“Hi Gran. It’s going, I guess.”
“Oh no, don’t ‘miss-doom-and-gloom’ me during prime sunshine hours. What’s got you blue, kiddo?” I hear a splash and the sound of her feet padding across the pavement. She’s more than likely at the pool.
My mouth falls open, but I pause. Do I tell her about my near-death experience at the old church? Or about the vampire living in the basement wearing her dead husband’s old clothes? I close my eyes at the thought and suck in a deep breath. She wouldn’t believe me, and even if she did, I’d never make it past the part about being assaulted on my way home from work. Knowing Gran as I do, she would have a ticket home and a cab picking her up in ten seconds flat.
“It’s nothing, I promise. I just missed your voice.” It’s true. My last call was over two weeks ago.
“Awe, sugar! I miss you, too,” she says, and I know she means it. Florida was the right move for her, but it meant leaving me behind. It wasn’t a matter of being unable to go with her, butrather like it was time for me to get on with my life on my own. The woman had taken care of me all my life; she deserved some time to herself, too. “We’re a month out from the holidays, though! You’re coming to visit, right?”
“Yup. Got my ticket and everything.” I’d bought it the same week we talked about me visiting for the holidays back in April. Instead of important notes on my calendar, there are little black exes in every box that I checked off to count down the days. With it already being November, I wonder if Gray will still be here in the next month.
“I can’t wait! I’ve told the girls all about you,” she goes on, rattling off all the names of the friends she’s made. Gran’s never been the shy type. When she took over custody of me, she used to attend every single event I had at school just to talk to the parents of the kids I was in class with. She got their numbers, their emails, all to make sure that when it came time for parties and playdates, I would have kids to hang out with. I was never more popular than when Gran was handling my social calendar.
“Sounds like fun,” I add lamely when it’s my turn to talk.
She’s quiet for a second, then asks, “Are you sure nothing’s bothering you? You didn’t say anything when I mentioned Patty’s bad wax job.”
“Ugh, a bad wax job? That sounds awful.” I cringe. Patty is one of Gran’s cranky neighbors. She’s got a Master’s degree in divorce, having moved into the same community at the ripe age of fifty-six with not one, but five ex-husbands. All of them are paying alimony. The worst part? Patty cheated on each husband with the next man she married.
A bad wax job is the least of all the inconvenient things that someone spiteful could wish on her.
“So, what’s going on?” Gran asks again.
“I got a new roommate.” I decided to take the vague route on this one.
“Oh, well, that’s not so bad.”
“It’s kind of throwing me off,” I say honestly. “He’s hard to read.”
“He?” Gran doesn’t care about my dating history, having been present for every single girlfriend and boyfriend I ever introduced her to. Co-ed living on the other hand? She’s kind of a stick in the mud about.
“Don’t worry, just a friend from college.” It’s easier to sell it over the phone than face-to-face—I’m not entirely convinced Jill or Emma believed the lie. Thankfully, Gran doesn’t question it. She doesn’t know too much about my time in college, except that I hated it and turned to stripping just before sophomore year.
“As long as you trust him,” she says, which is ironic. I do and I don’t. It’s a mixed bag at the moment. “So what’s throwing you off?”
“He just… he needs a lot of help. That’s what.” Obviously, there’s more to it than I can explain, but just saying it out loud takes some of the weight off my chest. “And if I’m being honest, he’s kind of a prick. Like, I can’t tell if he’s being serious or joking. It’s confusing.”
“Hm,” Gran hums. “You can always kick him out!”
Is it ever that easy?I wonder. “Yeah, maybe.”
“Or, if you’re feeling extra petty, you could double his rent for a couple of months. I did that once to Henry after he blew up my garage.”
I laugh out loud. Poor Henry. I remember the garage fire, too. It was so bad, they couldn’t salvage the structure and tore it down. She could really hold a grudge. Still, all that aside, it isn’t a bad idea. Gray isn’t paying rent right now, but if we’re reworking our deal, I’d definitely throw that in there. After all the money I spent on his new wardrobe, I deserve a little monetary payback. Kisses and sex aside, I could do with some cushioning in my savings again after the payoff on my credit card.
“I’ll keep it in mind, Gran.”
Someone on the other end shouts in the distance, muffled by the crackle of her phone. Gran sighs. “I gotta go. Bad-wax-Patty is making a beeline for me. I’ll talk to you later, Millie-bean.”
“Bye, Gran.” When the call drops, I feel my shoulders sag. I wish I had more friends I could talk to, to turn to about this whole situation. But who could I tell that would believe me? I’m sure Gray wouldn’t appreciate me running to every person I know, telling them he’s a vampire and I’m stuck living with him.
That’s a thought.
No. I’ll keep it to myself and go about teaching him the things he needs to know. Shows, books, and other junk aside, I go to my room and dig out an old prepaid phone I kept on hand in emergencies. With a quick charge, I get it started and add credits. Just one more thing he’ll owe me for at the end of this arrangement.
Before I leave for work, I plan to show Gray how to use it. Texting and calling first, then I’ll get to the good stuff, like Instagram, Facebook, and Google. Google especially, because if it’s history he’s looking for, he’s going to need more than just my crappy twelfth-grade history class memory to catch up on the times.
On my way to work, I text my guy about my car. Taking a Zippy to work is killing my funds. He doesn’t answer right away, but when he does, it isn’t great news.
