Heaven - ONC 2022 LONGLISTED - old version

chapter 18: the gift

Sina loitered at the entrance while glancing around the house with uncertainty. Part of him wanted to bolt. Maybe run to the woods and get pissed drunk. Maybe find the dandelion and get it pissed drunk too, but the weed made a pretty terrible drinking buddy. Another part of Sina (a great big part) felt like he needed to be in the house with Father Cal. So he stayed yet made no move to step in further.

Caleb gestured they enter the living room. When Sina hesitated, he said, "Think of my house as your house. OK?"

Sina nodded and walked into the living room like a stray dog entering new surroundings. "It's nice and warm in here...and dry." Spotting the calendar, he pointed to it. He nearly made a rude comment about the cats but stopped himself and said, "Meow."

Stopping by a lone armchair, Caleb rested his hand on the back and glanced at the calendar. "A little something from Travis Cullen."

"It does not look like something Travis would buy. Not in the slightest."

"Why do you say that?"

"Can I be honest and a bit rude, padre?"

Father Cal thought a moment, then nodded. "Sure."

"Travis Cullen and pussy are not amigos. Understand?"

Before Cal could stop himself, he laughed loudly at Sina's unpolished comment. "Jesus Christ, Sina."

"Can you say that?" Sina asked before peppering Cal with more questions. "Aren't you taking JC's name in vain or something? Isn't that a no-no? Won't your congregation burn you at the stake?"

"I say fuck a lot too." When Sina raised a brow, Cal added, "But please don't let this leave the house."

Sina stuck two ridged fingers in the air. "Scouts honor." Looking up at Father Cal, Sina found himself getting lost. It was like he was floating. Flying. Fluttering. He realized he liked being around this man. More than he'd like to admit. "I brought you something,"

Father Cal ran the tips of his fingers idly over the back of the chair. "You didn't have you bring me anything. I'm not expecting payment."

Sina shrugged. There was a faint quiver in the way he moved his shoulders. "I didn't do it because I thought I had to." He set his bags down with a dull thud. "I did it because I thought it would be nice."

Caleb slid into the armchair and Sina sat on the floor a few feet away.

Father Cal raised a brow and chuckled. "I have the sofa across me that sits three and a set of mismatched chairs in the kitchen if you prefer. The floor isn't the most comfortable place."

"I'm a floor sitter." Sina reached for his backpack and pulled it to his feet. "Like a good dog."

Cal's chuckle was swept away. A frown replaced it and stormed all over his features. "You're no one's dog," he said softly.

"I ain't no one's nothing, padre," Sina said honestly as he unzipped the bag and pulled a bottle of gin out by its neck. "Here." Rising on his knees, he placed it on Father Cal's lap. "Same brand of gin you were drinking in Purgatory. I know you said you aren't much of a drinker but this is definitely the best gin to ever grace the shelves of the club. It's gin for people who don't drink to get drunk and ogle dancers. It's for people like you. Honestly, I never knew anyone who ever ordered gin in that shitty hellhole and I've been working there since the beginning of time."

"You work in Purgatory?"

Sina nodded. "I dance. Sometimes when people want to scratch a certain itch, I oblige."

"What do you mean? Do you –"

"I let lecherous men fuck me for money but I'm not pretty enough. I don't make much. It doesn't matter. I'm not worth a lot anyways. I mean look at me."