“Excuse me,” Levi said as he stood and went down the hall, out of sight, to the front door.
She could hear some friendly banter, so being curious, she stood and went to the door as well. Standing just inside the now closed front door was a very tall, elegant man with wavy, short brown hair and a very chiseled jawline. His golden-brown eyes sparkled inquisitively as Madeline approached, and he removed one hand away from the short-haired calico cat he was holding to offer it to her in a greeting. His clothes were nicely tailored and expensive, which was on par with anyone who could afford to live in the same nice building downtown, but he gave off the impression of being a bit too friendly.
“Madeline, this is my neighbor, Caslon,” Levi introduced. “He’s the one with the cat.”
“Oh,” Madeline replied, shaking Caslon’s hand politely. Looking down, she noticed the cat he was holding wasn’t the same one as earlier.
“How many cats do you have?” she asked, letting out a small laugh.
“More than I would like to,” Caslon replied with a French accent and a regretful sort of smile. “Would you like one?”
“Um, no,” she said, taking back her hand, “I’m okay without any pets right now.”
“So, what’s up?” Levi asked, offering him a seat at the couch.
Caslon declined.
“Oh, nothing. I heard some noise over here and was just making sure it was you, that’s all.” Caslon assessed Madeline with his eyes, all the while scratching the cat behind the ears. “So, new roommate?”
“Something like that,” Levi responded, eyes suddenly narrowing. “She’ll be here for a while, and has the run of the place. We are moving her in tomorrow actually.”
“Wow!” Caslon smiled wide-eyed, a bit surprised by the situation.
“Wow, what?” Levi asked. Caslon was always sniffing around whenever there was a girl over at Levi’s place, hoping for leftovers, but he was even more annoying this time. Probably because this girl was actually moving in, and not just staying the night.
“So, is this a serious thing then?” He smiled as he prodded.
“No,” Levi responded flatly.
“Ah.”
Caslon then began undress Madeline with his eyes, with an even bigger grin on his lips this time. “So, um, Madeline,” Caslon continued, “If you need anything, just come over. I’m right next door.”
“Elle n’est pas une souris,” Levi interjected before Caslon could pursue with further amorous invitations.
“Seriously?” Caslon pouted. “Okay, whatever. You’re no fun.”
Madeline was pretty sure that was French, but before she could commit it to memory so that she could look it up later on the internet, Caslon took her hand again.
“Well, it was a pleasure meeting you,” he said politely as his thumb lightly caressed her fingers. “I’m sure we’ll see each other around.”
“Just go already,” Levi ordered, crossing his arms.
Caslon smiled once more at Madeline, and then left Levi’s apartment gracefully.
“He seems nice, a little too forward though,” Madeline observed out loud. “Is he… ?”
Levi purposely ignored her question and just swaggered back to the coffee table. She thought about apologizing, but then figured it would just bring more attention to the awkwardness of the situation. But she got the point, it was rude to ask what someone was when she barely knew them, and that included Levi.
The rest of the evening went by uneventfully. They made small-talk while finishing up the Chinese delivery, and then Levi made Madeline another cup of green tea before he went off somewhere to make a few private phone calls. When he came back into the living room, he briefly went over the schedule for tomorrow, and when they would wake up and head out.
When she was just about done with her second cup, Levi told her he wanted her to go to her room for the rest of the evening so that she could decompress. He explained that he could tell she was bottling up all the emotions from the past week and it was only going to get worse if she didn’t release them.
“Just lock the door, pretend I’m not here, and do what you need to do. I can guarantee you I won’t be eavesdropping. I may sound like I don’t know what I am talking about, and you may think you’re fine, but you’re not. I can smell it all over you.”
Madeline was taken aback by his words, a look of shock on her face. She thought she had been doing pretty good and was actually feeling a bit better until he said that. And he could smell it? Smell what exactly? What was he, a dog?
“Fine,” she responded sharply.
She stood up and walked to the guest room somewhat defiantly. After locking the door behind her, she leaned her back against it. It would be nice to take a hot bath and get back to a normal sleeping schedule, and she would show him she was just fine. He hadn’t a clue.
She set the radio alarm clock to wake her up with plenty of time to get ready for tomorrow, and left her favorite station on loud enough to be heard in the adjoining bathroom. After brushing her hair, she sat on the edge of the tub and turned the faucet on to get the water running. Carefully peeling the bandages off the bottoms of her feet, she began slipping out of her clothes, leaving them in a pile on the white ceramic floor tiles. The cuts on the soles and heels of her feet stung when she first stepped into the hot water, and she quickly sank the rest of her tired body in to relieve the pressure on them. As she stretched out, she noticed two sets of shampoos and conditioners in the recessed shelf within arm’s reach. One was her own cheap brand that Levi must have brought over from her apartment, but the other set? It was in stunning, candy apple red pump bottles, with instructions and ingredients all listed in Japanese on the back. Curious, she unscrewed the top and took a sniff. It didn’t have the same earthy scent that lingered around Levi. In fact, it had a very floral scent, and it was less than half full.
Frustrated, she twisted the top back on and set the shampoo bottle down with a thud, sinking a bit deeper into the steamy water. What was she expecting? That someone like him was some sort of white knight?
Someone like him.
She didn’t even know what he was.
So many things she didn’t know, and for being self-sufficient, she now depended on a stranger for a roof over her head, clothes on her back, and her next meal. She wasn’t even certain how long that was going to last. From his phone conversation earlier, the whole arrangement seemed to be temporary. And then what? Was it going to boil down to her bending to his whims to keep from being kicked out on the street, and figuratively to her death? She had basically moved from one prison to another, only this was one she couldn’t escape from. It was going to be hers forever. And she had nothing anymore. Sure, she couldn’t afford much to begin with, but now she truly had nothing but a few toiletries and a couple of changes of clothes that could literally fit in a large shoebox.
Grabbing onto her necklace, she slid backwards, putting her head underwater. She stayed under for as long as she could hold her breath hoping it would stop the tears she could feel coming. Without his distraction, her mind became busy with an overwhelming amount of doom. Her thoughts suddenly felt like a derailing bullet-train. Screw him for being right. Screw him.
Coming up for air, she started sobbing. She splashed the warm water on her face, but it wouldn’t stop the crying. She didn’t want to think about having nothing, but she couldn't stop. She didn’t even have a reason she could assign the blame to, nothing to look back on and point “there’s what screwed me over”. She’d been on her own for years, but right now she felt the need to be held. She missed grandma. She knew she had to suck it up, but it was easier said than done right now. She would get through this. She would get stronger. She would survive.
At the far end of the condo, in the area that was still a loft, Levi was blasting some rock music while he did chin-ups on a steel bar. The music was so loud he could feel it reverberate in his chest as he repeated his sets over and over again. Even from this far away, her hopelessness was thick in the air. He had a feeling that since the desire she emanated earlier was strong, her raging misery would be unbearably heavy.
And he was right.
It was salty and sour, and he didn’t want to be anywhere near her right now. He figured he’d do a hard workout to force his focus on getting through double his normal reps, burning the atmosphere out of his mind. It also cleared his head, allowing him to concentrate on some questions he had been dwelling on in her presence. For a human, the strength of her emotions were well above par. Most of his kind could gain some sustenance on the emotions of others, absorbing them like taking a drag off a cigarette. They could pick which emotion they wanted, unaffected by the other less desirable ones, with the only drawback being that they couldn't survive off that alone.
But not Levi.
He absorbed emotion much more efficiently, could heal serious wounds from it, but he couldn’t tune out undesirable ones. His specific kind had emotions they strongly preferred, and therefore had emotions which they strongly detested. They were born that way, and it wasn't something they could develop a taste for later on. The preferences were permanent.
After working out for a few more hours, long after hearing the water drain from the guest bathtub, he felt Madeline’s negative emotions finally dissipate. He took a long shower, letting the day’s events sink in and be filed away in the back of his mind. It was this way, that he lived with no regrets and nothing shackling him to the past. Afterwards, he headed to Madeline’s room with a blanket from the linen closet draped over his arm. Unlocking her door, he silently stepped over to the bed and laid the blanket out over her sleeping body, knowing its extra weight would calm and relax her while she slept. He knew first hand how it felt to lose everything in an instant, but he also knew it was possible to survive and become stronger because of it. From her will and drive, he knew she’d survive it too.
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