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THREE
C O M M U N I T Y ___________
OUT OF HABIT, I locked the front door behind me after I got into the apartment. As much as I missed our old house from before, I did have to admit that having one with a bolt chain made me feel a whole lot safer than our little electronic lock.
Nobody had been back here since we all left this morning, so the place was still a bit of a mess. I couldn't help but pick up any clothes left on the floor, and it was while I was doing that I realized some of these…weren't ours.
Big jeans, big plaid shirt and boxers, they were too wide for Reese's skinny butt. And even though I wasn't actually an adult yet, I had watched enough adult cartoons before the outbreak to know what that meant. And even though I knew Mom was a grown up and she was entitled to her own choices, I had this sinking feeling it was gonna bite her in the butt in the end.
I dropped the boxers as soon as I realized they weren't my brother's and looked towards the door leading into Mom's bedroom. I carefully walked over it and put my hands over my ears to avoid hearing anything I couldn't un-hear.
"Mom?" I called out, kicking the door with my foot. "Reese sent me. He says you're gonna be late!"
Even with my ears covered I still heard my mother gasping and cursing, followed by a thud as I assumed one or both of them had rolled off the bed. I quickly turned and walked into the kitchen to put my back to the bedroom door, and soon heard the guy stumbling out into the living room.
He nervously chuckled as I heard the metal jingling of his belt. I assumed he was getting his pants on. But I was not turning around to confirm that.
After a minute, he actually spoke to me and when I heard his voice I shuddered.
"It's okay, kid, you can turn around."
"I'd rather not, Weber."
Footsteps followed my uncomfortable tone, additional ones from another room. Mom sighed and I heard Weber take something from her hands.
"Sorry," Mom apologized to him. "Lost track of time."
"No worries," He chuckled again. "I should get back to my post before they notice I'm gone. I'll see you there?"
"If you're lucky," She teased, and I cringed at the sound of the two kissing behind my back.
After they parted, Weber said bye to me and went out the door. Once he was gone, I finally turned around and saw my mother frowning at me, irritated.
"Emery. What are you doing?"
I actually laughed. "Right back at you, mom."
She rolled her eyes and started walking into the kitchen to grab a mug from the cupboards, blowing her hair out of her face. "Unless I'm mistaken, this is my house and I'm off duty. And over thirty."
