State of Shock

Chris

Chris was exhausted after dinner with Keith and his wife. It was after midnight when he pulled his car into an off street assigned parking spot just outside his apartment complex. He got out of his car and swung his keys around his fingers. Fidgeting was part of his character. He thought of getting a fidget spinner, but the idea of only having one thing to play with bothered him. 

Chris used his outdoor key to open the gate into an inner courtyard that had landscaping as an attempt at good curb appeal. Anyone with eyes could see that the courtyard wasn't habitually well kept. Chris noticed red plastic cups strewn about the courtyard that gave evidence to the party going on at one of the apartments. Chris could hear voices and music that made it known that the party was still in full swing and would be for a while. Fridays and Saturdays were never quiet at his complex. He opened his apartment door and threw his keys into a basket on his desk, just inside his doorway. His tendency to fidget often left him wondering where his keys were. He threw himself face down on the couch, with his legs dangling off the arm. His place was a small studio. He lived alone and this was what he could afford on his professor salary and still be close to the University. He could see the Engineering building out his side window and often took his bike or the bus to campus for classes. After laying there for a few minutes, he got up and pulled out the hid-a-bed. He could still hear the party.  

Chris pulled off his shirt and was getting ready to lie down when he heard a "Meow" from outside. It was Sorcha, or so he called her. The neighborhood cat. She would often come around begging for food. He had soft food in his cabinet to feed her should she decide to stop by on her way to the next apartment. She was a black and white cat that at least kinda kept the mice population down. She had several offspring hanging around the complex too, until about 6 months ago, the owner took her to the Vet to be spayed. Chris figured the landlord was tired of seeing kittens all the time. Since she had been spayed, her visits became more frequent. 

"Meow," Chris heard again, this time, much more desperate. She hated the parties. They would never feed her, and she wasn't a fan of booze. 

"OK, I have food."

"Meow," was her reply. He walked to the cupboard and pulled out a can of Friskies Pate style cat food and a bottle of water from the refrigerator and opened the door. The cat sat there staring at him. He opened the can and cut out a square and set it in the metal bowl he kept outside and put water in another. 

"Hey!" Chris heard from his left, a female voice he recognized. 

"s**t," Chris said under his breath. Now was not a good time. Before he knew it, Katherine was on his doorstep. 

"I was waiting for you to come home. Where have you been?" Katherine was a graduate student in kinesiology. So she was lean, fit and gorgeous. 

"I was at a friends house doing some research," he stated flatly. 

"Well," she said as she gave him her best smile and bright eyes. She leaned over and gave him a kiss on his lips, that he could hardly resist. 

"I don't know Katherine. I have a lot of work I have to get through, and...." She kissed him again, deeper this time. She removed his glasses and stuck them in the basket inside his front door. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him again. Harder and much more desperate. He wrapped his arms around her waist.  "Allright," he said and she pushed him inside the door and closed it. 

*****

Morning came and Chris was on his hide-a-bed covered in his blankets. He didn't have a lot of furniture. His desk was a pile of papers, similar to his office at school. He had a bookshelf that had math books and reading books that interested him. His laptop had Netflix on it so he used it as his tv entertainment when he had time. His bathroom had a door just off the one sided kitchen. He rolled over and Katherine wasn't there. 

"Probably up for a morning jog," he told himself even though he knew better. Katherine often left before dawn, and usually while he was asleep. He had tried knocking on her apartment after one of their many encounters, but she was never there. And any other time he saw her during the day, she would pretend to not know him. He could hardly say that what they had was any kind of relationship. She came over when she felt like it, they had their evening, and then she left and he went about his day. He had considered asking her if she wanted something more, but he never got the chance. She kept their encounters brief, leaving very little room for talking. And while Chris enjoyed their evenings together, he wanted something more than just a good lay. He wanted someone he could cuddle with in the morning, or at least have breakfast and coffee, or something. He found his relationship with Katherine was lacking that foundation bond he wanted so badly.

Chris got up and took a shower. He quickly got dressed and headed for his desk. Today was Saturday and he had to write down all the stuff he had learned from Keith the night before. He thought he would give Elizabeth a call and see if she was at the precinct today and pass off some of that information.