He moved across the street, waving at Marco who exited his house and came across looking ready for a chat.Okay, so the houses were flimsy, and the last few times he’d noticed holes in the wall and cracked windows and no AC, but he couldn’t deny the fact the neighbors were well-intentioned.He didn’t know the names of even half of the people on his floor, let alone in his building.
“Good day for it.”Marco motioned to the sky, which held no trace of clouds.
“Great day for it,” Kyle agreed.
“Gonna see your girl?”
Oh.He hadn’t thought that Gen would tell the neighbors quite so soon about Bella, but okay.That was her prerogative, he guessed.“Yeah.”
“She hasn’t been at work the past few days.Is she sick?”
Oh, he meant Gen.Okay.
Then the rest of the comment sank in.Gen hadn’t been to work?He schooled his features.He thought she’d been too busy to respond to his texts, hence why, “I’m going to see her now.”
“’Kay.”
“Thanks for keeping an eye on them.Have a good one.”Kyle held out his clenched fingers for a fist bump.
Marco tapped it.“You too.”
His smile lasted until Marco exited, then dropped as he turned to face Gen’s door.Okay, so now he was concerned.While part of him was surprised to know that Gen hadn’t apparently spilled any beans to the neighbors about Bella’s paternity, the fact she was sick and hadn’t contacted him felt wrong.He should know.For Bella’s sake, if not his own.And really, they were supposed to be friends, and friends told each other stuff like that, didn’t they?
He tapped on the door, consternation in his heart, and he wished he had a bunch of flowers or something that would make Gen feel better.
The door opened, and Bella’s worried brow smoothed.“Kyle!I mean, Dad.Hi.”
“Hey kiddo.”
She hesitated for a second, then rushed at him, surprising him in a hug.
Tender feelings he’d never really known squeezed around his heart.Oh, this girl.Hisgirl.He loved her.
He wrapped her close, holding her in a lengthy moment until he realized she was trembling.“Hey, what’s wrong?”
She shook her head, and he encased the back of her head with his hand.He was so big and she was so small.Must be those petite genes Minnie owned.
“Are you okay, Bella?”
She nodded.“It’s Mom.She’s not getting out of bed.”
His heart thudded.“Is she sick?”
“Grandma says she’s not, but then Grandma goes to work and doesn’t see Mom get back into bed and stay there.Like, all day.”
“Can I come in?”
“Yeah.”
She held open the door and he went inside.Saw the place looked like a mess.Huh.It was the total opposite of the last time he’d been here when the room was as neat as a pin.
“Hey, Princess, when is your grandma coming back?”
She glanced at the calendar that was on the fridge, filled with highlighted colors, not unlike the schedule he remembered that Gen used to adhere to back in high school in order to get all her studies done.“She’s supposed to get back in two hours.”
Two hours?Okay.“Um, I want to check on your mom, but do you reckon you could help me clean this up so it’s nicer for when your grandma returns?”
She made a face but nodded.“Grandma wants Mommy to do it, says she’s just being lazy, but I think there’s something wrong with her.”
