“Ready?”
“Ready!” Shay’s heart was pounding excitedly in her chest. An entire week of planning and preparation, designing and testing, all led to this moment. Shay gripped the hook in her hand. Her head was buzzing with nerves. She glanced up at Todd, her human roommate, and gave a nod. He honestly looked more scared than how she felt.
Todd is here. He’s not going to let anything happen to me. There are pillows. There are safeties. He’s going to catch me if it fails.
She took one last breath walking up to the ledge of the table and jumping off. She leapt straight up in the air, hook in hand, and embedded the barbed edge into the table as she began to plummet. The sensation of dropping in a free fall rose in her throat as a shriek, but she kept it down. Instead of giving into the fear of falling, she reached back with her left hand and pulled the lever.
The device on her back whirred and began grinding the cord, keeping it from releasing. The harder she pulled, the faster she slowed. The line shook, but it held in place, as she eventually began descending slower and slower. Finally, she touched down on the pillowed ground.
The Borrower teen turned around, a beaming smile on her face, as she looked up at Todd who shared the same expression. The jittering excitement exploded in her as she leapt into the air and cheered.
“It worked! We did it!”
“Yeah we did!” Todd reached down, palm out, and Shay wasted no time in high-fiving his hand.
“I can’t believe it! I mean, that was terrifying, but in a pinch it absolutely works!” said Shay as she began trying to shake the hook free from the table.
One of the biggest problems as a Borrower was having a quick descent plan if you were on a tall surface and couldn’t get to a hiding place where you were in time before a human entered the room. The usual decision was to accept the rope burn and descend the line as fast as you could, hope you could get your hook unlatched in time, and run to your hiding place. Shay had first-hand experience with this issue when Todd and his family first came home and she was trapped on the counter.
Working together, the two of them came up with this simple device which released the safety line attached to the hook which could be controlled with a lever. Todd worked on the device itself, using Shay’s specifications, while she made the harness pack it attached to. It was a little clunky, but obviously effective; and Shay couldn’t be more pleased.
The young Borrower smiled from ear to ear, completely elated, as she clambered onto Todd’s hand which he had rotated as an offer to climb on. When she was stable, Todd raised his hand and set it onto the table, fingers splayed so Shay could get off easily; something which she didn’t do.
If the past few weeks had told them anything, it was that their friendship was nothing like they expected and that they quickly got used to one another’s presences as if they had been working together for years. It was almost spooky how quickly the two had forged their friendship; like it didn’t matter they were so different. After all, they had so many things in common.
They both liked watching cartoons and dipping chocolatey treats into melted chocolate. They liked building more than reading about buildings and were both night owls. Both had an eye for construction and invention. They still had their differences, naturally. Shay didn’t like scary movies, seeing all of the things that were natural problems for Borrowers, but she was more adventurous and active than her human counterpart. Todd liked the quiet and could go hours without saying a word, content to work in the natural hum of his apartment.
Still, they worked seamlessly together and joked and played around like they were siblings, Shay almost treating Todd like she treated her older brothers and Todd treating her like his younger sister.
It was after this time had passed that they were watching one of the movies Shay had seen only pieces and parts of while sitting on the couch. Todd had made himself comfortable and was only partially watching the movie. Instead, he was watching Shay, who was currently perched on his knee and nibbling on a chocolate covered pretzel.
He remembered the first time he met her and could think of nothing else he would rather do than be friends with such an innocent soul and protect her from the big, scary world they lived in. Seeing her tears had been heart wrenching, and watching her open up to what he guessed was her natural self - energetic and vibrant - had been a great distraction to living away from home for the first time.
He also remembered the promise he made to her about bringing her home over the long weekend while he visited during break. Had she forgotten? Or had she not been counting the days, dreading each one where he’d have to part with his spunky little companion? Todd wasn’t sure which it was for Shay, but he hadn’t dared broach the subject.
He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t talked to her about it. Maybe it was because he would be lonely. Maybe he had gotten used to the idea of her staying with him. He knew she didn’t want to be a pet and he certainly never treated her like one, but he did wonder to himself from time to time if she liked not having to worry about gathering food and hiding all of the time - being taken care of.
Todd dared not bring up that delicate topic, knowing any mention of it could potentially sever the trust he’d earned. Instead, he pulled the blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over his shoulders, layering it to provide a comfortable cushion. He then reached out and nudged Shay gently with his index finger. She looked around at him, a bit of smudged chocolate on her face. He snickered at the sight.
“What?” she asked, a smile spreading across her face as she looked playfully defensive. “What did I do?”
“You didn’t do anything, but you’ve got melted chocolate on your face,” said Todd, gesturing to the area that was smudged with the melted sweet. Shay’s face turned a bright pink and she began wiping at her face with the back of her hand.
“Did I get it?” she asked, pursing her lips and turning her head from side to side. Todd nodded.
“Yeah, you’ve got it,” said Todd. “But, I did want to ask if you’d be more comfortable where you are or if you’d rather get on the blanket.” Shay’s eyes sparkled as she saw the cushioned place Todd had created before looking away bashfully at being overeager.
“I mean… if it would be more comfortable for you,” she said sweetly. Todd rolled his eyes and laid his palm beside her.
“Right. Definitely. You’re so considerate,” he said teasingly. “Just don’t get your melty chocolate on the blanket.” Shay stuck out her tongue playfully and wrinkled her nose as she climbed onto his hand on all fours.
“I’ve been the MOST careful between the two of us,” she said. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Uh huh,” Todd teased. Shay opened her mouth to protest, but Todd rapidly lowered his hand as if he were dropping her, making her squeal. She instinctively flattened against his palm after lunging for his thumb, wrapping both arms around it as tight as she could. If he had looked smug at making her squeal instead of the playful grin that reminded her so much of her middle brother, Slate, she would have had some snarky remark for him and may have even gotten angry. Instead, she decided to get back at him by wiping the melted chocolate on her hands into the crevices of his thumb.
“There!” she said as soon as Todd realized it was too late to stop her. “Now, you don’t have to worry about me getting chocolate on the blanket.”
“Ha ha great. Thanks,” was his only reply as he raised his hand to his shoulder and let her step off. He held impossibly still as she got situated and secured herself with her safety pin before readjusting and pulling part of the blanket that was free over his head, making an odd sort of tent for Shay.
They continued to watch the movie in silence, only laughter interrupting the movie. As much as Todd wanted to dismiss his thoughts, they continued to nag at him. The architect in the making would rather passively avoid the topic and continue along the status quo, which made him ten times happier than the alternative. Still, he knew he needed to bring up the topic of going home to Shay sooner rather than later. It was only three days away after all. He waited for the credits before summoning the courage to talk to her.
“Things are going to be different, huh?” Todd knew he wasn’t the best at starting serious conversations, but this seemed to be a good enough transition as he could come up with given the circumstances. He felt Shay, who had adjusted to lying down on his shoulder, sit upright.
“Different? What do you mean?” she asked. Todd clicked the television off with the remote, trying to let the words come naturally.
“You know. After the holiday break and everything, I’ll be here,” he replied. “And I’ll be on my own – for real this time.” He heard Shay giggle and shift again.
“You’re not going to be alone silly,” she said jestingly. “You have me.” For a moment, Todd’s heart leapt into his throat. Did she mean it? Was she going to stay? Or…
“What about going home?” he asked quietly. Todd heard Shay inhale sharply and fall very silent.
Shay sat on the soft blanket on Todd’s shoulder, her blood running cold and mind numbing. Were things really so different now? Had she forgotten to count down the days until she went home? To her brothers? Her parents? Had she changed so much being with Todd? What were her parents going to think of her? Had they completely given up on ever seeing her again?
Shay pulled her knees inward to her chest and gripped her ankles. All of these realizations suddenly were making her chest feel tight. Todd had been so kind and had reminded her so much of her older brothers. He had practically been her family all this time later. Now, he was going to leave, and they probably wouldn’t see each other again because the Borrower rules forbid it. She didn’t realize that warm tears were gathering at her eyes and that she was trembling. This did not go unnoticed by Todd.
“Shay? Are you crying?” Something about Todd asking made it all worse, and Shay sniffed and wiped her eyes. The next thing she saw was a hand eclipsing the light from outside the makeshift tent Todd created. Her Borrower instincts were to shy away from it, but Shay found herself leaning into the hand that wrapped around her, massive fingers pressing against her back. She threw herself forward, wrapping one arm between his index and middle finger and the other arm around to catch it.
“Hey, Shay, you’re going to be okay? Don’t cry. I… I’m sorry,” soothed Todd. Todd lifted Shay off of his shoulder, careful to cradle her body in his fingers, and brought her to his chest. She stifled a few more sniffles before wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.
“No… I’m sorry. I… can’t believe it. I guess I just… lost track of time,” said Shay as she leaned into the warm embrace around her until the tightness in her chest began to dissipate and she started feeling better.
“You know,” said Todd softly. “You could stay if you wanted to. I’m not saying you’d have to and I’m still going to take you home just like I promised, but you can always come back here with me.” Shay let go of Todd’s finger and turned around to face him. Instinctively, he uncurled his fingers slightly so she was no longer encased in his hand. He had that same welcoming, soft smile he had that reassured her all those weeks ago.
“You’d… let me stay with you?” she asked.
“Of course!” said Todd. “Shay, you’re always welcome to stay here with me. I mean, I’m not going to force you to stay here and all that; and you could go home with me when I go home over the holidays.” Shay could only look into Todd’s thoughtful eyes. Perhaps she could come back from time to time and see him – stay with him.
“I… I think I’d like that,” she said with a sweet smile. Shay’s eyes suddenly drooped and she leaned once again into the crevasses of his hand. Todd, noticing the quickly fading Shay, pulled the blankets off of himself and headed for his room. He glanced at the kitchen clock. It was a lot late than he thought.
Todd took extra care as he rotated his hand and set her down onto the pillow and pulled the blanket over her shoulder. She would have to pack and get everything ready for the weekend, just like him, but he quietly hoped that she would come back. He’d miss her a lot and, based on her response, she would miss him too. With that heartwarming thought, he quickly brushed his teeth and slipped into bed.
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