Chapter 5
After a long day of fighting off her own thoughts, Angela held her clipboard in her hand tight and took one last inventory check before the store closed, trying her very hardest to concentrate. However, it was of no use. All day she had been hearing and seeing things that no one else was. Even now she swore she could feel someone behind her, breathing slowly on the back of her neck. She gasped and turned around, her eyes darting back and forth in search of anything that could justify her feelings. She sighed, an empty room surrounded her and nothing more.
"I must be going crazy," she said, looking down at her watch. "Thank God," she said, "I thought closing time would never come." She hung her clipboard on a rack on the nearby wall and smiled a little, excited that she could now go home and get some well-deserved rest with her boyfriend. Suddenly, the lights above her flickered and a loud crash came from behind her. Angela yelped and jolted around, her heart racing and adrenaline peaking. The sound of scratching across the floor was coming from a few feet in front of her. Bravely and rashly, she moved toward the scratching, her vision blurred by the flickering lights, the scratching becoming clearer as she approached. Suddenly, something brushed against the toe of her shoe. With a shriek Angela jumped back and fell onto a nearby shelf, knocking over a few papers and boxes. Just then, the lights stopped flickering and Angela was able to observe the atmosphere. An old and rusted paint can laid on the floor a few feet in front of her, slowly rocking back and forth, making the scratching sound she had heard earlier. Angela chuckled a little with a blush, feeling silly for her reaction and began putting the fallen objects back on their shelves. Angela laughed to herself once more and shook her head.
"Seriously, you need this weekend more than anything, Angela." Angela giggled with a smile and turned around. Adam was standing directly behind her, eye to eye. Angela gasped, her eyes growing wide in shock. She put her hand to her neck almost impulsively to feel her pulse, making sure her heart didn't stop.
"I'm so sorry! Did I scare you?" Said Adam innocently. Angela sighed as her breath returned to her.
"Y-Yes," she said, "What are you doing back here?" Adam moved a stray piece of hair out of his face.
"Oh, well, I heard you yelp and I thought I'd go and see if you were alright. I figured it'd be my duty as a good friend to protect you or help you if something bad happened. You know, 'cause you and me are such good friends who can trust each other."
"Uh," said Angela, a little puzzled, "well, thanks, I guess. I'm fine though. I thought I saw something, but it was just my imagination playing tricks on me." Adam smirked and chuckled to himself. "What's so funny?" Said Angela irritated. Adam's face immediately snapped back to a normal, happy, affect.
"Hmm? Oh, I was just thinking of something funny Tommy told me earlier." Angela rolled her eyes.
"Whatever. Right now I need you to tell Tommy to lock up the store so we can all go home. On Monday I want you in by 6:00am, no later, got it?" Adam chuckled once again and said with a smile,
"I get your the acting manager and all, but I really don't like being told what to do. You could just ask politely."
"Well, I'm your boss now. It's my job to tell you what to do, but if you keep it up with that attitude of yours, I won't be for much longer, understand?" Adam rolled his eyes.
"Yes, ma'am!" He said enthusiastically, putting back on his face smile, masking his complete and utter hatred toward Angela, "Consider it gone!" Angela giggled and patted Adam's shoulder.
"That's more like it," she said, then walked out of the inventory room. When he was sure she was gone, Adam growled intensely and his eyes glowed yellow.
"Oh, I just can't wait to sink my teeth into you, you nagging bitch!" The lights above him burst out, shrouding the room in darkness. "Ugh," groaned Adam shaking his head, "I can't take another day of this. I need to ingest this mortal tonight. If I have to come back here my head will explode!" Adam rubbed his temples and exited the back room, thinking of the fastest way he could escape the torture of acting mortal.
"Okay everyone," said Angela, "the weekend has finally come! So let's all go home and relax for a change." Sauli laughed with Angela while Tommy just stared in Adam's direction with a smile on his face.
"Home..." thought Adam with a gasp. "Where am I going to stay? I can't sleep on a park bench again!"
"Uh, excuse me?" said Adam, making everyone turn just as they were about to leave. "I have a problem." Angela raised her eyebrow.
"What's your 'problem'?"
"Well," said Adam looking down with a pout, "you see, last night my home was...um...destroyed in a horrible fire and now I have no where else to go." Angela crossed her arms and gave Adam a look of disbelief.
"How'd the fire start?" Adam sniffled and said dramatically,
"Oh, it was just awful! Faulty wiring on one of my plugs sparked and lit my curtains on fire. It spread like wildfire! It was so scary!" Angela looked at Tommy.
"You can't honestly be buy-"
"That's terrible!" Cried Tommy running over to Adam's side and squeezing his chest in a tight embrace. "You poor thing! That must've been so hard for you to lose everything in a matter of moments! Where did you sleep last night?" Adam wiped his nose with a handkerchief he pulled out of seemingly nowhere and whimpered.
"O-On a p-park bench." Tommy's jaw dropped to the floor and his head jolted to Angela. Angela scowled at Tommy and shook her head no.
"You can come live with Angela and I!" Said Tommy to Adam, ignoring his girlfriend. Adam smiled bright and caressed Tommy's cheek, making Tommy's eyes flutter and purr with delight.
"You would do that for me? Oh, I could just kiss you!" Angela's eyes widened and she sprinted in between Tommy and Adam, holding them apart with her hands.
"No!" She said loudly, then blushed with embarrassment. She cleared her and stood up straight. "I mean, uh, no. You cannot come and live with Tommy and I." Tommy frowned.
"But Ang," he said, practically whining, "Adam needs help!"
"Yes," replied Angela, "but it's help we cannot provide. Our apartment is only built for two people so we just don't have the room."
"But what about Adam? Where will he stay?" Angela bit her bottom lip to prevent her from saying what she wanted to say, then a lightbulb went off in her mind.
"He'll stay with Sauli!" Sauli shook his head in disbelief, his pupils shrinking as his eyes widened in surprise.
"What?" He said astonished. "Why will he stay with Sauli?" Angela pulled Sauli aside and sighed.
"Look, I don't mean to throw this at you, but I can't have him stay with me. I don't want him near Tommy."
"So you are just going to volunteer me? I don't want a houseguest!"
"You know him best, though." Sauli scoffed.
"Spending an hour together is not knowing someone! I know nothing!" Angela rolled her eyes.
"Just do it, or you're fired." Sauli's jaw dropped in shock.
"You cannot be serious! This is not fair!" Angela gave Sauli the most serious look possible, her eyes staring directly into his soul. Sauli grunted in anger and crossed his arms. "Hyvä!" Angela smirked and nudged Sauli's arm playfully.
"Thanks," she said with a wink and opened the exit door for Tommy, "Don't hate me forever." Sauli grumbled to himself in Finnish as he watched Angela and Tommy leave. Adam smiled devilishly to himself with a small chuckled as he eyed Sauli's body. He approached Sauli and gave him a small tap on the shoulder.
"Hey," he said sweetly, "I guess you and I are going to be roommates?" Sauli reluctantly nodded and took his car keys out of his pocket.
"I guess we are. However, I will tell you the rules I want to lay out when we get in the car." Adam nodded.
"Whatever you say, handsome." He winked at Sauli, who blushed lightly and looked away quick.
"Yeah, rule number one is no more doing that to me." Adam giggled softly with a bright smile, showing off his perfect pearly white teeth.
"You're so funny! I like that." Sauli smiled a little and shoved Adam jokingly.
"Shut up or I will push you out the glass window!" Both of them laughed as they exited the store, Sauli locking the door behind them. He pressed a button on his keys and the red lights of a silver porsche beeped twice.
"Hmm," said Adam, running his fingers delicately across the hood of the car, "nice car. You must have a lot of money to afford one." Sauli waved that comment off with his right hand.
"Pfft, no," he said, "I got this a while ago. It was a gift from rakkauteni." Adam raised his left eyebrow at Sauli in confusion.
"Raka-what-now?" Sauli looked down at the car door handle and smiled, his cheeks turning red as he did so.
"My boyfriend," he said, "it was a gift from my boyfriend."