Claws // Colby Brock

💫 10 💫

☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎

Sleeping on the couch after enjoying sleeping in a bed that was comfier than anything I'd slept on before was so much of a downgrade that I struggled to sleep at all. But I managed it until I was woken up while the sun was still up by my phone ringing.

I reached over to answer it, reading the name and instantly pressing accept. Trying not to sound too eager, I said, "Hi, Lyle."

"Miss Andrews." He didn't sound pleased, which ignited worry throughout my entire body. "Do you have time to talk?"

"Yes," I answered quickly. "Is something wrong?"

"Well, I just wanted you to know that there were a few delays with the insurance company, but we've finally gotten the pay out. We begin the repairs tomorrow."

I breathed out in relief, sitting up as I curled one leg so my foot was under my butt. "That's good news. How long will it take?"

"I'm not sure," he admitted slowly. "The damage to your apartment was far worse than any of the others, so it's going to take quite a while. We basically need to redo the whole thing, the only room that was untouched being one half of your bedroom."

"So... how long?" My voice came out in a terrified whisper.

"I want you to keep in mind that other tenants also have damages. On either side of you, there were at least two rooms in each apartment that were affected, and considering those tenants are taking up space in the vacant spots I was just about to have advertised... well, we're repairing those first. Which means yours will be delayed a little bit more."

I bit my tongue on that. I understood from a landlord's perspective. While I wasn't there and paying my bills, he felt the need to bring others into the building to fill in the gaps, and if the damages in the other apartments was less, it made sense to fix them first, get those tenants back in, and get some new ones in the vacant apartments they were residing in. I understood it, but I hated it.

"How long, Lyle? Last time I'm gonna ask."

"Months." I sucked in a breath. "At least two, if not more."

"Okay."

At least two more months, I would have to spend here. Months. A part of me thought that maybe all of this was over and I could finally leave this place. I didn't intend on losing touch with these people entirely, since I'd grown somewhat close to Cassie and the others' company wasn't so bad, either, but I was fed up of living here. Especially now that I was back on the couch.

"Are you able to stay at your current accommodation for that long?" he asked, his voice soft as though he cared. He didn't, at the end of the day. He just needed to know if I was going to run out of money and become homeless before I could move back in.

"I will be fine," I assured him anyway, sighing. "Thanks for the update. Oh, in future, could you call me a little later than this? I... work nights, so I sleep during the day."

"Right! That lady who answered the door said something about that." He groaned. "Sorry, Miss Andrews. I should have thought before calling at this time. Get back to sleep, I'll give you whatever updates I can from now on at nighttime."

I smiled as I thanked him, genuinely pleased I had such a nice landlord, even if sometimes he acted too much like a landlord and too little like a human being who had sympathy. I hung up on him shortly after and laid my head against the back of the couch, considering whether going back to sleep was worth it.

To my surprise, a figure appeared in the doorway, drawing my attention to a skinny blonde man standing awkwardly with his hand wrapped around one elbow.