Page 23 of Fight for Me

“Sure, let’s do this.” I sigh and exit the car to follow Brody. He rings the doorbell and we both wait, looking around the dark street. It’s almost midnight and there’s not a soul in sight, yet I still can’t shake the feeling of being watched. From the way Brody surveys our surroundings, I can tell he can feel it too. Maybe we’re both paranoid.

The sound of opening doors snaps me back to the present, and I pivot to see a short, plump woman in a stained apron wearing a warm smile.

She looks Brody up and down, her hands on her hips, and then clips playfully, “Damon, long time no see. I would’ve thought you were abducted by the aliens if it wasn’t for your calls, assuring me you’re still there. Now come, boy, and hug your aunt!”

Brody smiles fondly at the woman and bends to hug her before kissing her on the cheek. “Aunt Ruth, it’s nice to see you too. How’s Uncle Frank doing?”

Ruth gives a dismissive wave and chirps. “Annoying the hell out of me like usual, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Then she turns her focus on me and smiles even bigger than she did at her nephew. “Oh, my! You must be Jenny. Where are my manners, keeping my guests standing in the doorway? Come in, come in!”

We step after her into the well-lit hallway, and I am surprised by how charming and clean it looks. I guess it’s true what they say about not judging a book by its cover.

“Are you two hungry? We have some leftovers from dinner, I’m sure I can call Amelia to heat them for you.”

“Thanks, Aunt Ruth, but I’ll have to get going soon. Jen?”

I shift my weight from foot to foot nervously. “Um. No, thank you, though. I’m exhausted, so if it’s possible...”

“Oh! Of course, darling, you must be dead on your feet. I’ll show you to your room,” Ruth exclaims happily before addressing Brody. “You coming, boy, or are we saying goodbyes?”

Brody clears his throat. “Yeah, I need to go, but if I could just have a minute with Jen.”

“Of course, dear. Take care and remember about your old aunt occasionally, would you? A visit once in a while would be nice,” she scolds the grown man, but her smile is teasing.

“Yes, I apologize for not calling, but my work...”

“What it is that you are trying to say, boy? That your job is more important than your family?” She waves before his face, pretending she's trying to smack him. He chuckles lightly before hugging her. They whisper something for a minute, and then she leaves with a wink. I follow her movements with my eyes until she disappears around the corner.

“I want you to have that.” Brody hands me a small mobile phone when I refocus on him. “It has my number installed in it. I will call you with updates if I have any. And if something happens, I want you to call me immediately, too.”

I look at the phone and back at Brody’s unusually open face before pocketing the device. “Thank you, big guy. You didn’t have to do all of this. You didn’t have to go out of your way to help me.”

“I know, but I wanted to.”

“Why, though? I’ve been nothing but a pain in the ass since you met me. You told me that many times.”

He looks at me intently for a second and then, lowering his voice, says, “But you’re my pain in the ass. And you got under my fucking skin, Jen.”

Brody lifts his hand toward my face, almost touching it, and then at the last moment, changes his mind, and ends up tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear instead.

Our eyes meet, and my breathing accelerates when he glances down for a moment. I have to fight with myself not to lick my suddenly dry lips. We stare at one another, each of us in a state of weird suspension. The feel of his hand in my hair causes goosebumps to spread all over my body.

The intense moment passes when Brody shakes his head and pulls away, removing his hand as if I burned him.

With a fast, “Call if you need me,” he’s gone, the door closing loudly after him.

Okay, what was that? Did he...? No. I won’t be reading too much into it. My head is all messed up right now. I’m probably daydreaming or something. Come on, Jenny, get a grip.

I breathe slowly through my mouth and then collect my bag from the floor before turning in the direction of the staircase. A surprised yelp leaves my mouth as I almost run into someone.

“Oh, I didn’t know you were still here. I mean, of course, you can be here. It’s your place, I guess. I was just... saying goodbye to Brody. We didn’t...” I scratch anxiously behind my ear as I explain myself to Ruth, who’s wearing a knowing smile. I don't understand why I feel as if I were caught in a compromising situation. Nothing happened.

Luckily for me, she doesn’t comment on whatever she saw or heard and just leads me to one of the common rooms and then shows me where the bathroom is. Even though the place is clean and well-kept, you can see that they are struggling with money. Everything here shows signs of usage, the furniture is mismatched and outdated. Still, it feels homely somehow. We reach the bedroom, I get to choose from two of the free beds, with three more already occupied by other women, who are sleeping soundly. After whispering my gratitude to Ruth and wishing her goodnight, silently I enter the half-lit room and remove my shoes before putting my bag next to the pillow. I doubt that anyone would steal my stuff, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. I take out the phone I got from Brody and see it doesn’t have access to the internet, but what it does have is some music stored on it. When I see a few of my favorite bands there, I smile widely. How did he know? Or does he listen to the same stuff as me? Seriously, that man is still a mystery to me. That’s probably why he’s so alluring.

I fish out my headphones out of my bag and put them on. When the first beats of the familiar song reach my ears, my body instantly relaxes. I lie down fully clothed and fall asleep within minutes.

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