Page 4 of Suddenly Entwined

A few minutes later, I lean over my pile of boxes, catching my breath. “This is everything.”

“Here you go.” He pulls a key from his pocket, a blue, metallic object dangling from it.

“What the hell is on it?”

“A fishing lure. It’s hard to lose.”

“Um, thanks. I think I can keep my keys in check.” The only thing I’m planning to lose is that damn lure the minute he leaves.

I twist the key in the lock, turn the handle, and give a gentle push, but nothing happens.

“Oh, yeah, the door is a bit sticky. I think the wood has swelled.”

Chris takes over, and it opens easily enough. So the place isn’t perfect? It’s good enough for me. He slides the boxes over the threshold with a thump.

“Light switch is on the left.”

I pat the wall down, finding the switch.

“How’s your place coming along?”

He groans. “Don’t ask.”

“That bad?”

“Bit more time and money than we expected.”

We toured the construction site last week. I tried to be interested in the logistical parts of the renovation, but a girl can only listen to so much talk about joists and joinery. I wandered off to the patio that overlooks the Pacific. White caps dotted the stormy blue seas, the Olympic mountains in the distance. Who doesn’t want to wake up to the sound of waves crashing on the beach? I know my brother has a few years on me, but I feel so behind in life as I plod away in my bartending job with my beater car and my thrift store sweaters.

“I barely remembered what this place looked like,” I say, tapping my fingers on the granite bar where two wooden stools sit below it.

“Well, you were gone for a long time.”

I don’t miss the thread of hurt in his voice. I didn’t mean to be away for so long. But I was stupid and hoped that maybe I’d find some way to recoup my money. Instead, I made it worse, living beyond my means and alienating the people that loved me by avoiding them.

“Are you sure this is okay? Berg didn’t want to rent it to someone more…affluent? I know what an apartment in this neighbourhood can go for.”

He shrugs and I move into the living space. It’s tastefully decorated and surprisingly warm in feel. Can I tell that a single male lived here? Sure. But there’s no stark white walls and, thankfully, a total lack of naked lady calendars.

But I bet he only took those down when he met Anna.

“I was gonna move out, anyway. Besides, you needed to get out of Mom and Dad’s. Accept the help. It’s a good place in a nice area while you wait for school to start back up.”

How many hours of sleep have I lost these past weeks scouring the internet for rentals? They fell into two categories. Nice and clean, which made them prohibitively expensive, or affordable but complete dumps. That or they were so outside the city limits that I’d spend a fortune on gas. I shudder at the idea of my car breaking down somewhere random. Besides, it comes furnished, and my bank account is running empty. When Chris told me that Berg had no issue with me being his next tenant, it felt like the first win I’ve had in a while.

I really thought I had the frugal travel thing figured out. I remember creating a freaking PowerPoint to illustrate to myparents that I wasn’t half-assing my trip. Sure, I was an adult when I left, but that didn’t mean they weren’t worried about me. It was important for me to prove to them (and myself) that even though I was choosing to leave my psychology program at university, I’d at least thought this through. Accommodations, food, transportation, incidentals. There was so much to account for. But it was way easier to overspend than I’d expected, especially when I met Emilio. It wasn’t romantic, not like that. In fact, he doesn’t swing my way anyhow. I altered my itinerary to match his, hung out with all of his friends, and lost sight of my budget.

After months of hanging out together, I counted him as one of my closest friends. When he asked me to borrow money for a business venture that sounded rock solid, I agreed. My intuition must have been broken that day. It wasn’t until our ‘repayment plan’ fell through and his excuses stopped adding up that I saw the red flags whipping in the wind. That was the money I had saved to get me through the last months of my trip and the money I was hanging onto so I could finish my degree. The worst part was that he didn’t even have to steal the money. I handed it right over like an absolute idiot.

“Don’t you want to take some of this stuff with you?” I ask, noting his full bookshelves as I peruse the space.

“Nah, I’ve got what I need for now. Anna has everything and, believe it or not, her place is smaller than this. Maybe I’ll come get some of it when we get into the beach house. So, are you looking forward to school in the fall?”

I nod even though an acidic taste blooms on my tongue. “Mmm hmm!”

“Good. Mom and Dad are so excited. First person to earn a Bachelor’s in the family and all that.”

A mild wave of nausea forms in my stomach. Keeping the fact that I lost money to myself was one thing, but telling everyone I was all set to return to school in September was extra stupid. I’m not even registered. When I called Chris out of the blue from Spain asking for money but not being able to explain why, I begged him not to ask more questions. I told him I overspent, and that I didn’t want to dip into my school savings.

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