Rebirth

Part Twenty: Together

**NSFW indicated in text**

Friday 24 June

The plan to return to Decker's became a topic of conversation again, and they set a date for the following Saturday, the 2nd of July. At this point, Monty spent so much time at Waylon's that he practically lived there, though the space was sparse sometimes with three dogs about, and only a few rooms, and it only made him more eager to find another place for them to live.

"I wish I had a larger apartment," Waylon said on Friday, looking around at Winston and Snapper laying by the floor to ceiling windows, and at Hercules running in circles, while he sat with his computer at the table, and Monty on the sofa. "I mean, this size wasn't meant for two people and three dogs." He scratched his hair. "Do you think it's a bit crowded in here?"

"Crowded? Oh... sometimes, yes." Monty coughed. He'd been thinking that for a while.

Now was the time to realize his plan, actually finding a home; Waylon was right. And he was sure Waylon would be pleased when Monty would reveal what he'd been up to- Waylon had just admitted he wanted a larger apartment, after all.

Monty had perused a few properties on the internet already, but not in an entirely serious manner. Now he had to consider factors like location... money wouldn't be an issue, especially not if it qualified for gratuity, but he'd check his balances anyhow. And then, once he told Waylon, he expected they'd browse from the places Monty had chosen, take house tours, because sometimes virtual tours just weren't enough, if one wanted to imagine themselves living there.

That afternoon, Monty had time to himself while Waylon worked on yet another article. He expanded his phone's screens and set the on-screen keyboard to appear horizontal, and propped the device itself on Waylon's coffee table. Were he at his own house he would've used his computer because of its higher screen display capacity, perfect for looking at potential homes in detail. For now, his phone's screens would work.

On the internet, Monty opened the Springfield real estate shop and re-examined the properties he'd saved before for future viewing, deleting a couple. He swiped his finger in front of the screen to see the details for a top-floor(s) apartment he'd thought was adequate. Monty had changed the sensitivity settings on his phone, finding he was comfortable with making gestures on top of or in front of a screen instead of tapping on it.

Monty gesticulated his fingers to manoeuvre the miniature version of the apartment, to see its inside, the screens on the phone wrapping around each other to create the three-dimensional space. It was two storeys, with three bedrooms, and a pool on the roof.

He wrinkled his nose at the flat white walls in the kitchen, where all its appliances and instruments were white as well; it was plain and uninspired. He wondered if three bedrooms were too much. And, with three dogs, a top-floor apartment environment would stifle them. No, this one wouldn't work.

Monty closed house view, going out to the main page. He went to 'advanced search' and tightened the filters for property attributes to 'suitable for pets'. Perhaps it wasn't somewhere in Springfield he wanted, but a place outside of town. He nodded in satisfaction as results of houses surrounded by decent plots of land loaded on the screens. Green fields and trees; flowers, bush.

According to his financial balances, Monty had a little under one-million dollar units. The cost of properties was determined by its size and additional amenities; homes over a certain square footage, such as Monty's manor, fell outside of the gratuitous housing jurisdiction that everyone was provided with. More than 95% of properties fell under this jurisdiction, such as Waylon's apartment, or a typical family home. As Monty didn't need as much room, he would've been surprised if whichever house they ended up taking wouldn't qualify for gratuity, or at the least, the cost would be very low.