King

7. The Reunion

Leaning against the wall in her room, Kelly sighed and closed her eyes, dropping her hand from the doorknob. The front door opened, and she could hear her mother whispering harshly to a man downstairs. Grabbing the book bag by the door, she stuffed the last few of her belongings, then slung it on her back before creeping down the stairs, stopping at the bottom.

From her position, she could see the front door still open, and the living room was still, so she sighed quietly. A laugh came from the kitchen, and she jumped, then bit her lip, her feet locked in place. Light streamed in through the crack in the door, illuminating the otherwise dark room. Her heart beat quickly in her chest, but she continued anyway until the wood beneath her creaked loudly. She grabbed her mouth to stop the gasp from escaping.

"Is somebody else in here?"

"Uhh..I-I...nawl," Lula stammered.

Kelly pulled open the door and froze when she heard a voice behind her. Lula spoke in a harsh whisper, pointing at Kelly, digging her finger into Kelly's chest.

"I thought I told you to get out of here."

"I just came back for my stuff. I didn't know you was here."

The door leading to the kitchen flung open, hitting the wall and startling both Lula and Kelly.

"Andre. I was just-" Lula started and stopped when he put his hand up to her face. He glared at her, ignoring Kelly.

"I thought you said you were here alone. What I tell you about people in my house. You know I like to have you all to myself," he said.

He glared down at her, his fists clenched, and Lula swallowed hard. Andre's mouth curled into a snarl, and the muscles in his arms tensed. Kelly slowly backed out of the door, eyes wide. He leaned over and slammed it, the window shuddering loudly. A loud thud and a scream pulled Kelly from her trance, and tears flowed from her eyes again. Blood rushed her ears and drowned out the noise as Kelly hung her head, turned away from the door, and then walked to the bus stop at the end of the street. Sitting on the cold metal bench, she lowered her head and cried.

When she got to Rivercliff, she knocked on Room 140, shivering from the chilly air. The door opened, and she looked up smiling, but it faded when she laid eyes on Jeremy.

"Hey...is...uh...is Carlos here?"

Kelly craned her neck, trying to see around Jeremy through the cracked door. He leaned down to meet her gaze, then answered her.

"Uh...no."

Kelly's face fell, and she turned to walk away, but Jeremy spoke again.

"But...he posed to be back in a minute. You wanna come in a wait?"

"Um...yeah."

Jeremy opened the door and stood to the side. Kelly looked around outside before entering. Jeremy walked into the bathroom, closing the door. Kelly sat down at the table next to the door, putting her bag on the floor beside her.

Staring around the room, she sighed, drummed her fingers on the table, and clasped them in front of her. Jeremy returned, shaking water off his hands, smiling at Kelly.

"You know when he gone be back?"

"Nah. He ain't specify. But it'll be soon."

Jeremy moved over to the drawers' chest that the television sat on, opening them and pulling out clothes, dumping them into a duffle bag beside it. Kelly watched silently, then yawned.

Kelly sighed aloud, "I'm about to go to my room. I'll come back a little later."

She turned to the door and opened it, shivering from the cold.