Five
1000 Words
After catching my breath, I walked around my new home, just looking around in disbelief. My heart felt full and my cheeks were sore from smiling. This was my HOME. Mine.
“I’m going to settle in here quicker than I thought” I said out loud to myself. Living alone my whole adult life, talking to myself was something I did often. The weird thing was, I never felt like I was talking to just myself. It always felt like someone was listening.
It was nearing 5 o’clock but I wasn’t hungry for dinner. “Hmmm maybe a nice bath.” As I made my way upstairs, I heard tyres on gravel followed quickly by a car door slamming. “Must be ‘the boss’” I giggled to myself. I was not a giggler, not usually. The vibrations of this house just made me giddy and my mood was high. I was finally in charge of my own life.
I headed into the bathroom, pushed in the bath plug and ran the taps. Dropping in a bath bomb, I decided to quickly pour a glass of wine and grab a lighter for some candles.
When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I felt it again. The raised hairs, the goosebumps, the shivers.
“Don’t be afraid…”
Pouring my wine, I shook my head and tried to forget about it. I was safe in my home. The door was locked and the landscapers were still outside. Not to mention the Whispers’ reassurance. There was nothing to be afraid of. The raised voices and feet on gravel continued as I shuffled to the stairs. My bath was just about ready, so I sat down the wine glass and stripped off my clothes.
I didn’t realise what I’d done until I heard it. Another thing about living alone is that you forget to close the bathroom door behind you. Not a wise choice when your bathroom looked out into an open room with floor to ceiling windows.
A growl. A growl so loud it shook the wine glass at the side of the bath. I grabbed a towel to cover myself and peaked out the door. There was nobody there, nobody that I could see. “Jesus Christ! What is going on?!” The oddest thing? I still wasn’t scared. If anything, it gave me butterflies. The littlest knot in the pit of my stomach. “I definitely read too many fantasy novels”, I echoed Robyn’s words from earlier. “Maybe we need some music…” I picked up my phone and connected it the speaker system, shuffling my playlist. I always enjoyed the surprise of what was going to come on, it could be anything from Taylor Swift to ACDC or DJ Khalid. Closing the door behind me, I dropped the towel and climbed into the free standing bath. Sinking under the bubbles into the warm water, my body fully relaxed, my muscles loosening and my mind wandering.
I closed my eyes and thought about what I was going to make for dinner. Gone were the days of ordering food in on a whim. The UberEats driver sure was going to miss me. I decided I was going to do a weekly meal plan, I made a mental note to scroll through t****k for inspiration when the internet was installed. “I’m surprised I’m not missing the internet” I sighed. I couldn’t be more content in this moment.
The bath water was getting cooler and I was getting wrinkly. I inhaled slowly and exhaled fully, gearing myself up to step out of the tub. Steam rose from my body as I wrapped myself up in my towel. The temperature had taken a dip, so I quickly dried off and grabbed my housecoat and slippers. Out of the bathroom, I could now see that the sun was setting. I heard more voices, more car doors slamming. Several engines started, followed by the sound of the trucks turning and heading out, over the stones in the driveway. The guys were gone, I was safe to head downstairs.
Once in the kitchen, I placed the wine glass in the sink and looked in the fridge. “What to have, what to have?” I tapped my finger on my chin before deciding pizza would do. I was too relaxed to stand and cook a full meal. Pizza in the oven and tea in hand, I set myself up at the kitchen island with my iPad. I had downloaded a few books to give me a choice while I had no internet so I logged on to see which one I fancied.
“ ‘The Dragon’s Devotion’ or ‘The Vampire Mafia’?” I asked myself. “WHAT WAS THAT?!” Something caught my eye from the window. Something dark. Something BIG. Too big to have disappeared as fast as it did. That’s when I noticed the note laying on the floor that had been posted through the letterbox. Hopping from the barstool, I made my way over to the door, unable to tear my eyes away from the spot I saw the massive shape until it was out of my sight. I picked up the note which read:
“Boss signed off job. Was in a rush to get to the next one, sorry we couldn’t say goodbye. Here’s the office phone number should you need us. Cheers, Bruce”
That was very sweet of Bruce. It was evening so I wonder what sort of job they were rushing off to? It struck me as peculiar but the oven beeping interrupted my thought and set my feet in motion to take out the pizza before it burned. I poured a glass of Coke and carried it with the plate of pizza back to the island. “ ‘The Dragon’s Devotion’ it is then.”
- Writer
