Chapter Twelve
NOAH
The sun rises, but I don’t want to climb out from under the covers that kept me warm all night. Luckily, Katie had a space heater, so that helped. I stretch and stare at the high ceiling as I think about yesterday.
It was surreal talking to Owen about his dad and seeing how much he looks like Gabe.
His facial expressions are just like Gabe’s, especially the way his lips curl up when he smiles. He even has his eyes. It looked like Gabe’s ghost was sitting at the table with us.
I get out of bed and go to the bathroom, then get dressed. Wanting to feel useful in some way, I walk through each room and take note of what Katie still needs to do. Once I’m in the living room, the front door swings open.
I’m shocked to see a smiling Katie carrying a brown bag and two cups.
It's unexpected, considering how yesterday started out between us. Not to mention, she basically loathes me.
“Good morning.”
“Mornin’.”
She hands me one of the cups. “I didn’t know how you take your coffee anymore, so I just got it the same way as mine with cream and sugar.”
“Thank you. I appreciate it.” I take a sip and enjoy how warm it is.
Prison sure makes a person appreciate the small things in life, such as a good cup of coffee.
Katie looks at me the same way she used to when we were teenagers, then beams as she opens the bag and pulls out two bagels.
She’s in a good mood today, and I’ve missed seeing this side of her.
“There's cream cheese in the bag,” she informs me, handing it to me.
“You're amazing.” I cover mine in cream cheese, then take a bite. “Where's Owen today?”
“Loretta and Elliot took him to church and will have him until this evening. I'm hoping I can make some progress here while he's with them.”
I haven’t talked to them since before the accident, and they ignored me at the funeral. No telling how many bricks they’d shit if they knew I was staying at Katie’s house or that I had dinner with Owen. I hate that she has to keep secrets from them, but it’s for the best.
“He’s a good kid, Katie. You've done an amazing job with him,” I say, meaning every word.
Her shoulders slightly relax, and she smiles gratefully. “Thanks, it wasn’t always easy.”
I nod in response, though I can’t imagine what she’s had to go through while juggling work-life and single mom life.
“Alright, well, on to bathroom duty.” She taps on her phone. Moments later, someone’s giving monotone instructions on how to remove a toilet and a sink. The video is long and boring. I try to keep my opinions to myself, as she’s asked, and quietly eat my bagel.
“What?”
I shake my head. “Nothing.”
She stops the video. “No, you wanna say something. I can tell. Go ahead.”
“You're sure?”
“Yes.”
“Well…” I hesitate. “While I'm here, I’d like to help you, Katie. It’d be a lot easier and faster than watching that.”
She acts as if she’s contemplating my offer, but she’s still too damn stubborn to agree.
I continue before she can tell me to fuck off.
“If I'm being honest, not having anything to do is making me feel useless.
I know you can do this on your own, but I wanna repay you somehow.
It would be my way of thanking you for letting me stay here.
You've fed me dinner and even brought coffee and bagels today. I'm using your electricity, water, and everything else. It’d make me feel a lot less guilty for being an inconvenience.”
She sighs.
“I’m just trying to offer my skills as a payment for your kindness and using your resources. A fair trade. I don’t wanna take advantage or get handouts. Not from my family, and especially not from you.”
Her face softens, and I can see that old twinkle return to her eyes.
She studies me for a brief second before speaking.
“Okay, I understand that more than you know. When I was younger and struggling, I wanted to repay them by doing whatever I could—cleaning, running errands, cooking dinner. I didn’t like the idea of getting free handouts either. ”
A hopeful smile touches my lips.
“Alright, you can help, but you still have to keep your negative comments to yourself.”
I chuckle because whether she realizes it or not, she knows me better than anyone. “Deal,” I agree.
“That means you're on bathroom duty with me today.”
“Great. Time for us to rewatch that video and follow the tutorial from Mr. Monotone.”
Katie grabs one bag of tools and asks me to carry the other.
“I’m not sure where we should start,” she admits from the doorway, then moves to the side.
I look around. “Well, first off, is there anything you wanna save in here?”
Katie looks around at the Pepto Bismol-colored toilet and bathtub. Her eyes trail along the gaudy tile on the walls and floors. “I don't think there's anything worth salvaging, do you?”
“Hell no.” I say. “I think we should remove the toilet, then work on tearing out the counter, cabinets, and sink. Then the bathtub, wall tiles, and flooring. I think if we go in that order, we’ll be able to have an empty space for you to paint. Then we can rebuild from the bottom up.”
Katie grins. “That sounds like a solid plan.”
“What do you envision in here?”
“I’d like a big shower with glass doors. This bathroom will primarily be for guests, and there’ll be a huge tub upstairs if they wanna soak or something.”
“Expecting a lot of visitors?” I ask and internally slap myself for crossing my boundaries.
She snorts. “Not really.”
Quickly, I change the subject. “Most people take showers anyway.”
“Speak for yourself. There's nothing like a tub full of scorching hot water and a bath bomb paired with a glass of wine after a long-ass day.”
I imagine her naked body but quickly push it away. “Can’t argue with that.”
Katie pulls out a few wrenches and sizes them against the bolts holding the toilet to the floor. I turn off the water valve and flush down the remaining. After she finds the correct size, she uses all her strength to loosen it but fails, nearly hitting her knuckles against the porcelain.
“Let me try,” I say in a near whisper, not wanting her to hurt herself. She gladly moves out of my way. I kneel and position the wrench over the rusted bolt.
“Shit,” I grunt.
“I didn’t think it’d be that hard,” she admits.
“Me either. Do you have any WD-40?”
“Hmm, maybe. I’ll go check.” She walks out, and I keep trying to loosen it, but it won’t budge.
Moments later, she returns with a can, and I spray each one.
I work them the best I can, using both hands until I finally get one off.
Thankfully, the others aren’t nearly as hard.
Once that’s done, I remove the tank and set it to the side.
Then I wiggle the toilet until it’s off the wax ring.
“This thing has been here for so long it’s basically glued to the floor.”
“I think it was installed in the sixties. So yeah, older than either of us. Probably would’ve had to hire someone.”
I smirk, glad that I was able to help so she didn’t have to spend the extra money on a plumber.
I carry the toilet to the front door. It's heavy, so I’ll bring it outside once it’s dark. The last thing I want is for anyone to know I’m here and to put Katie in danger.
Gemma promised to let me know if anything else happens, but so far, everything’s been quiet. It makes me think whoever was trying to attack me has been watching and knows I’m no longer at home.
Katie gets a paint scraper and removes the gunk from the floor, then we clean the area.
“That’s one thing off our list,” Katie says, then looks at the counter. “What will be the easiest way to remove that?”
“I think just by diving in.” I open the cabinet and turn off the water valve. I twist the knob, then gently pull the cabinet door toward me. It nearly crumbles in my hand.
Katie gets a crowbar and pries out the rotten wood.
She hands it to me, and I wedge it under the sink and easily pop it out.
I grab a small hand saw and cut the piping.
With a swing of a hammer, Katie crushes the counter to pieces.
We laugh as she puts all her strength into it, and it brings up a memory.
“Do you remember that time we snuck into my mom's paint studio and decided to create masterpieces on canvases?” I ask.
“Of course I do.” She smiles as we clean up our mess. “We were covered in paint by the end.”
“Yeah, my dad wasn’t happy about trying to get it out of my jeans. But ya know, that was the summer I realized I had a super mad crush on you. I remember it clear as day.”
Katie stops, and her eyes glue to mine. “What’re you talkin’ about?”
I swallow hard. “Yeah. Katie, I mean, I thought it was obvious how I felt.”
Clearly not.
She blinks, and I watch as she opens and closes her mouth. “How you felt? Wait…what do you mean you realized you had a crush on me?”
“Well, I mean, I always knew but hadn’t acknowledged it. That was the summer I almost crossed the line and kissed you.”
She shakes her head. “Are you messin’ with me? You wanted to…kiss me?”
I snort and shake my head. “You must be the only person in Lawton Ridge who didn’t know.”
We sit in silence as my heart races in anticipation of her next words.
Eventually, she speaks up. “Noah, I just…I don't know what to say.”
“Then don’t say anything,” I say honestly. “It was a million years ago.”
Her arms drop to her side, and her brow furrows. “You never said anything.”
“I know,” I say somberly.
She eventually snorts. “You're kidding. You didn’t like me that way.”
Shock washes over me as I study her reaction. I was certain it was painfully obvious how much I liked her. I went out of my way to make sure she was happy. All I ever wanted to do was spend time with her. Although I was only thirteen, I knew deep in my heart she was the woman for me.
“I’m not. I’d never joke about that. I honestly thought you knew but didn’t see me that way and just never said anything,” I admit.