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Noah: *eye-roll emoji* How did you do it? Tell me you didn‘t practice one of the grand gestures you‘ve seen in a chick-flick movie.
Logan: A valid question, but no. I did something even better that she’ll never forget.
I can’t wait to hear this.
Logan: I moved the feral kitten she found on the farm with us.
Logan briefly mentioned the farm cat Maggie was caring for, and that he wasn’t a cat person, during our playground small talk. This definitely earns him some Good Dad Points.
Noah: You have a cat now?
Logan: Apparently so.
He sends me a candid picture of the cat on a chair and follows it up with a selfie of him and a golden feline.
Noah: Cute.
Logan: Awww. You know how to make a guy blush.
His occasional flirty banter makes me question if he feels as comfortable with me as I do with him.
Noah: I meant the cat! Does your landlord know you brought a cat with you?
Logan: Of course he knows. I was surprised he agreed, but I may have begged. Maggie would never forgive me for abandoning Hope.
Hope. Something I could use a little more of these days.
Chapter 13
Logan
Unpackingthetworemainingboxes from the move takes most of Saturday morning. It’s our second morning in the apartment, and I’m feeling better than I have in a while. Having a blank space that isoursand isn’t full of painful memories, loosens some of my tightly wound sadness.
Unsurprisingly, Claire and Rufus insisted on helping with the move. Preparing for moving day required little work on anyone’s part, but Claire still busied herself with collecting ‘essentials,’ as she called them. Rufus leaned fully into preparing Maggie to care for Hope at her new home. He went over how an indoor cat and an outdoor cat have different needs. There was even a ‘responsibility’ talk, which Rufus insisted I join in on. I couldn’t be sure, but I wondered if the talk was more for Maggie or for me.
Thursday morning, an entire crew came together and moved us in. Despite shaking off their offers to help, Paul and all the regular guys showed up ready to be put to work. It was an absurd scene—six helpers and we moved less than ten boxes into the apartment. My lack of material possessions at this stage of my life felt humiliating, but no one uttered a single word about it.
The doorbell chimes at exactly 11:30 a.m. Maggie’s been beside herself all morning, chattering away about the toys she’ll show Rainey and over the moon to show her new best friend to her other best friend, Hope. The cat’s still adjusting to indoor life and wants to dart outside every time I open the front door. I shoo her away and she skitters into the living room, poking her head around the couch to observe our two guests.
Noah’s first-day-of-school messy bun is gone, replaced by long, sleek brown hair hanging around her face. A few baby hairs stick up around her temples, and I remind myself it would be inappropriate to smooth those back with my hand. I deduce Noah would choose a fruity shampoo over something floral and absentmindedly lean in a bit too close to confirm my hypothesis, and everyone standing in the foyer stares at me like I have five heads, causing my cheeks to flush.
Maggie takes Rainey’s hand and leads her to play, while Noah and I move into the living room. She sets a small plant on the coffee table Claire and Rufus gifted me.
“What’s that?”
“What’s it look like?” Noah grins up at me, rolling her eyes. I adore her unrelenting sarcasm.
“What it looks like is a plant. What I’m confused about is why you brought it to my apartment.”
“Well, you know . . . it’s my pet, and I wanted to take it for a walk. Thought I’d bring it here for a change of scenery.”
I play along, pinching my lips together and smirking at Noah. “Is it gonna pee in my new place?”
“Oh, good lord, dumbass. It’s a ‘welcome home’ gift.” She sighs dramatically and drops onto my shabby couch.
“I appreciate it, but I’m warning you this thing will be dead the next time you see it. My thumb is beyond black.”
“It’ll be fine. You wouldn’t believe all the plants I’ve accidentally killed—mostly by forgetting about them. My first house plant was a spider plant like this one, and it’s the only one still kicking. You can’t kill these guys if you try.”
