A/N from Metatron85: This is a fun diversion from the big stories, liking the game of passing it back and forth. It's like writing meets acting because we are standing in one character's shoes!
Jade's POV – "Of Course, It Had to Be Her"
She always hid.
Every time.
What was so special about today?
That slovenly handyman came up to look at the dishwasher in my "kitchen" which is a generous thing to call it. Anytime that unkempt dude came into my place, that damn cat would be a phantom. I'd have no clue where it went and once the stranger was gone, BAM! There she was.
I chalked it up to this calico demon that she didn't care for people. Not even me. I had to buy one of those stupid automatic feeders, the kind that you can set times on your phone through an app. Four times a day, DING! DING! CHOW TIME!
Sinister, an appropriate name, would only eat when I wasn't in the room, so the auto feeder was necessary. Had to get creative with the wet food, strategically leaving out on a small dish in the kitchen and crawling over the window leading into the living room like I was a fleeing burglar. If that cat spotted me anywhere in the entrance to the kitchen or the nearby corridor, it was all over. She wouldn't go anywhere near the food!
I wanted some companionship since living alone and a dog was too much noise. Finding a pet-friendly apartment in my price range was impossible. So, I sort of didn't tell the landlord that I had a cat.
It was a real to-do, sneaking in the litter box and toys and food like I was building my own secret meth lab.
Good thing I didn't get a mouthy rat. Imagine if my dumb ass got a Siamese. I would be outed faster than I was in the ninth grade.
So, Mr. Fix-It (who apparently is only flummoxed by how to open a stick of deodorant) finished up and was just about to leave when...
...there she was!
Little Miss Fuck You just sat there in the middle of the floor. He saw it. He knows that I've seen him see it. I could have saved the day with some bullshit that it was a statue, but nope. The single-brain-cell cretin started meowing and doing figure eights around his denim legs.
The look he shot at me made me feel like I was back in kindergarten, and I was caught drawing on the table with a magic marker.
"Sorry to do this, Jade. But you signed the lease and it explicitly said no pets."
I winced and thought of a last resort.
"Would you believe she's my…emotional support…animal?"
His frown told me he wasn't buying it. Worth a shot.
After getting a screaming phone call from the landlord and a pink notice put on my door, I only had 24 hours to vacate the apartment. They were going to have someone to come change the locks and everything. If I leave anything behind, it will be forfeited.
"Can I leave YOU behind?" I frowned at my traitorous feline.
It took forever to get the monster in her pet carrier but once that was done, I started bringing my shit out to the sidewalk. It was so embarrassing, watching people passing by. They're not idiots, they know what's going on.
Hey! There goes the loser who got evicted.
I fought back tears, refusing to allow anyone to see me cry. Well, at least she wasn't here. That would be the last person I wanted to see me fail.
A metallic blue car slowed down on my block, which was the closest parking spot, and I slouched. I knew that vehicle looked familiar. Sure enough, here came Andre out of the driver's side door.
"Jade!" he ran up with that worried face of his. "What happened?"
"My apartment burned down," I shrugged. "The rest of the building is fine, just MY place got scorched."
Andre folded his arms.
"DAMN!" with a snap of my fingers. "Couldn't fool you."
"You got evicted?" he sighed.
I threw up my arms, painfully presenting my personal possessions all around me like a sad going out of business sale. Only instead of a wacky wavy arm inflatable tube man, I've got a naughty kitty in a cage.
"Look, Jade…" Andre sat on a cooler filled with the contents of my fridge. "How much you got in the bank?"
Blowing a tuft of raven hair from my eyes, I checked my bank app. Yep, still the same $300 and I still have the rest of the month to live off that. Bastard landlord kept that security deposit.
"Maybe enough to put me up at a Motel 6 for a few days," I frowned, still refusing to show tears.
"Let me help…" he started while reaching for his wallet.
I grabbed both of his hands and glared at him.
"HELL NO! I'm not borrowing money from any of my friends! That shit gets messy!"
He sighed, shaking his head.
"Holding onto your pride won't keep you from being homeless."
"I'M ALREADY HOMELESS!"
My screams must've made their way down the street and the next one but I didn't give a shit.
"Homeless is what I've been for a while…" I sighed. "What I need is to prevent being HOUSE-less!"
Andre scratched his chin for a moment.
"Okay, okay, you won't accept a loan. How about a trade?"
My curiosity was piqued.
"How's that?"
"You have a problem and I happen to know someone who has a problem, too. And wouldn't you know it, you can help each other out!"
Looking around at everything I owned, coming up empty on options.
"Alright, spit it out Harris!"