"You sleeping here, babe?" Joey asked, gesturing to the bed.
"Yes." Angel said, turning away from him to study the room. There was a mirror across from the bed, just like the one in Angel's apartment... well... in what used to be her apartment. She had already made up her mind to move out of that apartment. Maybe she could move in with Mark. She hadn't seen his apartment yet... usually, they would... well... hang out at her apartment.
She walked into the bathroom and flipped the switch, having a quick flashback to the handle on her car that had snapped off in her hand. The light didn't turn on, and the glass on the shower door was broken. Great. Now she knew that nobody in this house was going to be taking a shower for awhile. She wrinkled her nose at the bacteria growing alongside the toilet and in the cracks of the walls.
"Yet another shitty place for Angel to stay in! Oh joy!" She said with sarcastic enthusiasm. She could hear Joey laughing in the other room. He had one of those weird laughs, an excited hyena sound.
She walked out of the bathroom and stared at him.
"Are you still here?" She asked him, just the slightest bit irritated.
"Well yeah, baby. This is where I'm sleeping." He said with a annoying smile. She glared at him.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, darling, there's only one bed. Corn vampire is gonna sleep on the couch and the other dude is taking the armchair, so I was going to sleep on the bed. Since you're here, I guess we'll both be sleeping here."
He was grinning the biggest, cockiest grin she had ever seen, and she wanted to smack him. She walked over to the bed and stretched right across the middle of it and smiled at him.
"I don't think so."
She tossed a pillow at him and pointed at the floor.
He didn't argue. "I figured you'd say that, but hey, babe, it was worth a shot." He tossed the pillow onto the carpet and went to the closet.
"I think I saw a blanket in here somewhere..." He muttered to himself.
Angel remained silent for awhile. "Joey?" She asked finally.
"Hmmm?" He replied, pulling out a blanket that had a sick yellow color, pastel but sort of dirty from years of sitting in the closet.
"You said there was another man here?" She asked.
"I did?" Joey said, stopping for a minute. "Oh yeah, the dude on the armchair. He's playing the part of... what's his name? The other guy?" Joey snapped his fingers a couple times while he thought furiously. "I know it, I know it... well, I'm sure we'll find out sooner or later."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, the guys been talking about his part all day... he filched a copy of the script and he's been quoting from it and trying to get me to help him with his lines and stuff... the dude really needs to chill before he turns out like corn vampire."
Angel sat up in the bed and quickly jumped off it, stubbing her toe just like the last time she had crawled out of bed, only this time it was on the bed frame.
I'm going to meet him." She said to Joey, even though she knew that she didn't have to explain her every move to him.
"Alright, baby, but be careful cos he's a little touchy."
Angel walked back down the stairs and heard a familiar tapping coming from the couch. She knew without looking that Mort was still writing away on his computer.
"Um, hey." She said, waiting for him to look up. He didn't. She hoped he was listening. "I totally forgot to bring any clothes or anything so I'm gonna need to drive back to my place and get my stuff." Angel said.
"No, you don't need to do that. The other guys are just gonna use my stuff." He said, startling her. She didn't think he had been paying attention.
"Ummm..." Angel thought for a moment. "But... I'm not a guy, so how can I use your stuff if..."
"My wife has some stuff here that you can use."
"Your wife? You're married?"
"Was." Mort said, turning away from the computer to face her. "Hey, listen... are you hungry at all? I think it's time for me to take a break."
"Uh... actually, just a little bit." Angel said as he stood up and walked into what she supposed was the kitchen. She followed him.
He opened the fridge and ignored the large piles of corn, pulling a box out from behind them. He held it up for Angel to see. It was a box of Hot Pockets, pizza flavored. "You want one?" He asked her, and she nodded.
He put two into the microwave and then she leaned against the counter, searching for something to fill the silence besides the buzzing of the microwave.
"So rumor has it you killed some people."
"Three." Mort said.
"I'm sorry?" Angel asked, sure she had misheard. Mort seemed to realize he had said something wrong.
"I mean, that's what people are saying; three people went missing, and I was blamed for their murder."
"So didja do it?" Angel asked, grinning. Mort did not smile.
"No."
"Oh." Angel searched for another topic, because the one she picked did not seem to be snagging any goodwill.
"So uh... what's with all the corn?"
"I grow it."
"Oh."
Another silence.
"What's your book about?"
"What book?"
"The one you're writing right now, on the computer." She gestured toward the laptop.
"Oh, uh... just... you know, stuff."
"Stuff." Angel said skeptically.
"Well, I don't really know yet." Mort said. Just then they both heard a long drawn out beeping noise, and Mort popped the microwave open and pulled out the Hot Pockets. He handed her one and then walked back out into the living room and sat back down at his laptop, hesitating for a moment, and then typing in between bites. As if he forgot Angel even existed.
Angel looked around, and then walked into another room where a messy looking man was lying, mouth open, on an easy chair, fast asleep. She decided now was probably not the best time to meet him, and headed back upstairs where Joey was lying on the floor reading a magazine. Apparently he had brought it with him, because it was not the kind of magazine she suspected Mort would have just... laying around. When she walked in, Joey tossed the magazine under the bed and quickly turned toward her and smiled.
"Whatcha doing?" She asked, lying down on the bed and propping her head up on her elbows, setting the plate with the Hot Pocket down on the bedspread.
"Reading a magazine." Joey said brightly.
"Oh." Angel said with the same brightness. She pulled the magazine out from under the bed. "Playboy." She read off the cover. She looked back up at Joey and he gave her a sheepish grin.
"No masturbating in this room." She told him. "If you're going to do that, go downstairs and you three guys can have one big masturbation party.
Realizing that that could be taken in a very nasty way, she slipped under the bed covers and pulled them ever her head. "Nite."
Angel woke up in the middle of the night to and she didn't know why. She lay in bed for just another moment before she heard a page turn.
"Joey!" She yelled. "Put the magazine away!" She heard a rustling of papers and then heard the magazine being slid back under her bed. "Joey..."
"I'm bein good!" He cried.
"Yes." Angel said, turning away from him to study the room. There was a mirror across from the bed, just like the one in Angel's apartment... well... in what used to be her apartment. She had already made up her mind to move out of that apartment. Maybe she could move in with Mark. She hadn't seen his apartment yet... usually, they would... well... hang out at her apartment.
She walked into the bathroom and flipped the switch, having a quick flashback to the handle on her car that had snapped off in her hand. The light didn't turn on, and the glass on the shower door was broken. Great. Now she knew that nobody in this house was going to be taking a shower for awhile. She wrinkled her nose at the bacteria growing alongside the toilet and in the cracks of the walls.
"Yet another shitty place for Angel to stay in! Oh joy!" She said with sarcastic enthusiasm. She could hear Joey laughing in the other room. He had one of those weird laughs, an excited hyena sound.
She walked out of the bathroom and stared at him.
"Are you still here?" She asked him, just the slightest bit irritated.
"Well yeah, baby. This is where I'm sleeping." He said with a annoying smile. She glared at him.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, darling, there's only one bed. Corn vampire is gonna sleep on the couch and the other dude is taking the armchair, so I was going to sleep on the bed. Since you're here, I guess we'll both be sleeping here."
He was grinning the biggest, cockiest grin she had ever seen, and she wanted to smack him. She walked over to the bed and stretched right across the middle of it and smiled at him.
"I don't think so."
She tossed a pillow at him and pointed at the floor.
He didn't argue. "I figured you'd say that, but hey, babe, it was worth a shot." He tossed the pillow onto the carpet and went to the closet.
"I think I saw a blanket in here somewhere..." He muttered to himself.
Angel remained silent for awhile. "Joey?" She asked finally.
"Hmmm?" He replied, pulling out a blanket that had a sick yellow color, pastel but sort of dirty from years of sitting in the closet.
"You said there was another man here?" She asked.
"I did?" Joey said, stopping for a minute. "Oh yeah, the dude on the armchair. He's playing the part of... what's his name? The other guy?" Joey snapped his fingers a couple times while he thought furiously. "I know it, I know it... well, I'm sure we'll find out sooner or later."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, the guys been talking about his part all day... he filched a copy of the script and he's been quoting from it and trying to get me to help him with his lines and stuff... the dude really needs to chill before he turns out like corn vampire."
Angel sat up in the bed and quickly jumped off it, stubbing her toe just like the last time she had crawled out of bed, only this time it was on the bed frame.
I'm going to meet him." She said to Joey, even though she knew that she didn't have to explain her every move to him.
"Alright, baby, but be careful cos he's a little touchy."
Angel walked back down the stairs and heard a familiar tapping coming from the couch. She knew without looking that Mort was still writing away on his computer.
"Um, hey." She said, waiting for him to look up. He didn't. She hoped he was listening. "I totally forgot to bring any clothes or anything so I'm gonna need to drive back to my place and get my stuff." Angel said.
"No, you don't need to do that. The other guys are just gonna use my stuff." He said, startling her. She didn't think he had been paying attention.
"Ummm..." Angel thought for a moment. "But... I'm not a guy, so how can I use your stuff if..."
"My wife has some stuff here that you can use."
"Your wife? You're married?"
"Was." Mort said, turning away from the computer to face her. "Hey, listen... are you hungry at all? I think it's time for me to take a break."
"Uh... actually, just a little bit." Angel said as he stood up and walked into what she supposed was the kitchen. She followed him.
He opened the fridge and ignored the large piles of corn, pulling a box out from behind them. He held it up for Angel to see. It was a box of Hot Pockets, pizza flavored. "You want one?" He asked her, and she nodded.
He put two into the microwave and then she leaned against the counter, searching for something to fill the silence besides the buzzing of the microwave.
"So rumor has it you killed some people."
"Three." Mort said.
"I'm sorry?" Angel asked, sure she had misheard. Mort seemed to realize he had said something wrong.
"I mean, that's what people are saying; three people went missing, and I was blamed for their murder."
"So didja do it?" Angel asked, grinning. Mort did not smile.
"No."
"Oh." Angel searched for another topic, because the one she picked did not seem to be snagging any goodwill.
"So uh... what's with all the corn?"
"I grow it."
"Oh."
Another silence.
"What's your book about?"
"What book?"
"The one you're writing right now, on the computer." She gestured toward the laptop.
"Oh, uh... just... you know, stuff."
"Stuff." Angel said skeptically.
"Well, I don't really know yet." Mort said. Just then they both heard a long drawn out beeping noise, and Mort popped the microwave open and pulled out the Hot Pockets. He handed her one and then walked back out into the living room and sat back down at his laptop, hesitating for a moment, and then typing in between bites. As if he forgot Angel even existed.
Angel looked around, and then walked into another room where a messy looking man was lying, mouth open, on an easy chair, fast asleep. She decided now was probably not the best time to meet him, and headed back upstairs where Joey was lying on the floor reading a magazine. Apparently he had brought it with him, because it was not the kind of magazine she suspected Mort would have just... laying around. When she walked in, Joey tossed the magazine under the bed and quickly turned toward her and smiled.
"Whatcha doing?" She asked, lying down on the bed and propping her head up on her elbows, setting the plate with the Hot Pocket down on the bedspread.
"Reading a magazine." Joey said brightly.
"Oh." Angel said with the same brightness. She pulled the magazine out from under the bed. "Playboy." She read off the cover. She looked back up at Joey and he gave her a sheepish grin.
"No masturbating in this room." She told him. "If you're going to do that, go downstairs and you three guys can have one big masturbation party.
Realizing that that could be taken in a very nasty way, she slipped under the bed covers and pulled them ever her head. "Nite."
Angel woke up in the middle of the night to and she didn't know why. She lay in bed for just another moment before she heard a page turn.
"Joey!" She yelled. "Put the magazine away!" She heard a rustling of papers and then heard the magazine being slid back under her bed. "Joey..."
"I'm bein good!" He cried.