Here and Now by Blake Haugen

Author:Blake Haugen [Haugen, Blake]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Blake Haugen
Published: 2014-06-01T04:00:00+00:00

☐

Persephone’s head rose from her pillow, peeking out from under her gray duvet. Incessant banging came from the front door. It had woken her up and she was determined to ignore it. When it refused to stop, she thought something might be amiss.

Moving as little as possible, she pulled her Mak from the drawer of her bedside table and placed it under the pillow on the other side of the bed. Damn whoever it was. She was going to sleep today and whoever had the audacity to enter without permission would be sorry.

It was ten minutes before her visitor stopped. Faintly, she heard the building door slam at the bottom of the stairs. “Damn straight,” she mumbled.

She slept for about four more minutes until she heard the doors of the main room balcony slide open. One benefit of the apartment’s awkward open floor plan was that all sound echoed throughout the space. The detached wall that separated her sleeping area from the living room and kitchen didn’t muffle any bumps in the night.

Turning over swiftly, Persephone snatched the Mak from underneath the pillow and slid out of bed. She put her back against the wall and tried to slow her breathing. Her heart went into overdrive when she heard footsteps in the loft space. The chill of the air outside the warmth of her bed bit at her bare legs. Looking herself over, Persephone felt less confident. She thought of backing down and just calling the police. Taking a step forward, she made her way to the cell phone on her desk.

“Persephone? You can stop creeping. It’s just me,” Timothy’s voice rang out.

“Ah!” Persephone seethed. “What the fuck are you doing? Trying to scare the shit out of me? What the fuck, Timothy?”

“You wouldn’t answer your door. You left me no choice.” His exasperated voice traveled down the stairs and grew closer. Persephone’s eyes narrowed in frustration.

“Don’t come back here! I don’t have any pants on,” she growled.

“Well, make it quick. Benny’s outside.”

Persephone cursed, placed the Mak back in its case in the bedside table, and marched to her wardrobe to shove on some jeans. Ignoring Timothy, she stomped to the front door, unlocked its bolt and chains, and immediately stomped back to the couch. Benny pushed the door open and peeped inside before stepping in cautiously. Persephone stared at him testily, waiting for someone to speak.

“I see you finally went to the furniture stores I recommended,” Benny remarked as he regarded her loft apartment. “The place actually looks good. Really good.”

“Thanks, I think,” she replied. “Why are you guys breaking and fucking entering at god-knows-when on a Saturday? Ever heard of a phone?”

“Yeah, it’s ten o’clock, Persephone,” Timothy sassed.

“So? If I want to sleep in on a Saturday, I’ll sure as hell do so. Well, not today, thanks to you.”

“Alright, alright. Sorry, I thought Timothy called you. It’s big news – good news if you’re willing to listen. You hate it here, right?”

“Yes,” she answered adamantly. Benny had her attention.

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