Page 6 of Run Away Home: Tempered

PACKING ALL OF OURbelongings from Melissa’s house wasn’t too hard. We didn’t have that many things. Just some clothes, really. All the furniture was Melissa’s, and her sister wanted most of it. I mean, it is technically her house now. She’s planning to rent it out. Too bad we can’t afford it. I don’t think Melissa’s sister ever really liked us much, not even Danny, but thereissome good news. I was approved for a credit card at a furniture store. I don’t know how. I have no credit, but I’m not going to question it.

I’m proud of the apartment. It has one large main room meant for a living space and dining area. The room is covered with a soft, gray carpet—and there aren’t many stains, either! I might be able to scrub out the few that remain, or at least cover them with something...like a plant. I think the furniture store had fake plants. I’ll have to check again sometime this week.

A separate kitchen’s just off the dining room. The tiling is black and white, which clashes a wee bit with the speckled countertops, but it’s notsobad. I like the cabinets. They’re real wood, not the sticker crap that peels right off.

The short hallway leads from the living room toward a bathroom and three small bedrooms, one for each of us—well, one for Danny. Maybe in the future, Hayley and I will share a room, kind of like a...a family! I would never say that last part out loud, but the thought alone puts a smile on my face.Family.Sometimes it seems like it could happen. Other times, it feels like the most impossible thing out there.

What I really like most about the apartment is that you’re never too far away from anyone else you live with. If I’m in the kitchen, and I speak loudly enough, Hayley can hear me from the living room. Unless she has the TV volume all the way up, which is typical of her.

I’m inside the back of the small moving truck. I inhale deeply and watch as my warm breath leaves my mouth. I pick up another box filled with clothes and head toward the door. My keys jangle against my legs as I make my way down the sidewalk. Second floor apartments are just awful. Carrying boxes up and down the stairs can really make you out of breath...like walking up and down a hill—

NO, don’t go there!

When I reach the top of the stairs, I drop the box and just look around. It’s still kind of empty in here. I bought a couch, a coffee table, an entertainment center, and a dining room set. Melissa’s sister let us take the TV, and I was absolutely donnered. It’s a crappy TV, but still! She also let us have a small round table with three chairs and the beds. The apartment needs some sort of décor. I’ll figure it out. I have a good eye for that stuff—no money, but a good eye.

I bend down and open the box. It’s filled with Danny’s clothes. I pick it back up and carry it into his new room. He’s sitting on the end of his bed. Nothing’s put away, but at least he put sheets on the mattress.

“Not too bad, right?” I ask, setting the box on the floor.

“It’s a little bigger than my room at Melissa’s, I think.”

“That’s good.”

“Yup.” He picks up his phone.

“Can you start putting some of your clothes away?”

“I don’t have a dresser.” He lowers his phone to look at me.

“Can you hang your clothes in the closet until I can get you one?”

“Sure, but what about socks?”

“Put them in one of those plastic containers for now. I think they’re still in the truck.”

“Okay. I’ll go get one.”

“Thanks, bud.”

Danny and I leave his room together. He walks toward the front door, but I stop. Hayley’s standing in her new bedroom. Her arms are folded, and she sighs loudly.

“Something wrong?” I ask.

She turns, acting surprised, but I’m pretty sure she intended for me to hear the sigh. She doesn’t speak immediately. I want to fill the void, but she’s so distracting. Her blue eyes are a perfect contrast to her light-red hair. She bats them, gently but swiftly. I can’t help but marvel at her untouched complexion. No zits—no marks at all, in fact—just soft porcelain skin surrounded by a curtain of silky red hair. She’s flawless. She’s beautiful. She’s—

“I don’t know, Peter. There’s not a lot of light in here. Your room has more light and a bigger closet.” She keeps her arms folded.

Oh, yeah. The bedroom.

“Well, it’s the master.”

“Why do you get it?”

I smirk. This is a perfect opportunity to be really nice. I’ll take it.

“You know what?”

I walk out of her room and into mine. I pick up one of my boxes and carry it into her room.

---