Someone to Watch Over Me
Chapter 4The first apartment Jeff looked at was a major disappointment. Not only was it too small to even turn around in, it was old, dirty, and poorly kept. Determined as he was to find a home of his own, he still wasn't willing to live in a place like that.
The second apartment he went to see that day was a major step up. The building wasn't new, but it was considerably in better shape than the first one. It had new carpet and freshly painted walls. While still small, it was almost double the size of the first place. And it was furnished. Jeff told the rental agent he would take it and asked when he could move in. There were still some minor repairs being made, and the date he was given was the following Friday. He signed a rental agreement, paid his deposit and his first month's rent, and left humming to himself. His mother would not be happy . . . but Jeff was thrilled.
When he got back to the Spencer house his mother and sister were at the grocery store. Dorothy had left him a note, of course, and he changed into blue jeans and made himself a sandwich. He'd just finished eating when he heard the car in the driveway and went out to help bring in the groceries. "You're back," his mother stated needlessly as each of them carried in two bags of food.
Once they had everything inside, Katherine started unloading the bags. "Well?" she asked.
"Well, what?" Jeff played dumb while he put the groceries away.
"What about the apartments, Jefferson?"
"They were apartments," Jeff laughed.
Katherine stuck her tongue out at him. "You know exactly what I mean."
"The first one was bad. Old, dirty, and tiny."
"And the second?" his mother questioned.
"I rented it."
His mother's face fell. "Did you really?"
"I did. I get the keys on Friday."
"What's it like?" Kat wanted to know.
"Bigger than I expected. New carpet, fresh paint, clean and furnished. All in all, pretty good."
His mother looked at him with big eyes; her lower lip trembled and she left the room and headed for her bedroom. Kat picked up a box of Kleenex and threw it at him. "I told you. I told you!"
"I'm sorry, Kat, but I have to do this," Jeff explained again.
"No, you don't. You don't have to leave. Nobody is forcing you out."
Jeff loved his sister, but he'd had enough of being told what he did and didn't have to do. "Katherine, I'm a grown man. I can't continue to live at home with my mommy!"
"Bastard!" his sister spat out and dropped into a kitchen chair, burying her head in her arms and sobbing.
"Kat, honey, don't cry. She'll get over it, and so will you," Jeff told her in a softer voice. He opened the box of tissues she'd thrown at him and handed her one. "Every bird has to leave the nest someday."
"Does it have to be now?" his sister asked in between hiccups.
Jeff sat down beside her and put his arms around her. "Yes, Kat, it does. It might not be the right time for you, or even Mom, but it's the right time for me." He rubbed her back until she stopped crying, then handed her another tissue. "Come on, we've got groceries to put away."
Later in the afternoon Jeff drove to the store and picked up some cardboard boxes to begin packing things in. He was in his room doing just that when his mother knocked on the door. Jeff smiled; the door was already open. "Packing already?" Dorothy asked.
"I have to start somewhere, Mom."
"I know you do, son. That's what I wanted to tell you. If I had my way, all three of my children would be babies again, and we could just live here together forever. But that's not the way the world works. I might not be happy about your leaving, but I understand it. Despite what your sister might have said to you earlier, I do recognize the need to go. I just want you to know you'll always have a place here, if you want it. And I'll always love you."
Jeff stopped what he was doing and, for the second time that day, took one of the Spencer women in his arms. "I love you too, Mom." It seemed just yesterday that she was holding him, comforting him over something that had happened. Now he towered over her, providing the comfort. "What do you say we go out to dinner tonight? My treat. Just the three of us." He didn't need to spend the money, but he needed his mother and his sister to be at peace with what he was about to do.
"Are you sure? Don't you need to . . . "
"I'm sure. Come on, put on something nice. And tell Kat to do the same. Let's go get a big, juicy steak."
"Alright, if you're sure."
"Go get ready, Mrs. Spencer."
His mother gave him a big smile. "Alright. Give me a few minutes."
It was at that exact moment that he knew now wasn't the right time to tell his mother about his change in careers.
The week passed fast. He dragged himself through his tasks at the office every day and went home to pack every night. By the time he stopped to get the keys on Friday afternoon, he was all ready to move into his new place.
He drove home and picked up his mother and sister and took them to see the apartment. "Kind of old, isn't it?" Katherine asked when they pulled up to the building.
"You should have seen the other one," he quipped as he helped his mother out of the car.
His apartment (he liked the sound of that) was on the ground floor. Jeff unlocked the door and opened it, turning the lights on as they went inside. "It's bigger than I thought," his mother told him.
"And it's nicer than I thought," his sister added.
"Wait until tomorrow to move in," his mother pleaded with him.
"First thing in the morning," Jeff replied. "No more stalling, mom," he added.
He was excited. It was nowhere near as nice as the house he'd grown up in, but it wasn't bad for his first apartment. It would do until he could afford something better. He'd fully intended to give his two weeks' notice today, but he reconsidered at the last minute. He decided to wait until he'd taken and passed his private investigators test. Hours to study had been few and far between in the last week, and he might have to work a little longer than he expected. At least he'd be able to study without interruption once he got moved in.
He was up early the next morning and tried to keep the noise to a minimum. He filled the car with boxes and drove to his new place, unloading and putting his possessions in the appropriate room. Jeff made a second trip, then a third before he encountered his mother. "How's it going?" she asked.
"Almost finished," he told her, and he saw the look of disappointment in her eyes. He felt bad for his mother, but that wasn't about to change his mind. He laid his clothes across the back seat and hung them in the bedroom closet at the apartment. Then he spent another hour unpacking boxes and putting everything away where it should be.
When he returned for the last load, his mother called him into the kitchen. There was a box on the table with a big, red bow on it. "What's this?"
"A housewarming gift," Dorothy replied.
"For me?"
"No, it's a present for the apartment, goofy," Kat told him. "Open it."
Jeff did, and he was tickled to find a coffee pot and a bag of coffee. "We thought you might need that," his mother explained.
"I will, I mean I do. Thank you, both." Jeff kissed his mother, then his sister.
"Is that all you have to load?"
He nodded. "Mom . . . "
"I know, Jefferson. Go before I cry."
He hurried out to the car and slammed the car door shut. In a few minutes he was at his new home unloading the boxes. He spent most of the afternoon unpacking and putting things away. Then he decided he'd better go to the grocery store before it got late and he had nothing to eat.
Once home he unloaded the groceries, made himself a baloney sandwich and poured a glass of milk, then sat at the tiny kitchen table to eat. He looked around his new apartment and was pleased. Now all he had to do was study, pass the test, and start a private detective agency. Nothing to it, Jeff thought.
