Back To You

Epilogue

Malakai Davis

I waddled through the hallway trying to balance a semi-heavy box filled with CDs and various old record players. I could smell years of dust wafting from inside the box, which triggered my urge to sneeze. Luckily I was able to suppress it and hurry my way into my new apartment.

"You can set that down on the floor. I'll figure out what to do with it later." Oscar sat on our couch with his feet kicked up, as he had been for an hour now. I didn't mind since he already completed all the heavy lifting.

I closed the front door and gently set the box down. Since that was the last of the stuff, I decided to help Jamie decorate the kitchen. Of course, I had to step over a plethora of boxes on my way there.

"Don't put that pink shit on my table." Jamie scolded Hiraeth who held a pink tablecloth in her hands.

I frowned. Since I was living with two masculine people none of our decorations could be pink or 'girly'. "My tablecloth looks way better than that ugly striped shit you stole from your parents."

Jamie handed Hiraeth a red-striped tablecloth. "Look, I already let you pick the shape of the table. So it's only fair that I get to pick the color of the tablecloth." Hiraeth wordlessly set the tablecloth that I bought on the floor. I would have protested, but Jamie did have a point.

So I decided to start unloading our dishes into the sink. But of course, Jamie and I started to argue about whether or not the dishes should be just shoved in the dishwasher first.

"How did I let these two rope me into living with their bobblehead asses?" Oscar asked, clearly talking to Hiraeth.

She laughed and shrugged. "Malakai used her puppy dog eyes." That was true, I did manage to convince Oscar to move all the way to Connecticut with me through whining and begging. It definitely wasn't an easy task.

He shook his head and sighed. "At least I get the master bedroom." Oscar paid the majority of our rent since he could afford it. So Jamie and I gladly let him have the master bedroom. Then we each got one of the two leftover rooms.

"Are you excited for your big day?" Jamie asked Hiraeth.

"Orientation hardly constitutes a big day." Hiraeth snorted. She reached over into a nearly empty box next to the table. "Jamie, did you steal my father's air fryer?"

Jamie scratched her neck awkwardly. "Did you accidentally break a jar of pickles in Walmart yesterday?"

Hiraeth kissed her teeth. "That's why your tablecloth is so damn ugly. All your guests are going to clown you for having such an ugly tablecloth."

Oscar and I laughed but got silenced by Jamie's glare. "Shut up, Hiraeth. You don't get to put your two cents in. You're not living here."

Hiraeth crossed her arms. "Malakai's bed is pretty much mine. Malakai doesn't like sleeping in it without me."

I smiled. "That's true. I like going to bed next to you."

"Because you love me?" Hiraeth returned my smile.

That was of course the reason, but I wasn't sappy enough to say it. "Because you talk in your sleep and I find it amusing."

Hiraeth's smile dropped and she flipped me off. "I don't talk in my sleep."

I walked over to my girlfriend and kissed her on her forehead."You know I love you."

"Enough to let me have half of your closet?" She asked. I just shrugged, I didn't own a lot of stuff since I got kicked out of my mom's place. And I honestly didn't mind sharing my space with Hiraeth. "I'll make it up to you later," Hiraeth promised.