I hope everyone's week is going well.
Chapter Three
When I woke up the next morning, I headed to the consignment store. I really wanted to look at their stuff. There wasn't too much to do in the bakery, I was just waiting on the appliances to arrive and a few other things. Today I wanted to get a couple things for my apartment.
There was only one other person in the store. I immediately wen to the table and found that it came with two chairs, and only cost sixty dollars. The table was a little scratched and the chair cushions didn't match, but somehow that made me love it more.
As I was staring at the table, a man walked over, "Can I help you with something?" He asked, his Irish accent thick.
"Yes, I actually wanted to buy this table." I said.
"Okay, I can deliver it for you on Sunday." He said.
"That's okay. I just live right up the street in the building on the corner."
"You bought that old building?" He said, "I thought that place would never see another person in it. You know it's been empty for a long time. Like thirty years or so."
"I heard. That's probably why I got a great deal on it." I said.
"You look so young. You bought the building?" He asked.
"Yeah, I had plenty of money for the down payment and everything. And plus I had my parent's friends help me out." I said.
"Ah, well that's nice. I'm Liam by the way." He said, extending his hand.
"I'm Bella," I said, his big hand engulfing mine.
"So, what are you going to do with the property underneath?" He asked.
"I'm opening up a bakery." I said.
"That'll be nice. A good change for the neighborhood." He said, "Welp, since you live right down the road, I can bring you the table that way you don't have to carry it yourself. I can bring it by around two."
I nodded, "Thank you, I'd appreciate it."
The other customer walked to the counter, Liam held his finger up and then went behind the counter.
I looked through the store, it was nice and had a lot of stuff. I ended up finding a working radio that was kind of old school. I also found a couple other little decorative things, like curtains, a little vase for my table, a towel holder, and a soap dish. It really didn't cost much, but it would make a big different in my apartment.
I was excited for my stuff to come back. As Liam was checking me out, a very large woman and a young girl around fifteen walked in. Liam looked up and smiled.
"Bella, this is my wife Siobhan and our daughter Maggie," He said as they walked over, "Bella here bought that old building on the corner. She's opening a bakery."
"Oh wow, that'll be nice. We certainly love sweets around here," Siobhan laughed. She was a large woman, but large in the sense of being tall and wide, not necessarily large. She was a beautiful woman, well kept and nicely dressed.
"Are you looking to hire some help?" Maggie asked, she on the other hand was very tiny and had wild curly red hair.
"I'm opening in three weeks. I'm not sure how long it'll be before it takes off, but I'll definitely need someone up front running the store." I said.
"Maggie here is interested in cooking." Siobhan said, "She wants to go to the International Culinary center. But she needs a little background experience first."
"Oh well then I'll definitely hire you." I said, "As soon as I open, just come on by. I can't promise that it'll be busy."
"Could you teach me how to bake a little?" She asked, "I'm not very good at baking."
"Of course," I said, "I'd be happy to do that." A few more customers walked into the store, "Well, I better get going now. I'll see you later."
"I'll be by soon and drop off the table," Liam said.
"Thank you, I appreciate it." I said.
I walked out of the shop and back to my apartment. When I got to the stairs, I heard the faintest meowing. I set my bag down and walked around the stairs to find the meowing.
I couldn't see the cat, but I could hear it meowing. I figured out it wasn't coming from under the stairs, but when I looked around I spotted a large industrial sized garbage can sitting in the alley.
I walked towards it and opened the lid. When I was hit with the smell, I gagged, nearly vomiting on the ground. I lifted my shirt over my nose and looked into the trashcan.
The can was filled to the top, so when I saw a dirty sack in the corner moving, I picked it up. Inside was a little kitten, shivering and meowing desperately.
I took it out of the sack and held it to my chest. It was filthy and looked petrified. I was surprised it let me hold it.
"Come on, you poor thing." I whispered to it as I stroked its head.
I ran it into the apartment and wrapped it in a soft towel.
"Poor little guy, who would do this to you?" I told it as I took a paper towel and wet it with warm water. I started to clean the gunk off it, which, surprisingly it let me do.
"There you go," I said once it was all clean. It's fur reminded me of a cinnamon bun, and it had big, warm yellow eyes.
"I bet you're hungry too," I said as I placed it on my mattress, "I don't have any cat food, but I have tuna."
Even though it was just a kitten, I knew it was too old for milk. I scooped some tuna out of a can and onto a plate before setting it in front of the kitten.
It greedily started eating the tuna, making funny little growling noises as it ate. When it finished with the tuna, it looked up at me and meowed loudly.
"Do you want more?" I said, grabbing the plate and putting more tuna onto it, "I won't judge. You've had a hard day."
It devoured the tuna quickly, then stretched and looked around my apartment. I poured a bowl of water for it and sat it beside the trashcan while it jumped down from my bed. It walked to the water and took a few gulps before walked to my tote of clothes.
I watched as it jumped into the tote, spun around a few times, then curled up and closed its eyes.
"You can stay as long as you like," I said as I picked up the dish, "But, I'm going to have to give you a name." I thought about it for a few moments, "You know what, I'll call you Cinnamon, because you look like a cinnamon bun and cinnamon is one of my favorite spices."
Cinnamon ignored me and continued sleeping. I smiled to myself; it looks like I solved my little loneliness problem. I never had a pet before, so it would be a nice change. I probably needed to get him a few things, like bowls, a little box, and food.
I was happy to have a new little companion, but I was alarmed by how I found him. Who would put such a sweet kitten into a sack and throw it away? Like it was garbage? People in this world were so cruel and heartless. I prayed it hadn't been anyone on this street, but I doubted it. Of course, I didn't know them too well.
I fixed myself a sandwich and chips for lunch. I couldn't wait to have my table that I could sit at. As I was eating, Cinnamon had woken up and walked over to me. He started pawing at my leg, meowing loudly.
"What do you want?" I asked him.
He meowed again and started pawing at my plate.
"You're a greedy little thing aren't you?" I laughed and broke off some of my turkey, "There, but I'm not giving you anymore."
He grabbed the turkey and chowed down. It was funny to watch him try to eat the piece of turkey. I quickly ate my sandwich that way he wouldn't beg for me. I would have to run out and get him some food tonight, or else he'd steal all of mine.
As soon as I finished, there was a knock on my door. I shot up and ran to answer it. Maggie was standing there holding two chairs.
"Hello Bella," She said.
"Hi Maggie, come on in," I stepped aside. She walked in and sat the chairs on the ground. She looked around and spotted Cinnamon.
"Awe, I didn't know you had a kitty." She said walking over to him, "He's so cute."
"I found him today in the dumpster." I said, "Someone just threw him in there. I guess he's mine now."
"Who could throw this cute little guy away? Have you named him?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'm going to call him Cinnamon. I need to run out and get some stuff for him tonight. He's a little hippo."
Liam made it up the stairs with the table and sat it down beside the chairs.
"There ya go Bella," He said.
"Thank you so much Liam," I smiled, touching my new table, "I needed a table so badly. I'm sick of eating on the bed."
"You need more than just a table," He said, looking around my tiny apartment and putting his hands on his hips.
"Yeah, I know. But I figured I'd start with a table first. Then get a couch and a bookshelf."
"Well, we're always getting random pieces of furniture every week. You'll probably luck out and find the things you need."
"I'll definitely be by your shop again. By chance, do you have anything for pets? Like bowls or a little box?" I asked, "I just found that little guy today and he needs some stuff."
"Not in the shop, but we have a little box and bowls. And a half a bag of cat food," He said, "Maggie's cat just died. You can have them if you want."
My eyes widened, "Really? And you don't mind?" I asked as I looked at Maggie.
"No, it's just been sitting around the house. You can have it all," He looked at Maggie, "Why don't you go get it for Bella?"
She stood and smoothed out her skirt, "Yeah I'll get it. I'll be back real quick." When she walked out of the front door, Liam turned to me.
"Bella, I need to ask you something," He said.
"Sure, ask me anything." I said, slightly surprised by his tone.
"Do you have a gun?" He asked.
I was surprised by his question, "Uh, yeah I do actually. It was my dad's. He was a cop and I kept it. I think it only has like four or five bullets. But it's packed away."
He nodded, "You should keep it somewhere close to you."
"Why? Is there something I should be worried about?" I asked.
He shrugged, "Uh, well, sometimes some shady people come by here and cause trouble. And with you being alone and all, I don't want to hear about anything happening to you."
I nodded, my heart racing slightly, "Okay, I'll um unpack it."
"Good. Keep it close okay?" He said.
Just then Maggie came in holding a bunch of stuff. Liam rushed over and grabbed a few items.
"I grabbed everything." Maggie said as she sat it on the table.
"Thank you so much," I said, trying my hardest to keep the shaky voice away. What Liam had told me scared me.
"You're welcome," Maggie said.
"Well, we better get back to the store," Liam said.
"See you later Bella."
"Thank you for everything," I said, "I really appreciate it."
As soon as they left my apartment, I grabbed the box from the little storage door that I hadn't opened and started digging through it. This was a box of my parent's stuff, things that I wasn't quite ready to unpack and see every day.
I finally found the black gun case and opened it. I wasn't sure why I decided to take this, but now I was glad I had it. There were two bullets sitting in the gun case and four in the chamber. I knew how to shoot a little. My dad always took me to the gun range with him.
I took a deep breath and placed the gun on the table. I wondered what happened here for Liam to tell me to keep a gun close to me. I looked at my front door and thought about getting more locks.
Cinnamon meowed loudly, catching my attention. I remembered that I needed to put his stuff down. I fixed the litterbox in the bathroom, beside the toilet and set his bowl up by the fridge. I put his litter and the food in the cabinet under the sink when he started pawing at the food.
"There you go," I said to him, "Now you're all set."
I went to walk out of the apartment, then paused, looking back at the gun. I grabbed it and shoved it deep into my pocket.