One Last Prayer

Part 17

When I get to the house I'm surprised to see Janie's car in the driveway. I walk into the house to hear a trash bag that's full banging on the ground like she can't keep it up high enough as she walks toward me. She's breathless and her hair is a mess but her smile is bright and kind. She's not in her usual work clothes anymore.

"Hey Riley! You're home early." The way she calls it home warms my heart, and for the first time I realize I don't take it in the wrong context. Maybe this is my home for now.

"Actually, I have free period for seventh." She nods and pats her forehead like she's forgotten.

"Now that you mention it, Chase did tell me that."

"Did you get off early?" I close the font door locking it. It bothers me that they leave it open so often when Chase's grandfather is obviously getting pretty senile with his dementia.

"I did!" She answers excitedly as she starts moving again. "I guess I wasn't on the schedule today so I went in for no reason." She laughs one quick, lazy sound and waves her free hand for me to follow her. "I'm sure Chase told you I'm working on your room." She drops the trash bag and walks down the hall opposite of the side of the house Chase's room is in. We walk down the hallway that is lit by skylights and the bathroom that we use, along with two other mystery doors to the end, where a fourth door is. It's open and when Janie steps in I see there's stairs. She's moving down a few steps before she looks back and up at me. "It's not technically a basement. It's completely finished. Don't give me that look before you see it for yourself."

Was I letting my face show my anxiety? I've always had a room right down a very short hall from my parent's bedroom, and being from California I've never even seen a basement let alone thought of one other that the ones I've seen in the scary movies where monsters or ghosts live in them.

"We will take the top door off the hinges so you don't feel completely closed off." She continues as she finishes to the bottom of the stairs. I realize I'm still barely moving and make my way down the steps to follow her. The light in this tunnel of steps is bright and that makes me feel a little better. When I reach the bottom step, I'm looking at a space that looks like a second living room. There's a large screen tv, a burnt orange leather sectional, a beige shaggy carpet to top the grey stone tile flooring, and a desk in the corner with an old school desktop sitting on it. My eyes dart around the room at my surroundings. There is an empty white bookcase and a tapestry on the wall with wildflowers printed on it. I look over at Janie and she's smiling at me.

"It's been so long since anyone's been down here. This was where we would hang out with all of our friends in high school." She looks around the room like she's reliving her memories and her happiness seems genuine. She closes her eyes for several seconds and takes a deep breath in. "I've been dusting and getting rid of old cobwebs all day."

"We?" I interject before she continues.

"My older brother and me." She looks at me as if she is spilling some secret that was meant to be kept. She walks to a door that I assume is the closet until she says, "Well, here's your room." I look around the room we are standing in. I guess I had just assumed this would be it. I follow her to the door and walk in as she opens it. The room is fairly big. It could pass for a master bedroom and is way more space than I need. There is a mattress on a box spring in the middle of the room, an old white oversized dresser, and two more doors on the opposite side of the room on either side of the wall. Janie is watching me, too quiet. I look at her as my eyes start to burn and I hope I can hold myself together.

"Now just know that Chase is going to try to get you to trade rooms with him. He always wanted this one but I don't trust him with so much privacy." I walk around the almost empty room looking around. I touch the dresser and wipe my finger across it. "Like I said I've been cleaning all day. There should be no dust in here." We both laugh at the same time and she gestures to the full sized bed. "This bed isn't used. We were going to make this a guest room a long time ago and just couldn't bring ourselves to do it."