Page 39 of Kaine

Chapter Nineteen

HER

For the second timein two days, I wake up screaming.

But this time, someone is there.

He’s standing a few feet away from the bed, his silhouette is dark against the backdrop of the lights of New York city.

I flip my body up, sitting straight, pulling the blankets up to my chin.

“What are you?” I demand of the intruder.

His silence fuels the adrenaline rushing through my veins and I scream at him again. “Who are you and what the fuck are you doing here?”

“I live here,” he says, and his voice is hard, gruff. It takes a moment for my eyes to adjust, before I realize it is him. He is here. And there’s a strange feeling as if something has caressed my cheek. “What are you still doing here?” He turns the tables on me.

“I live here too!” I throw back at him, though I don’t know why, it makes no sense. I guess he’s caught me off guard and I’m feeling so defensive.

“No, you don’t. Leave.” He moves away from the window and his face is thrown into complete darkness.

“No. I won’t, you leave.” Again, with the crazy.

“You are crazy.” It seems he senses it too.

But it’s too late to go back now. And my mouth seems to have developed a mind of its own.

“Excuse me, I’m not crazy. You’re the crazy one, hiding from your own home just because someone wants to thank you. Do you do that whenever someone says thank you? Like when you hold a door open for a stranger? ‘Oh, why thank you, Mr. Mystery Man. Ahh! No! Please don’t thank me, arghh! I’m going to run away now!’” I rant as I wave my arms around maniacally, as if sprinting away.

I can’t see his face, his hoodie is on, of course, so I can’t see his expression. I can just see him standing completely still. Watching me.

Making me feel like a complete idiot.

Time to change tacks.

“Huh!” I huff and pull the blanket off me and slide off the bed, careful to pull the sweater I’m wearing low enough to cover, well, cover me. “Well, are you hungry?” I ask, my voice still defensive and hard.

“I’m sorry?” he shakes his head a little and turn his gaze to me.

“I said, ‘are you freakin’ hungry?’ Because I am. I’ve missed two dinners now, thanks to you, so that might explain why I’m a little crazy.” I walk around the bed and brush past him. There’s a faint scent of alcohol and I wonder if that’s normal, or if a stranger squatting in his apartment has led him to it.

He doesn’t follow me so I stop and put my hand on his arm. It immediately tenses, but he doesn’t pull away. I sigh and drop my voice. “Come on. I’m starving. Come have some dinner with me. We can get this done and both move on with our lives.”

He doesn’t move. Just stands there, his breath heavy, the alcohol scent growing stronger. For a moment I feel like he’s just going to grab my arm and throw me out of his home.

But he doesn’t.

He just drops his shoulders and whispers, “Okay.”

I lead us to the kitchen and wave my hand towards the dining room table. It seems a little silly to be giving the orders, the squatter telling the owner what to do, but he seems to be happy to let me, for the time being.

He slides into the seat in front of the clean, empty wine glass.

“I guess I’m not the only one who had a drink alone tonight,” I say. And his head jerks up. I quickly turn towards the fridge before he can reply, not that he seems inclined to. I take turns heating up the plates, busying myself with pressing buttons and staring through the microwave glass door.

After the second plate is warm I carry them to the table, putting one down in front of him. He nods and picks up his fork as I sit down opposite him, watching him.

“Bon appétit, Kaine,” I offer and he looks up, and I can just see the glint in his eyes under the darkness of his hood, reflecting the moonlight. Even with the barest of light, I can see, they’re the most crystal blue I’ve ever seen.