Page 3 of Heartfelt Pain
“What now?” Abe asks.
“For fuck’s sake.” Isolde’s accent gets thicker with her anger. “You’re never leaving the fucking kitchen again.”
He frowns. “My questions are valid, Yorkshire.”
“They’re annoying,” she mutters.
“I’m going this way.” I take a right.
All three of my friends swerve to follow.
I don’t look over my shoulder. “I’ll be fine.”
“We’re walking you home,” Ben says.
“Are you going to walk Isolde home or am I the only one being babysat?”
“Of course we’re going to walk her home.” I can practically hear Abe’s furrowed brow as he answers. “And then we’ll walk ourselves home. It’s called the buddy system.”
How nice. The happy couple always have one another.
I’m glad I’m walking in front so no one can see the exasperated face I make. I swear my annoyance is only because I’m tired. People in love don’t normally piss me off this much.
But it’s been a long few weeks.
True to their word, they walk me all the way to my building. My limbs are numb throughout all five miles. Ben waves at the doorman, the pair on a first-name basis with one another.
“You fucks are lucky I love you,” I tell all three. For a second I let myself pretend like we’ve just come from the bar. The sidewalk in front of my building is worlds away from the industrial junkyard.
“Or what? You’d have shot us all for knowing where you live?” Isolde asks.
“Yes.”
“Babe, we need to figure out if this fuck does know where you live.” Anxiety swirls from Abe. I’m grateful for Isolde’s blank face.
“It’s fine,” I quickly say, wary of other residents in the lobby.
“We should go up and check,” Abe suggests.
“No.” The doorman opens the door. “I love you all, but no.”
“Text us when you get inside,” Abe yells.
“I’m inside!” I hold my hands out wide to demonstrate as I walk through the lobby.
The doorman grins. He has no idea I just found a dead body. “A good night?”
“Something like that,” I reply, heading to the elevator.
From what I’ve learned about Aunt Macy, she wore thrifted T-shirts and bitched about spending more than twenty bucks. When it came to her accommodations, though, she didn’t skimp on the details.
The two-bed, two-bath with an in-unit washer and dryer that comes in a building with a doorman is a dream come true. Especially considering I inherited it for free.
Which is why I should be ashamed of the state of it.
The place came with a strong scent of stale smoke thanks to Aunt Macy’s chain-smoking. But the rest of the mess? That’s all on me.
I shove my shoulder into the door, using more force than necessary. It feels like I’ve got to break down doors everywhere I go these days.
