“Okay.” He leaned back against the counter. “So, what are we supposed to do all day? Or, night, I guess. Since we can’t really do much with…”
He trailed off into silence. He must have not wanted to bring up the fact that Margaret was still out there, and despite Benji’s attempts to calm her down, she was still capable of turning on Caleb at any time.
“You can do whatever you like,” I said. “Pretend nothing has changed, except your living arrangement.”
“It’s kinda hard to do that,” Caleb mumbled.
“How so?”
“Well, I’m living with a vampire in a fancy cottage,” he said with a nervous laugh. “That’s a big change, for one thing.”
I waved a hand. “Disregard that. Tell me your usual schedule.”
He sat back down. “Okay. I get up in the afternoon usually, since I work a night shift. I didn’t used to, but my manager changed it since I got sick and couldn’t show up during the day sometimes. Said it was something to do with less people there, so less of a blow to the profits. Plus he cut my hours too…” He trailed off again in a mumble.
That’s right,I thought.I’d forgotten about his illness. That was the whole reason Benji and Pierce met, after all. Caleb was the catalyst of everything.
“Then what?” I prompted.
“Then… I take the bus home and pass out. Then I wake up and have some time to myself, so I play video games or eat or j - “ He cut himself off. “Uh, anyway, then I get ready for work again, basically.”
I raised a brow. I assumed thejstood for something likejack off.He was a young man, after all - not a surprise by any means.
“Do you have work tonight, then?”
“No,” Caleb said. “I took two nights off to come see Benji. I didn’t know what would happen, so I took an extra in case we could have a sleepover or something.” He smiled grimly. “It sounds childish and stupid, now that I’m saying it out loud.”
“You were excited to see your brother after months of not seeing him,” I said. “Nothing to feel stupid about.”
He seemed surprised to hear me say that. “But yeah. No work tonight, so I can do whatever I want. Except not get killed by Margaret, hopefully.”
I stood from my seat, setting my hands squarely on the table. “I’ve told you before. She will not touch you. Not while I still live.”
Caleb blinked up at me with his brown doe eyes. His blush returned. “Th-thanks.”
“Do you believe me?” I demanded.
Caleb swallowed. “I…” His head fell. “Y-yeah, I do.”
His answer didn’t sound too convincing. For someone who claimed to be my number one fan, he seemed to have a strange lack of faith in me. Did he really think I was going to let him be killed?
Put off by his hesitation, I turned around. “Since you don’t seem to need me, I will be in my room. Please call immediately if you need anything. And if you’re going to leave the cottage, let me know right away.”
“Oh,” Caleb said, sounding disappointed. “You’re leaving?”
“Just going upstairs,” I said. “To work.”
He perked up immediately. “On your novel?”
“Yes.”
A barely restrained grin lit up his expression. “Okay! I’ll be down here, playing games.” He bit his lip, then said, “If you, uh, need someone to go over it with you, or anything, I can help!”
While I appreciated his enthusiasm, I doubted he would be able to help me in any way. “That’s kind of you to offer,” I said, hoping to let him down gently but firmly. “Once more, I will be in my room if you need me.”
I tried not to notice the disheartened look on his face as I ascended the stairs. What did he expect? One day together and he would suddenly become a - no pun intended - beta reader? The draft was still in its bare stages and wouldn’t be polished enough foranybodyto look at for a long time.
I reminded myself he was only trying to be helpful. With a sigh, I barricaded myself in my room-turned-new-office and began to work.
