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“There’s something you’re not telling me.”
“No, there’s not,” I say. “I’ll cook.”
Cook is a bit of a stretch for melting cheese over toast, but it’s one of the few meals I don’t screw up.
He lifts his hand as I’m about to stand. “No. Stay there and keep your secrets. I’ve got this.”
When he disappears into the kitchen again, I grab Imani’s blanket from the back of the sofa and wrap it around myself. Why would he want to know more about me? I don’t have many secrets. All I could add to what I’ve already told him is how much I miss waving a stick around, laughing and twirling as I walk in front of my family. My aunt smiling widely as she follows with a bag of bread. My uncle taking pictures of me, documenting every moment of my life.
My childhood might not have been jetting around the world and living in mansions, but it was the best. Some of my favourite memories are of me playing in the lake, going for walks, and baking wonky cupcakes. I can see why that’s not very exciting to someone who had a literal maze in his massive garden. I don’t think he’ll find our forest strolls particularly exciting.
While he’s busy in the kitchen, I look around the living room. This house was broken into. Broken. Into. It feels like a dream… or a nightmare, the words not fitting together in my mind.
I’m sure I overreacted because they didn’t seem to be dangerous, but I had no way of knowing what was going on.
That house alarm can’t get installed fast enough.
I wonder what Casper said to our landlord to get him to agree the alarm. It’s not like he’d offer to spend a penny unless it was a danger to life.
Casper must have shouted or threatened. I wouldn’t argue with him if he was in a bad mood. Well, I have and do often, but I’m talking about him beingthatangry. Last night was a shock for him, too. Like he said, he didn’t know what he was walking into. He could’ve found me dead with a slashed throat and blood painted up the walls.
When he wasn’t on the sofa this morning, my mind instantly went somewhere dark.
That would’ve been so scary for him. I couldn’t imagine walking into a situation where you’re not sure how you’re going to find the person you’re running to, and also you have no idea who you’re going to face along the way.
It was a stupid move on his part really. The police were on their way, and I was hiding. In that moment, he was more in danger than I was.
But he came for me, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to repay him for that.
After a few minutes of clashing around and slamming cupboards, I start to smell melted cheese and realise how hungry I am. Casper has been making alotof noise considering how simple it is to make cheese on toast. There’s probably going to be more cleaning needed than necessary, but I can’t complain.
I’m so grateful he’s here.
He brings me a plate and hands it to me without a word or even a glance in my direction. Very domesticated.
“Thanks,” I say, laying the plate on my legs.
But there’s no reply.
When I glance sideways, I see that he’s back to being irritated by my very existence. Tight jaw, tight eyes. What the hell did I miss?
Casper sits down beside me with his own plate as if we do this regularly, but there’s still no conversation. His icy reception sinks beneath my skin.
He’s annoyed with me for some reason, so why would he want to sit inches away from me? I bite into the toast, and as delicious as it is, my stomach tries to reject it. I want to scream because things were better, we were getting along, and everything was going to be easier.
Now… I don’t know. We’re close to slipping back to how we were before.
My life would be so much easier if I stopped overthinking this stuff, but he makes it impossible to know where I stand from one minute to the next.
“This is good,” I say, my voice cutting through the awkward silence. I dip the corner of the toast into ketchup and force myself to bite down. I didn’t even tell him I wanted sauce.
All right, from this moment on, I’m going to be civil to him. Nice, even. There’s nothing like a little bit of terror and crime to unite two people. I don’t care if he wants to go back to pretending I’m invisible. Despite how he’s treated me in the past, he’s been there for me when I needed him the most. Surely that’s worth starting over for?
He can’t argue with me if I stop biting back.
I smile, ready to be the bigger person and try out my new theory. “Seriously, how did you get the cheese to bubble like that? I only ever burn it.”
“You sound surprised that I can toast bread and melt cheese, Ainsley.”
