She is asleep by the time I reach her apartment, knees pulled up to her chest, head back against the headrest, and empty fast food bag on the floor. I get lucky and find an empty spot just across the street. I shut off the engine and look over at her. She looks peaceful. Her hair had fallen into her face and I fight the urge to reach over and brush it back behind her ear. Her chin had burrowed its way into the top of her grey turtle neck and she had kicked off her boots. She looked younger, more innocent than I had ever seen her. I slide out of the car and close the door as quietly as you can close a car door. It's not easy. I make my way around to the passenger side door and open it. Crouching down next to her, I place one hand on her shoulder and the other on her knee.
"Hey, Eddie," I whisper. They say it's the City that Never Sleeps, but everything seems pretty quiet tonight. She stirs and takes a second to blink the sleep from her eyes.
"Reagan?" Her voice is laced with sleep. The tone reminds me of all the nights I babysat Nikki. We would watch The Lion King and before Simba could return home, Nikki'd be out like a light. When the credits began to roll, I would wake her and she'd use that same voice.
"Let's get you inside, okay?" I answer. She nods silently. I watch as she slowly unfolds herself and slips her feet back into her boots. She unceremoniously topples out of the car and somehow, miraculously, ends up on her feet. I shut and lock the car door.
We head across the street and toward the apartment building. As we come up the sidewalk an older gentleman opens the door for us. Eddie cracks a grin and instantly perks up.
"James!" she exclaims excitedly as we reach him. 'James' grins back at her.
"Officer Janko" he respectfully replies with a slight tilt of his head.
"One day, Jameson, one day you will wake up and decided that today is going to be the day." She sticks her tongue out at him as we cross the threshold. For a girl with an apartment in a fancy building with a doorman, she isn't very sophisticated. But then again, that's what makes her so likable.
"If you say so Officer Janko" the doorman replies before his serious face cracks into a grin. "Have a good night." He retreats to his chair in the corner and returns to what looks to be a book of crossword puzzles.
I wait till the elevator doors slide shut behind us to ask. "What exactly is he going to decide to do one morning?" I didn't follow their conversation.
"Oh," Eddie chuckles. "It's just that I've been living here for almost three years now and I still can't get James to call me anything other than Officer Janko. It's just a game we play I guess."
I nod and pretend that that's normal. But if I think about it, it is normal for Eddie. She has running jokes with doormen and street venders that most people wouldn't even think to thanks. Eddie and the vender at our usual hot dog stand always joke about finding me a date. Eddie always laughs with the teenager at that coffee place Eddie like so much. And even when she is as dead tired as she is now, she still finds the energy to brighten an old doorman's day. It's impossible to not be a little bit in love with her. I know the doorman is. My only problem is that I think I might be more than a little bit…
The elevator pings and the doors slide open. We step off and she leads the way to a door at the far end of the hall. I lean against the opposite wall and watch her as she fishes around in her pockets for her key. She finds it, slips it into the lock and cracks open the door. She steps inside before turning back to face me.
"You want to come in?" she asks and I think I detect a hint of hesitation in her voice.
"It's late" I whisper with a slight shake of my head. She needs some sleep. "I'll see you tomorrow, right partner?"
It's her turn to nod. I turn and begin to retrace our steps back towards the elevator. I only get a few steps before she calls out.
"Hey Jamie?" it's soft and I almost think that I imagined it for a second. I turn anyways and shoot her a questioning look. She steps forward and places a lingering kiss on my cheek. My eyes slide shut against my will for a second as she hovers in my space. I look down at her. "Thank you."
"Anytime," I whisper. And I mean it. "I'll see you tomorrow." I turn and head towards my empty apartment. Sleep won't come easy tonight.
Let me know what you think. Not sure where to go next. I hope you liked it. Thanks!