Chapter 9
Nine
ADDIE
“Ican help you unpack if you need.” Xander was hovering. He had fulfilled his duties of picking me and my suitcase hoard up from the airport and getting me to the place that I would now be calling home. But he wanted to feel more useful.
The best and worst thing Xander Harris did was retire. It gave him a lot more free time, but nine years later, he still didn’t know how to fill it when it wasn’t his turn to work in the restaurant.
Help would be nice because I had so much stuff and zero desire to deal with it by myself.
But it wouldn’t be as nice as being alone. Just for a moment, to recenter myself from the noisiest night flight I had ever been on before I had to meet my new flatmate in person.
Mum had really done us both a solid in giving us the other’s number because it was way less scary to move into this new space feeling like I had a good rapport with the person I was going to live with.
He seemed funny. Nice. We had some shared interests, and there was nothing that made me think he would be a shit person to share a space with.
I had tried to find him on social media to see if I could put a face to the name, but it came up bust. Even Rachel couldn’t find an Eli Jenkins anywhere.
So, I was finding out today what he looked like.
If he had gone down a similar path, he would definitely have found me.
Although recently, I had just been posting faceless photos documenting my ‘goodbye Montreal’ journey.
“Thanks for the offer, Xander, but unpacking is the easier part of it.” A half-truth. “I’ll be fine. Go surprise Juliette with lunch or something.”
Xander looked like he wanted to protest, his mouth opening and closing as he took in the array of luggage surrounding me on the street.
It was a lot. I’d had to buy three more suitcases in the end, leaving me with a total of six.
I looked ridiculous trying to manoeuvre them around from place to place.
After a moment, he remembered who he was talking to and accepted that I wasn’t going to budge on this, even if I probably should. Instead, he opened his arms for a hug. I stepped into this body gratefully. A Xander hug had the ability to turn your day around. This one was no different.
“I’m around if you need anything at all. Just give me a call, I’ll come,” he said as he pulled away.
I didn’t doubt he would.
“I won’t need you, but I’ll call you if I do,” I replied, stepping away from him and turning to unlock the door.
“Love you, kid,” Xander said to my back.
“Love you too. Give my love to Juliette,” I called over my shoulder.
I heard his reluctant steps back to the car and started dragging my suitcases over the threshold of my new flat.
When I closed the door behind me after settling my final suitcase in the hallway, I noticed that the flat smelled like a wood.
More specifically, it smelled like the woods just after it had rained.
It was thick and lush. It was also one of my favourite smells.
I had no idea why it smelled like that, but I was fine with it.
It made the whole experience of coming home even more welcoming.
Mum had given me a virtual tour of the place a couple of weeks ago when she was confirming how I wanted my room set up, so I knew the rough layout.
The living room was opposite the front door, and to the left was the combined kitchen and dining room, which could be accessed both from where I was standing and through the living room. To my immediate right, the hallway led to the two bedrooms on the left, and then the bathroom at the end.
I knew I should remove my suitcases from the hall, but this was also probably the only time I would have guaranteed alone time to have a little snoop to try and get a read on Eli.
I took a quick picture of my suitcases clogging up the hall and sent it to Tori, letting her know I was safely back on home soil, and then wandered into the living room.
There was a TV set up and a decent-sized leather sofa opposite.
A matching armchair was tucked away in the corner.
Eli had put up an art print of a Polaroid-type photo of Hampstead Heath.
The edges of the frame looked weathered, like it had made the move back from Manchester.
There were plants on the windowsill in the living room.
It was a good-sized window, with a lot of light streaming through it.
The plants there looked happy. Other than the art print, there didn’t seem to be much of an Eli stamp on the room.
I walked through to the kitchen to see if that would yield better results.
I didn’t get very far because there was a note on one of the black marble-top counters.
Hey roomie (I will never use that again, hated it),
Hope your flight was okay and not an utter travel nightmare. I checked with Vivi and she said that you’ve never met a pasta dish you didn’t love. Thought you might be hungry when you got in, so there is a bowl of pesto pasta in the fridge. Oh, and your sister left you a doughnut.
I will be home by dinnertime (which is 7 for me, is that a normal dinner time?)
Look forward to seeing you later.
Eli
Now that I had been presented with the idea of food, my brain couldn’t move past it.
I opened the fridge and took out the large bowl of pasta, searching the various drawers until I found the one that Eli was keeping the cutlery in, and took a fork out.
I jumped up on the counter and started stabbing penne, taking too-large mouthfuls as my hunger finally took over.
The pesto was incredible and dragged a little moan out of me.
I would need to learn Eli’s pesto secrets.
I looked at Eli’s note again and realised that it said Clara had left me a doughnut, which meant that maybe she would know what Eli looked like. I pulled my phone out and texted her.
Have you physically met my new flatmate? Thoughts? Oh and thanks for the doughnut Xx