We stare at each other for long moments.
“I’ll give you forty-eight-hours,” I grit out as I head for the door, “and then I’m telling her myself.”
CLEM.
When I wake up, I immediately sense something is different.
And then the memories flood back into my brain, and I reach out to feel for Otis in the bed. My brows pleat when I find the space next to me is empty. I sit up and see there’s a note, and a flower pinned to it, on the vacant side of the mattress.
My heart patters as I pick it up.
Didn’t want to disturb your slumbers.
Muesli and fresh squeezed orange juice in the fridge.
Tippy may come over to take you to the markets.
I’ll be home midday to bake that cake.
O.
He’s left a smiley face with two horns. And two kisses.
My heart turns to gloop in my chest.
Who would have thought it? From a barren wasteland, my love life has suddenly burst into bloom.
Love? I roll the word around in my head.
Don’t be ridiculous, Clem, it’s been two days since you met the guy.
And yet… the attraction between us is so strong on so many levels, it’s literally sweeping me along with it.
I hum to myself as I jump out of bed, throw on Otis’s checked shirt and wander out into the passage.
The place is quiet except for the ticking of the grandfather clock in the one of the many rooms I pass.
In the kitchen, I pour milk onto the muesli and eat it looking out the window at the little plants growing under the bright lumen light. Maybe it should feel claustrophobic living down here, but it doesn’t, it feels cozy and safe.
More like home than Sparkle City ever did.
I startle when the phone in the passage rings.
Maybe it’s Otis, checking in. My heart skips at the thought.
I try not to be disappointed when I hear Tippy’s voice on the end of the line. “Hello Clem, fancy a trip to the markets this morning?” she chirps, and before I can answer, she adds, “Otis swung by and asked if I could make the time. I’ve managed to get a leave pass from Digger’s for a couple hours.”
“That would be great. He’s got a cake to bake so I could get the ingredients.”
“Cool. Be there soon.”
When Tippy rings off, I go and dress in leggings and a tee, and brush out my hair, humming to myself. And I realize I’m happy. I haven’t felt hap since I was a little kid, before Momdisappeared, when that tight knot appeared in my stomach along with the responsibility of looking after our dad on my own.
If that’s what one make-out session with an orc can do, then bring on more.
Many, many more.
As the doorbell chimes, there’s a big smile on my face as I go to greet Tippy.
