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Terrified, I trembled as I stood there in a bit of discomfort where he held me, and I tried not to move. “Let go of me,” I ordered through gritted teeth as a tear escaped.
He eased his hold and eventually I was allowed to turn to face my assailant. I took a shallow breath as I caught a whiff of his cologne, something spicy yet sexy, maybe Polo.
“What the fuck? You scared the shit out of me! We are in this God-forsaken no man’s land, you know!” I said with venom in my shaky voice.
“I assure you it’s not ‘no man’s land,’ as you put it. It’s a prime opportunity to snag you–or worse. I meant to scare you, and now maybe you’ll be mindful of your surroundings.”
I look around as I start to feel the small bathroom walls close in. “It isn’t as if I’m the Queen of England! What’s the big deal?”
He threw his head back and laughed a deep belly laugh. I was so...something. I couldn’t figure it out. I was mad, pissed off, hurt, embarrassed–I wasn’t sure exactly what, but I had to get out of this bathroom. I pushed him aside, maneuvered around him in the small space, and managed to escape.
Once in an open space, I sat in the chair next to a small table for two under a window. I needed a minute to calm my thoughts.
Parker
We love the things we love for what they are. Robert Frost
“Hey, wake up. Parker, wake up! You’ll be late to check out the house,” I could hear my sister say as I slowly started to wake. The room smelled of bacon and something else, maybe a breakfast casserole. I was hungry, and my stomach started growling and telling me to feed it.
“Okay, I’m up. I just had the most messed up dream.”
My sister sat on the corner of the bed, looking at me with a frown. “Yeah, I could tell. You were doing a lot of talking or arguing when I came in to wake you.”
“Was I? What did I say?” I sat up and rubbed my eyes.
“I couldn’t make out much, but I know it was about Robert. Are you still having nightmares? What’s stressing you out, Parks?”
She looked so concerned that I didn’t tell her that living there, God love the bunch, was stressful, as was my career and the breakup with yet another girl. I couldn’t seem to connect or hold onto a relationship, and I never had. “I’ll be fine, sis. What are you cooking? I’m starving.”
I jumped out of bed before I stayed, dug deeper into myself, and let the stress take over. I needed to start my life, settle down, and build a home so my family would know I was okay after all these years.
Today was the anniversary of Robert’s death. He was six weeks old when he died, and I blamed myself every day since that horrible day,14 years ago. That was why the dreams were so real. Vivid.
It was an unseasonably cool day in Florida. It was in the low fifties, and I shivered as I entered the living room. I decided to grab my hoodie and put on a pair of joggers while I was at it.
“So, are you finally leaving the nest?” Derrick asked as he shoved a piece of bacon in his mouth.
“Maybe. It depends on what shape this house is in.” I smiled.
“Well, I think if it’s got a roof and a toilet, you should be better off than homeless, right bro?” He looked over at me with a grin that matched the cat ate the canary look.
“I’m hurt. Are you getting sick of my company?” I teased.
“Only three months ago, bro.” He laughed and took a bite of his food.
“I thought I would stay at least two more years.” I kept the banter going as Nicole listened, her head moving back and forth with each volley as we spoke.
“You two are impossible,” she said with a laugh and got up from the table to clear it and get the kids ready.
A few months later…
As I drove away from home–well, my soon-to-be home–I couldn’t help my excitement. The weather had warmed up nicely; the sun shone high in the sky with white puffy clouds. On the radio, they were talking about the next opener in Jacksonville, which I felt confident about.
Most impressive, however, was that I’d just purchased my first home. I glanced at the keys on my dash and knew I’d be changing them to keyless entry first thing. The house only needed a few updates to serve the purposes I wanted and to personalize; other than that, she was a beauty. It was move-in ready, and my sister and husband were thrilled not only for me, but also to have their private space back. We had completed the final walk-through and closing, and it was now officially mine. I had stepped into the class of homeownership, and it felt good.
One of the best parts was that my best friend, Kayla, lived right around the block. How sweet was that? I already knew a neighbor.
I had scheduled a moving truck to meet me at the storage unit the following day, the one that had housed all my possessions for alittle shy of a year. As I stood there waiting for them, I reflected on the last year and realized how far I’d come, and how grateful I was to my sister and her family.
