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Cat
Cat had stayedin her room for the rest of the night refusing to even come out for dinner. When Repo knocked on her door and asked if she was hungry, she shouted at him to go the fuck away. He just chuckled and walked away but the joke was on her really because she woke up at the butt crack of dawn starving. Her stomach rumbled for what felt like the millionth time and she knew that if she didn’t get up and find some food, she’d never go back to sleep.
She slipped from her warm bed and pulled open her door to peek out into the dark hallway. If she was lucky, she’d be able to sneak down to the kitchen, find something to eat, and get back to her room without running into Repo. She wasn’t ready for another showdown and although she didn’t know him very well, she knew him enough to know that he’d want another chance to impose some house rules on her and that wasn’t her scene. Sure, she was thankful that Repo had given her a safe place to stay—a roof over her head, food in her belly, and the ability to stay off the streets.
Honestly, she wasn’t sure how she let her life go so far downhill. There was the whole thing with her step-father but she was one of the lucky ones. She got out of that shitty situation and when she left her mother’s house, she vowed to do better for herself. Cat was going to make herself into something more than her old life would have ever allowed but that wasn’t what happened—not by a long shot.
When she got to Huntsville, she found an ad in the paper for a sublet. That’s when she met Natalie Cassidy. They had similar stories but Nat was all alone in the world. She was physically abused by her father and when both of Nat’s parents died in an auto accident, she was on her own. She was eighteen and found a way to land on her feet and that gave Cat so much hope.
Nat became her best friend and she felt comfortable enough to share what had happened to her. Nat helped her find a job at a local diner and she was even being trained to start working in the bakery—something Cat always wanted to do. Nat worked at the bakery and she was so excited about having Cat in there with her. Everyone around town knew them as Cat and Nat—they were inseparable and for years, Cat thought she had found a way to overcome where she came from. She had beaten her shitty past and found a way to happiness. That was all taken away from her when the cops showed up at their apartment to tell her that Nat was gone. She was in a car wreck and was killed instantly and Cat found herself spiraling into the dark depression that had consumed her when she was living back at her mom’s house.
Losing Nat felt like she lost a piece of herself and staying in their cheery little apartment felt wrong. Cat moved out and found herself a crappy little efficiency that she could afford by herself and she drank herself half stupid for months. That’s about the time that her landlord showed up at her apartment for the first time, threatening to evict her if she didn’t pay up one way or another. Cat had lost her job at the diner and had no real job skills to speak of. She applied everywhere in town but things were tough all over and finding a job proved impossible. She did what she had to do and decided not to look back. The money wasn’t bad at first. Her clients were generous with their tips and referrals and for a while, she even thought about getting out of that hell hole she was in. But then a pimp named Sly moved in on her territory, putting his girls on every street corner in town and when she refused to go with him, she noticed a decline in business. Yeah, Sly was a real piece of shit and she even thought about giving in and signing on with him but that would mean she’d have to sell her soul to the devil and Cat wasn’t about to do that.
Things were so tough she had even thought about just giving up and going home to Maryland but then she’d have to deal with her step-father and that was something she vowed never to do. No, she was better off on her own and that point was driven home every day of her existence because no matter how bad things got for her she could rest easy knowing that at least she wasn’t living under the same roof as that predator.
Cat rummaged through the big kitchen for something to eat. She looked into the refrigerator and found a plate that Repo had saved for her, covered in foil with a sticky note with her name on it. She thought it was the sweetest thing anyone had done for her in a damn long time. Cat pulled it from the fridge and popped the foil open to look inside.
“It’s chicken,” he said from behind her. She straightened to her full height and at only five-three, she had to crane her head to look up at him.
“You made me a plate,” she said. She wasn’t sure if she was stating a fact or asking him a question.
“I did,” he answered. “That okay?”
Cat shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal but it was. “Sure,” she said. “Thanks.”
“It’s not a big deal,” Repo said blowing off his sweet gesture. “It’s easier to cook for two people than just one,” he said.
“I’m not much of a cook,” Cat admitted. “I usually didn’t have a lot of food in the house to whip something up. Most nights was either a sandwich or a bowl of cereal before I’d head out to work.” She removed the foil from the plate and shoved it into the microwave and turned it on. “This looks good though. Do you like to cook?”
“I don’t mind,” he admitted. “I’m afraid I’m not great at it but I get by. I have a few things I learned to make and the rest I just make up. I watch a lot of cooking shows,” he said. He grimaced as if he told her a secret he shouldn’t have and she giggled.
“Really?” she questioned. “I wouldn’t have pegged you as a lover of cooking shows, Repo.”
“Well, let’s just keep that between the two of us,” he said. Cat pulled the hot plate of food from the microwave and grabbed the fork from the counter where Repo laid it out for her. She shoveled a bite into her mouth not caring that it burned her tongue.
“This is good,” she said around a mouthful of food. “How about you keep cooking for me and I’ll keep my mouth shut about you watching cooking shows,” she offered.
Repo nodded and smiled, “Deal.” He pulled out a kitchen chair for her and motioned for her to sit. She walked across the kitchen and sat down in the chair, watching as he sat across from her.
“So, you usually eat dinner at the break of dawn?” he teased.
“I was so hungry I couldn’t sleep,” she admitted. “Sorry if I woke you.”
“You didn’t really,” he said. “I was up already. I’m an early riser but I was hoping to grab a few more hours sleep.”
“Well, I knew that if I didn’t get up and feed my growling tummy, I’d never get back to sleep. I hope you don’t mind that I helped myself to your fridge.” Cat took another bite of food and hummed. “I think you’re not giving yourself enough credit, Repo,” she gushed. “This is really good.”
“Glad you like it,” he said. When he smiled at her like he was, Cat could see a different side of him. It was endearing to see Repo a little vulnerable and even somewhat shy. He seemed like a big, badass most of the time and this was a refreshing new side of him.
“I can feel you want to talk about something, Repo—so, let’s just have it,” Cat said around another mouthful of food.
“We never finished our discussion about rules,” Repo said. She knew he had more on his mind earlier but she dismissed him. Cat knew that sooner or later they would circle back around to this issue.
“Fine,” she said. “Your house, your rules. Let’s have them then, Repo. I’ll hear you out while you tell me how to be the perfect houseguest.”
“That’s not what this is, Cat. I need to know that you aren’t going to take off on me again. I told the court that I’d be keeping an eye on you and if you run, I won’t be able to show my face in Huntsville again, let alone work in that town. I’m not looking for much from you, Cat. I just need your word that you’ll stick around and stop giving me so much trouble. I’ve got other things I need to focus on and I’d like not to have to worry about you taking off.”
Cat barked out her laugh, “Yeah—wouldn’t want you worrying about me, Repo. Listen, I have nowhere else to go, so you’re stuck with me until my day in court. I will do my best to behave and as for running, I won’t.”
