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It was funny how much of this I had taken for granted for so long. I thought back to the house I shared with Dennis, the chill that inhabited it like a third wheel, the blandness of it all. As if it had been furnished for a doctor’s office, and not a home. There was no warmth there, no life, nothing that reflected even a glimmer of happiness.
Unlike here. There was no chill here. No emptiness. Just a lot of warmth, and love, as if the walls themselves had been infused with it. I couldn’t believe that I had forgotten how good it felt to be here. I couldn’t believe that I had stayed away for so long.
I closed my eyes, and for the first time in a very long time, I fell asleep with a smile on my face.
Chapter 6: Andy
I learned a lot from my time as a fire fighter.
For starters, I learned never to underestimate my surroundings. Running into a burning building was a lot like hitting two hundred miles an hour on a motorcycle without a helmet in the middle of a crowded residential area. You never knew what was going to hit you. No matter how well you were prepared, there was always that one mistake that you could make, that one doorknob you forgot to check for heat, that one roof you didn’t probe before walking below it. One mistake. Just one, and everything came tumbling down on top of you.
A lot like my life, if you thought about it. The problem was, I was too busy being careful on the job, that I basically regarded the rest of my life as a free for all. I didn’t care about safety that much, which probably explained my toxic relationship with Hannah. I rarely used a condom on the drunk college kids I brought home, which meant that if one of them came up to me a year after our night together with a baby, claiming it was mine, I wouldn’t be surprised. I usually forgot to put on my seatbelt, which, as a fire fighter, was as ridiculous as they came.
I was reckless. Everyone knew that. I knew that. And to be quite honest, I didn’t give a rat’s ass. As long as I was keeping it safe on the job, making sure no one died under my watch, then I figured that meant everything else should be fine. It was one of the reasons why the Chief calling me reckless made me scoff, much to his displeasure.
Another thing I learned was no matter what time it was, I always woke up at seven in the morning, even on my days off. A quick jog down the woodland path behind my house, followed by a hot shower, and I was ready to take on the day.
This morning, though, I slept in, and when my cellphone began to ring, I mumbled a streak of profanity as I rolled over and picked it up. Bobby’s number flashed on the screen, and I answered with a loud groan and a cough, making sure he knew he was disturbing.
“Good morning to you, too, pumpkin,” Bobby chuckled.
“What do you want?”
“How are you not up yet?” Bobby asked. “Don’t tell me you’re getting old.”
“It’s my day off,” I replied, slowly pushing up to a sitting position and tossing my legs over the side of the bed. I ran a hand over my face and groaned again.
“Well, it’s a good thing I woke you up, then.”
“What time is it?” I asked, glancing around for my watch. The sun had come up, barely, and I was already contemplating hanging up and going back to sleep.
So much for the morning routine.
Fuck the morning routine.
“It’s eight,” Bobby said. “Listen, I’m about to head out, and I wanted to ask you for a favor.”
“Do I have a choice?” I asked.
“Not really.”
“What is it?”
“Andrea’s here.”
My eyes widened, and I tried to force back the haziness in my head. Somehow, I had forgotten about her.
“Is she okay?” I asked, a little more alert.
“Yeah, she’s fine,” Bobby said. “Don’t worry. It’s just, I have to be at the station, and I don’t want to leave her alone. Especially today, you know?”
“Just in case her husband shows up?” I said, finishing his thought.
Bobby was silent for a few seconds before he said, “Yeah, just in case.”
“You could call the police,” I said. “Have them park a cruiser in front of your house.”
“Of course,” Bobby chuckled. “Because the Mansfield PD works solely for me. No, you should be more than enough. She seems to think Dennis wouldn’t believe she’d come here. I have my doubts.”
