* * *
The two ofus returned to Mel's run-down apartment. I glared at the land-lord's door as we passed it, but thankfully, this time he didn't make an appearance. Inside Mel's unit, my mate ran around gathering his things. He didn't even notice our arrival until I called his name. Mel immediately lit up at the sound of my voice.
“Edgar! Wow, that was faster than I thought.” When he noticed Bert behind me, he said, “Oh, hey. What are you doing here?”
“Helping you move,” Bert replied, casting a cursory glance around the space. “You don't have nearly as much stuff as I thought."
Mel blushed shyly. “As you can see, there's not enough room to store anything…”
I floated over and put my arm around him. “Soon you'll have the opposite problem—dozens of rooms and not enough to fill them with!”
Mel's eyes sparkled, like he still couldn't believe this was real.
“Well, no time like the present. Let's get started,” Bert announced.
Aside from Mel's workspace, bookshelf and clothes, there wasn't much to move. I helped by carrying small, innocuous objects like his cookie tin and snacks from the cupboard. I hoped by blending in with the other two, people wouldn't notice the floating items.
And hey, it was Halloween night after all. Some unexplained phenomena were to be expected.
When the small stuff was gathered, Mel stood by his bed with a frown. “I don't know if the two of us can get this downstairs…”
“Let's see,” Bert said. He kneeled by the bottom of the frame and attempted to lift it.
The particleboard groaned and cracked.
Bert sounded mortified. “Oh… I'm so sorry.”
Mel grinned. “Nah, it's fine. I bought that secondhand ages ago. It was bound to happen eventually.”
With a huff, I put my hands on my hips. “Have you already forgotten, dear Mel? You're moving into my manor. There are plenty of beds to choose from—and if you don't like any of those, we can simply 'buy' a new one.”
“You can?” Mel asked, eyes wide.
Bert let out an amused snort. “Hasn't Edgar told you he's filthy rich?”
“You are?” Mel stammered, blushing.
I clicked my tongue. “Bert's always saying that, but I barely understand what he means, beyond the fact that I can 'buy' things.”
Bert stood up from the cracked frame and dusted his hands off. “It means there's a safe in the manor filled with gold. You'll have to convert it to modern currency, but by my calculations, it's worth quite a bit. Not that Edgar can do anything with it. But you can, Mel.”
My mate's mouth hung open in disbelief. I could tell he struggled to take all of this in. I put my hand on his shoulder and rubbed his back.
“We can think about that later,” I said. “For now, let's get you moved in, shall we?”
Mel nodded slowly and gave me a grateful look.
With the broken bed frame abandoned and the large appliances belonging to the apartment, we carried the rest of Mel's earthly possessions in our arms. I thought that was that, expecting to simply walk out the front door and leave this horrible place behind, but Mel paused at the bottom of the stairs.
“I should probably tell my landlord that I'm moving out,” Mel mumbled, shooting an uneasy look at his door.
The mere mention of that man made my wispy body flare up. “I'm going with you,” I stated.
“Okay, but don't scare him unless you really have to, okay?”
My chin jutted out. “I won't unless he brings it upon himself…”
Mel shuffled towards the door. With his hands full, he knocked by bumping his elbow repeatedly into it. Heavy footsteps were followed by the man throwing the door open and scowling Mel.
