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She fixed herself an amazing omelette, secretly hoping Parker would smell it and come downstairs looking for food. She wasn’t about to cook for him, not with the attitude he had; she just wanted to rub his face in it. But he never came down and she wound up eating alone, listening to the rain beat against the patio outside.
It was after two in the afternoon. She didn’t know what to do with herself. She didn’t want to go outside, not with the weather the way it was, so she couldn’t even walk around or head to any of the nearby little shops. She probably could’ve taken Parker’s car, but she didn’t really feel like asking him for the keys. So she just sat on the sofa in the living room, staring outside.
“What’re you doing?” his voice was suddenly behind her. She jumped and looked over her shoulder.
“Nothing. Sitting here. What are you doing?” she asked. He shook his head. He was standing still, a baseball hat pulled low over his brow. His hands were in his pockets and his gaze was looking out the windows.
“Nothing. Sorry, I had some phone calls I had to make,” was all he offered about his absence. Paige shrugged.
“No biggie. Still in a shitty mood?”
That finally earned her a smile.
“Yeah, but it’s not as bad as before.”
“Well hurry and get over it. You’re not allowed to be in a shitty mood.”
“And why is that?”
“Because I’m almost always in a shitty mood, and we can’t both be shitty,” she explained. He finally laughed.
“That is a very good argument. Did you wanna do something? I don’t think the weather is gonna break tonight,” he pointed out. She frowned.
“It’s been like this all week. Is that normal?” she asked.
“They get some pretty wicked storms here, they can last a week or longer. But I was looking up the forecast and I think it’s supposed to blow over tomorrow or the day after,” he assured her.
“Thank god. I wanted to see the beach, not get drowned by all this rain. What should we do today?” she wondered out loud, stretching her arms. Parker moved around and sat on the other end of the couch.
“Maybe take it easy. We could go see a movie, or stay in and watch something. I’m not really in the mood to party,” he suggested.
“Yeah. We could watch something scary. I could make popcorn,” she offered. He laughed, leaning back into the couch cushions.
“Sounds nice. Probably the most normal thing we’ve ever done together,” he chuckled, pulling the brim of his hat even lower. Paige chewed on her thumbnail.
“Well,” she started, trying to think of something to cheer him up, “we could always find a karaoke joint.” Her ace card. He laughed again, but this time his voice low.
“I don’t really feel like singing, Paige. But if you really wanna go do something, maybe we could find something laid back, like go play pool or something.”
Paige nodded and got up to collect the television remote. Parker had tried to explain how to use it, but she could never get it – the only experience she had with televisions and remotes were the ones that were in cheap motel rooms. This thing was a huge contraption with a touch screen, and seemed to control most of the house. The first time she'd tried to use it, she'd opened and closed the blinds, and then managed to turn on a gas fireplace. She'd decided not to mess with it again, so she handed it over to him.
They sat through two movies, taking a break in between so Parker could eat something. She helped him make an omelette out of her leftovers, using up the last of the eggs. He didn’t say much, but smiled his thanks and gobbled it at the kitchen table. She sat across from him, playing with her water bottle.
The second movie had been a funny one – Paige had chosen it in hopes it would help get Parker out of his funk. Though he was no longer snippy with her, he seemed sort of depressed. The same way he was when he usually got done with a long phone call. Only this time she couldn’t pull him out of it. They'd always spoken freely, but today it was like there was a three foot wide wall between them. By the time the credits rolled, the silence between them was making her want to scream.
“Well, that was fun, but prepare to get your ass kicked!” she exclaimed, jumping out of her seat. Parker stared up at her, looking completely confused.
“Excuse me?” he asked. She ripped his hat off his head and shoved it down onto her own.
“I, sir, am an excellent pool player. You promised pool. You must take me now,” she told him, pointing at him comically. He raised an eyebrow.
“Paige, I’ve seen you play pool. You suck,” he replied. Her arm dropped.
“I do not. I mean, maybe I’m not excellent, okay, but I definitely don’t suck. Did you want to go or not?” she asked, putting her hands on her hips. He chuckled and slowly stood up.
“Alright, alright. I’ll take you out,” he said, taking his hat back from her.
“Good. We’ll have a great time. Just give me a second to change.”
