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Leaving work an hour early, I rush home to find the door isn’t locked. “What the hell?”
The apartment smells terrible. And as soon as I take a few steps into the living room, I step in something soggy. “Oh, gross!”
Off to the side, I notice the bathroom door is open, and the tile inside is shining. The carpet on the outside of the door is soaked, but no one is inside. “Apollo? Aurora?”
Where are they? The apartment isn’t that big, and they are nowhere to be found?
My phone is in my hand again, and I’m dialing his number but still nothing.
My heart is racing, and my eyes are prickling.
Where the hell are they, and why isn’t he picking up the phone? Could she be worse? Did he take her to the hospital? Did something else happen?
I keep dialing and getting his voicemail every time.
I go back into the living room and see something on the floor. It’s his cell phone.
“So that’s why he didn’t answer my calls.” How the hell am I supposed to contact him now to know what happened?
Panic is starting to eat at me as I try to come up with the next steps. Should I call the hospitals around here? Should I just go there myself?
They must have left in a hurry if this place looks like this and the door was unlocked.
Oh my God, it must be bad.
Tears start streaming down my face as I look around too overwhelmed to move.
The door opens and there they stand.
I run to hug my daughter.
“What the hell, Apollo?”
Aurora is wearing a nightgown and looks kind of tired.
“Where were you? I thought something bad had happened, and I couldn’t get to you.”
He gestures to himself. “I had to go get some clean clothes.”
“You took her to your hotel room? In her nightgown and her hair in a mess?”
“Momma, I like Daddy’s hotel. It’s pretty there.” She wiggles, so I put her down. “I wanna play with my toys now.”
“You need to rest,” I call out as she runs off.
Then I turn my attention to her father. “Why would you leave without your phone?”
“I couldn’t find it. Please, don’t be mad. I was covered in puke.”
“I’m not mad, I was freaking out. I came home to find the door unlocked and you and my kid gone. You know how many worst-case scenarios went through my head?”
My tears are falling freely now, whether from the adrenalin crash or sheer exhaustion.
He moves in close, wrapping his arms around me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you worry. But we’re okay.”
“We’re not okay. This place is a wreck. It stinks too. I’ve got to go down to the store and rent a carpet cleaner, and I have to strip the bedding and go to the laundromat to wash it all. That’s going to take hours, Apollo. Hours. And I’m just so tired.”
“Honey, I was going to do all that, you just came home before I was able to. Why don’t you get some rest and let me get this. Better yet, just go pack a bag for you and Aurora and let me handle things.”
