'm not fond of wasting my breath."
He chuckled softly. "Good point. How's Jenny?"
"Tired," she admitted with a candor that almost surprised him. "And grieving. It will be a rough week for her."
"You're probably right."
"Mom, we're ready for bed!" Tommy yelled as he popped his head in the room, already showered and in his pajamas with Timmy right behind him.
Rachel gave Gar a hard look, and the teacher flushed as he in turn stared at his soapy hands.
"They asked me if I thought they should get ready," he said weakly. "I thought it was a good idea."
"I see." Those two words held more meanings than the teacher could ever possibly comprehend.
"Are you gonna tuck us in or not?" Timmy asked as he folded his hands over his chest.
"Yes, I'm coming," their mother replied as she set the towel down.
"Goodnight, Mr. Logan," Tommy said as he waved from across the kitchen.
"Yeah," added Timmy. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight, boys," the teacher replied with a smile. "Sleep well."
"You too."
"Did you get your reading done?" Rachel asked as Tommy latched on to her arm, Timmy leaning into her other side.
Her son nodded emphatically, his smile as bright as ever though his eyes had begun to droop. "Yeah, Mr. Logan was real nice about helping me with the tough words. He's a real good reader, Mom."
"Is he gonna be here much longer?" Timmy asked as they got to Tommy's door.
"I don't know," Rachel admitted as she helped the youngest into his bed, tucking the covers around him gently. "Do you want him to leave?"
"No, I like having him around. He's a real good guy. Goodnight, mom."
Rachel bid her son goodnight in return, going to the door and leading her elder son to his room.
"I like Mr. Gar too," Timmy declared as his mother watched him snuggle into his improvised nest, the boy yawning so much his words were almost unintelligible.
The mother smiled, flicking off the lights. "Really, what makes him special?"
"Because he cares about us…"
She waited only a moment before she assumed he'd fallen asleep, wishing him a good night quietly before closing the door. A few more seconds, however, and she might have caught the end of the statement, whispered though it was.
"…and he cares about you."
-8x8-
Jenny was up at the first light, wondering where she was for a moment until she recognized the family picture on the nightstand. Glancing over the edge, she saw a pile of clothes on the floor. The shower in the adjoined room shut of as she sat up, and a few minutes later Rachel appeared with her damp hair swept up in a bun. Dressed in old jeans and a faded shirt, she silently handed Jenny something similar before leaving the room entirely.
Changing quickly, the pink-tipped blonde found two plates with toast and peanut butter and two mugs of steeping tea waiting on the kitchen table.
"If you want something else, I can make it for you," Rachel told her as she prepared her own cup, adding a teaspoon of honey and a touch of milk. "Don't take too long to decide, though, or Gar will be up and trying to make you French toast."
"He's here?" Jenny replied in surprise, looking around quickly. "Wow, never thought you'd move along that quick…"
"His apartment burned down over Christmas," Rachel broke in with an irritated flush. "He's been staying in the old loft ever since."
Jenny's brow quirked teasingly. "Where did you sleep?"
The reply was flat and dry. "With Melvin."
"Alright, alright…"
Jenny was busy stuffing her face when it hit her again, the toast turning to ash in her mouth as her stomach dropped like a stone.
"Jenny?" Rachel asked as she sat beside the younger woman, putting a hand on her arm. "Are you alright?"
"She died yesterday," her assistant replied quietly, blinking furiously as she wrestled with the emotions welling up inside.
"Your grandmother, right?" her boss replied quietly. Jenny's face snapped towards her in surprise. "Nurse Olsen was the one that called me, she explained everything."
Jenny nodded, turning back to her toast with a grimace. "She had it set to be cremated immediately. I'll need to go pick those up today…"
Rachel nodded, making her offer softly. "If you don't want to stay at the house by yourself you're welcome to stay here for the time being."
The young woman laughed bitterly. "I'll need to go get my things actually, the house went to her nephew, and he'll be selling it as soon as he finds out."
"Do you want to go right now?"
The look Jenny gave her was beyond surprised.
Her friend shrugged. "It's Sunday, I don't have work, the kids can look after themselves and Gar is here if there's an emergency. Do you want to go right now?"
-8x8-
The drive to the house was silent, save the occasional query about which turn to take. The house wasn't large, but Rachel still asked if the girl wanted her to call Victor for boxes and his truck.
Jenny just shook her head and replied, once again, that they wouldn't need it.
Inside they found a thick layer of dust over ancient furniture, the cracked linoleum and worn carpet floors creaking underfoot. Jenny ignored the front room, an old-styled receiving area, and the kitchen as she took the stairs two at a time. There was only one room at the top, with a small landing outside it. And inside Rachel was given a glimpse of the home life her friend had lived for the last several years.
The few clothes in sight were quickly being piled onto the threadbare bed. The walls were bare, the paint peeling at the corners and edges. The window was covered with a sheet tacked into the wall, and a few old photos stuck in the edge of the frame where the only decoration she could see.
From under the bed two duffle bags were produced, and as the ex-thief began to pile everything in Rachel realized she had just stood there and stared up to this point.
"Anything I can do?" she asked hesitantly.
"Carry these," Jenny replied as she emptied the last of her clothes from the closet. The quilt on top of the bed was stripped off and stuffed in as well, the rest she left behind. "There's just a few more things I want to get, then we can go."
Downstairs they went, Jenny grabbing a box along the way. Into it she emptied a few books from a dusty shelf, a photo album, a couple of figurines from the mantle of a fireplace, and lastly a set of food bowls and some chewed on toys.
"You have a pet?" Rachel asked as they went out the back door.
"A cat, he lives outside only," Jenny explained as she whistled sharply. "Missy, c'mere Missy!"
"Missy."
"Mischief, Missy for short."
"How fitting."
The large grey tabby with a tail kinked from being broken in multiple places and missing part of an ear bounded into Jenny's waiting arms from nowhere, purring happily as he nuzzled his mistress under the chin.
"Good Missy," Jenny murmured back as she turned around, looking at the house once more. "Say goodbye, Missy, we won't be back here again."
"You're sure he won't let you stay?" Rachel asked as she followed the young woman around the house and back to the front.
"Nope," Jenny replied as she got in the car, keeping the curious cat in her lap.
"Why not?"
"I'm not a part of his family," she explained with a shrug. "My mom was a friend of Mimi's. She dropped me here when I was three and never came back. The nephew has never wanted me around, Mimi ignored him for the most part. If she owned the house, she would have left it to me years ago, but it was in his father's name and he only let her stay here out of respect for his old man."
"Jenny," Rachel said as they waited at a red light. "Why did you start stealing in high school?"
"Junior high, actually, you just didn't realize it back then. It was to pay for her medication," the girl replied flatly. "Doctors are expensive, and so are prescription drugs. Not like it matters now, she's gone, and I make enough at the library to cover me."
Rachel shook her head slowly as they pulled into her neighborhood. "If you'd just told me…"
"You couldn't have fixed it," the assistant bit back sharply. "You couldn't have given me the money I needed, so I got it for myself and I don't regret that."
"I just wish…" Rachel glanced at her guest as they parked the car. "I wish things could have gone differently for you, that's all."
"I do too, sometimes," Jenny admitted with a shrug. "But…it's over, ya'know?"
"Yeah, I know."
"I really used to envy Kori, actually," the woman went on as they circled around to the back with Mischief in tow. "We didn't talk much after you graduated, I was too proud to ask for help and you were too proud to associate with a thief."
Rachel swallowed the protest that rose in her throat, knowing it would be a lie if it ever made it past her lips.
"But it was so easy for Kori, to accept help and let other people in. I told myself for the longest time that she couldn't always be that naïve, that accepting and unsuspicious…I really hated her for being everything that I couldn't be."
Rachel's smile was a bit wan. "She'd hug you and tell you she forgave you if you ever told her that."
Jenny couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, I know, I guess that's why I don't hate her anymore. Because she's real."
"She's good for people like us," the librarian pointed out with a sigh.
"Yeah, I guess so."
"You're welcome to stay here as long as you like, you know that, right?"
"Yeah, I do, thank you."
-8x8-
Vic had given a start the first time the odd grey tabby had wound its way through his legs, but after a day and a half of letting the curious cat wander around he'd gotten used to the occasional moments of affection that came without cause or warning.
The first time he'd sat down to eat, and the cat had jumped up next to him on the table and stared expectantly, he'd almost thrown the feline out on its ear.
"You're not having a bite of my sub," he told his uninvited guest, the cat just licking his paw as it cleaned himself with that same expectant air. "I'm not kidding. This is the Wednesday Special, all you want meat with extra topping piled on top for the regular price. I don't share this sub with nobody."
The cat paused, opened its eyes wide for a moment as it stared at the mechanic.
Vic thought his heart might tear in two.
"Alright, alright," he gave in after a minute or two. "But just a couple of bites, this is my treat, not yours."
The few others working couldn't believe it as Vic tore a few pieces off and set them aside on his paper wrapping, the cat eating daintily once he'd withdrawn his hand. The large black man was notorious of his love of cooked animal flesh, him sharing it was almost unheard of, and to think he'd given even a single morsel of his Wednesday Sub Special to a mangy stray…
Vic mostly ignored the cat for the rest of the day. He was used to strays wandering for a day or two, and then disappearing once again without a trace. If they stayed in the garage, it was usually under the machinery where it was warm and a fairly good distance from where he slept. When he got ready for bed that night, he was surprised to find his new guest sleeping in his basket of dirty clothes with a work shirt pulled over its body for a blanket.
"Why the hell aren't you scared of me?" the man mused as he reached down and scratched the cat behind the ears for the third for fourth time that day. "And why do you seem to think you belong here already?"
The cat just purred contentedly, giving the impression that not even God himself could have moved him from that spot right then if he wanted to.
"You can sleep there tonight," Vic said as he went to change for bed. "But I'm warning you, I haven't said you can stay. You'd better watch your step, kitty, or I might change my tune real quick."
The cat didn't even budge, but his entire body seemed to heave with a 'yeah right' that radiated from his slit eyes.
"I outta chuck you out right now," the mechanic sighed when he saw that. They both knew he didn't mean it, and probably couldn't if he tried.
-8x8-
That's it for this chapter. I know its kind of an odd stopping place, but the next section is almost four pages long, and that's just a bit much, yes? Besides you only have to wait a week for the next update, so you really have no reason to complain. Thanks for the many awesome reviews, most of you have gotten you replies already save those of you that will be getting them below. Please review again, it makes it much easier to keep my update schedule going, and I know you guys like having a 17-19 page chapter every week.
Reader : Thank you for the advice, I have hear similar words several times in my lifetime, but they do make sense. As for the School Board, well, you'll just have to wait and find out, won't you?
EternallyWilled : Why thank you very much, I'm glad you've enjoyed my stories over the years and I hope they've improved with time. I happen to like Rae/BB myself, which is why its the couple I focus on the most. Thank you again for the wonderful review, I hope you enjoyed the update and that I'll hear from you again soon!
That's it for now, folks. See you next week, same time, same place.
CB
Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.
-Albert Szent-Gyorgyi (1893 - 1986)