~
Caledonia’s eyes sprang open, and she bolted upright in bed, hyperventilating.
Calvin sat up in the dim light of the new morning. “What happened?” he asked, his voice rough from sleep. He rubbed her back. “You okay?”
She nodded yes, taking a shuddering breath and settling back down. He lay down behind her, coiling his body around hers. “Did you have a bad dream?”
She shook her head no, wiping her eyes with a shaking hand. “I think it might have been a memory.”
“What was it?” he whispered into her ear, snuggling closer to her.
“My mother,” she said quietly. “It was a long time ago, but I remembered her having a nightmare. She was crying … scared. She thought that someone named Teddy had taken me away.”
“Teddy?”
“Professor Reed told me that I could call him Teddy yesterday. It must have made me remember.”
“Whoa,” he said, holding her tighter.
“There’s something else I didn’t mention,” she said.
“What?”
“The girl–I think she might have tried to do it … to change me. She wanted me to relax and go along with them.” She rolled over to face him. “They all seemed surprised when I wouldn’t.”
He was quiet for a beat. “Has it ever occurred to you that your parents weren’t hiding themselves? Maybe they were only hiding you.”
She turned back away. “Yeah,” she admitted.
He kissed the back of her neck. “Well, I won’t let him bother you anymore. Go back to sleep.”
Caledonia tried to relax, focusing on Calvin’s steady breathing, but sleep would not come. Her mother’s frightened face kept flashing in her mind, and she thought about the terrible feeling that she got when the professor made his offer. She finally slipped out of bed, rolling up Calvin’s too-long sweat pants and padding down the hallway silently.
She took her promise to make breakfast seriously, and she went into the kitchen, rummaging through the refrigerator. There were a few eggs and some milk, along with a stick of butter, some leftover pizza and a suspiciously old-looking bucket of fried chicken.
She looked in the pantry to find a bag of potatoes that were partly sprouted, along with a couple of onions that were starting to grow as well. She found some stale bread, a bag of sugar, and a drawer of spices that probably dated back to the last time his mother had baked something. She thought for a minute, and then got to work.
When Calvin followed his nose out to the kitchen he found Caledonia standing over a pan of frying potatoes and onions that smelled delicious. She looked up and smiled brilliantly, so cute swimming in his baggy T-shirt that he could feel his heart swell in his chest.
“What are you doing?”
“I said I’d make breakfast,” she replied.
He looked over her shoulder at the stovetop. “Yeah, but I figured we needed to go grocery shopping first. We don’t do a whole lot of cooking around here.”
She shrugged, “I’m used to improvising. It should be ready in about fifteen minutes.” She bent over to peek at something in the oven and Calvin had the urge to pick her up, set her on the counter and kiss her passionately. She looked up at him quizzically, as if she’d just read his mind, and it occurred to him that she pretty much could.
“I’d better go take a shower,” he said, kissing her on the cheek instead.
Crystal staggered out of Jarod’s room, yawning and stretching. There was black mascara smeared under her eyes and a knot of tangled hair on the back of her head. She took a cigarette out of a pack and lit it, pulling out one of the barstools that were lined up in front of the kitchen counter. She smiled wryly, “You’re making me look bad.”
Caledonia looked worried. “How?”
Crystal held up her palms. “Kidding. What are you making anyways?”
“Bread pudding and potatoes,” Caledonia answered. “Where are the plates?”
Crystal stubbed out her cigarette into an overflowing ashtray, getting up to help set the table. Jarod appeared in the kitchen, looking surprised. “Smells good in here.”
“Cali made breakfast,” Crystal said.
Soon the four of them were sitting down together. Caledonia served them all a plate and they settled down to eat, quiet at the table.
“It’s good,” Jarod nodded. “What did you put on the potatoes?”
“Rosemary.”
“Where did you get that?” asked Calvin.
She looked at him like he was mad. “It’s growing all alongside of your house!”
Jarod laughed at the look on her face. “So, Cali, did your mother teach you how to cook?”
“No, my father did. He was good at cooking things. Mama was good at growing things.”
“What were you good at?” Jarod asked.
“Hunting things,” she said.
Jarod raised his eyebrows at his brother. “Yep … She’s a keeper, all right.”
After they finished eating, Caledonia excused herself to go change into her clothes. She came back out after a few minutes, her face scrubbed and her hair freshly braided. “I’m going to get my things from Angie’s while she’s at work,” she announced. She was eager to move on and put all of the bad memories from her aunt’s house far behind her.
“I’ll give you a ride,” said Calvin.
They pulled up in front of the condo complex, and she checked the parking lot to make sure that her aunt’s car was gone. Caledonia was in no mood for any more awkward or angry confrontations; she was ready to clear out once and for all.
She climbed off the bike, leaning over to kiss Calvin goodbye.
“I’ll wait here and drive you back,” he said, looking at the condo suspiciously.
“No. I only have one bag, and you’re going to be late. Besides, I need some time to write a letter and tell her why I’m leaving. I think I owe her that much.”
“You don’t owe her anything,” he said angrily.
She put her hand on his chest. “I’ll be fine. Go to school. I’ll be waiting back at your house when you get home.”
He reached in his pocket and pulled out a key. “Here’s a key for you in case Jarod goes someplace.”
She was delighted. “I can put it on my keychain!”
He smiled at her enthusiasm and pulled her close, leaning over to kiss her softly. “I want you to feel at home.”
She sighed, liking the sound of it, and liking his kisses even better. He watched her walk down the pathway and let herself in the door, reluctantly starting his bike and heading off for his last day of school.