Page 13 of Unsuitable

I feel embarrassed to admit this. I know he’s probably heard this a thousand times before, but it doesn’t make it any easier to say.

“How are you fixed for clothes?”

“Um…I have my old clothes.” I lift my eyes to him. “My friend, Cece, who I’m going to live with, boxed up all my stuff and kept it in storage for me while I was inside.”

“She sounds like a good friend.”

“She is.” I smile.

“Well, you are going to need money to get you to and from your job and also for food for this first week, so I’ll grant you a small loan to get you through this week.”

“That would be great. Thank you so much.”

My gratitude is real here.

I mean, I hate taking charity from people, but he said this would be a loan, which means I’ll have to pay it back. That, I can live with. It means my savings plan might have to wait a short while, but that’s just the way it is.

“Right, well, I’ll arrange that for you now. So, aside from that, we’re done here.” He presses his hands to the desk. “I’ll need to see you once a week for the next four weeks. I’ll arrange with your employer for you to leave early on that day, so you don’t need to worry about that. Then, after that, I’ll need to see you once a fortnight for the second and third month from your release. And, as long as everything is satisfactory and going well, then we’ll go down to once a month. I will come do a visit at your home in around ten days. Actually, we’ll pencil that in while you’re here.” He turns back to his computer, tapping on the keys. “Okay…as you’ll be working and I don’t want to keep taking you away from your job, how does a week from Saturday sound? The morning?”

“I can do that.” I smile.

“Good.” He taps the keys again and then turns to face me. “Right, let’s get this loan sorted for you.”

Three

Cece turns the car down into a cul-de-sac. At the end of it is an apartment building.

“Here we are.” Cece pulls into an allotted parking space and turns the engine off.

Through the windscreen, I glance up at the four-story-high apartment building. It looks really nice. More than I could have hoped for.

Just as we exit the car, the heavens open, so we dash for the building.

Cece opens the main door with a key. “If we have visitors, they have to be buzzed in,” she tells me.

I like that. It’s safe.

We take the stairs up to the second floor where our apartment is.

Cece unlocks the door, letting me inside first.

The first thing I see is the Welcome Home banner hanging from the ceiling in the hallway. I turn, smiling.

“Welcome home!” she says, throwing her hands skyward.

“You’re a total geek.” I laugh.

I walk down the hallway, toward the first door, and find myself in the living room. I take in the beige-painted walls and the furnishings. A big brown leather sofa with fluffy cushions and a matching chair. Glass coffee table. Flat screen TV sitting on a maple oak cabinet.

Turning, I see Cece standing in the doorway.

“It’s amazing, Ce. Did you do all of this?”

She comes over and sits on the arm of the chair. “My dad did the decorating, and Mum helped me pick out the sofa, but the rest was me.”

“How long have you been here?” I run my hand along the soft leather of the sofa.

“I moved in a month ago. It gave me time to get it nice for you and Jesse.”