Just a Shadow in the Night (Mikey Way / OC)

Chapter 12

  I rolled out of bed and hit the floor with a small thump. Rays of light shone in my face, and I forgot where I was. I'm not at home. I'm not at a friend's house. I'm in Mikey's bedroom.
I sat up and looked around. Mikey wasn't in his bed, so I got out of my makeshift bed and went to go look for him. I used the bathroom on the way to the kitchen. As I looked in the mirror, I noticed that the bruises and cuts on my face have begun to fix themselves.
I stepped out of the bathroom and gingerly made my way to the kitchen. I leaned against the doorframe watching Mikey as he sat at the kitchen island, holding another steaming cup of coffee. My eyes glanced toward the clock that hung over the stove, it read 10:30. It was a sunny morning, apparently a rarity in New Jersey.
"Good morning, sleepy head" Gerard called from the living room couch. I didn't know he was there.
"Good morning, Gerard."
"Oh please, call me Gee." Something about it just didn't seem right anymore. I would've continued to call him Gee if he didn't help kidnap me. I stayed quiet.

"Would you like some coffee?" Mikey asked me.
"Yes please" I said, sitting down on the same couch as Gerard. I was thinking about my cat. Her litter box needs to be cleaned, she needs to be fed and she's probably missing me.

"Gerard?" I ask. He looks at me as if he wanted to correct me for using his full name, but I really meant to say Gerard. He smiles at me none the less and answers.
"Yes?"
"Do you think Mikey will let me go feed my cat?" I ask in a hushed tone, not wanting Mikey to overhear. Gerard thinks for a minute before he runs a hand through his messy morning hair.
"As long as you're not alone, I don't see why not. You should ask him." Just like that, on cue, Mikey walks in and hands me a cup of coffee. It was in the same mug as yesterday. I thanked him and he sat in the recliner to the left of the couch. Mikey sipped his coffee, looking at Gerard and I as if we were the most interesting people on the planet. I sat cross legged, covering my ice-cold feet. Gerard retreated to his side of the couch, crossing his legs and folding his hands in his lap.
"So..." Mikey said, looking between Gerard and I. "Frank's coming over soon..."
"Why's he coming here?" Gerard asked, looking genuinely confused. I wasn't quite sure who Frank was. A friend, yeah, but what kind of a person is he? Friendly? Mean? Caring? Aggressive? I don't know. I guess I'll find out.
"Uhm... Mikey?" I ask. I feel nervous asking, as if I don't have a right to request things.
"Yeah?"
"Can I go to my house and feed my cat and spend some time with her? She needs food, and probably some loving and I just need to see if she's okay and-"
"Yeah, sure. I have to stay here, I've got stuff to do. Gerard should go." Mikey suggests, looking at Gerard.
"No, no, no. I'm allergic to cats, remember?" Gerard says nervously.
"Who else would go?" Mikey asks, furrowing his eyebrows. The brothers sat in the living room, coming up with possible candidates.
"Oh I know!" Mikey shouts as he beings to search for his phone.
"Who?" I hear Gerard ask, but I'm more concentrated on Mikey's phone conversation.
"Yeah, Bob? [...] Hey, I was wondering if you'd like to escort Emilia over to her place to feed her cat and maybe to pick up some clothes. [...] Yeah. [...] Yep. Okay, see you soon." Bob was over and I was putting on my boots and coat with Mikey by my side. Before Bob opened the door, Mikey grabbed me by my shirt and pulled me closely.
"Take however long you need, but just remember, Bob has my number." He whispered sweetly in my ear. I backed away and nodded before leaving.
It was only 3:30 but the sun wasn't as bright as before, and the air was surprisingly frigid. I pulled my arms closer to myself as I led Bob towards my apartment.
We got there not long after, and I showed him where I hid my spare key. I walked in first, kicking off my boots and taking off my coat with him following close behind.
"Nice place." He said, closing the door and looking around.
"Thanks. I'm gonna go find my cat." I said as I walked over to my painting easel. I saw her on the pillow beside it and I started petting her head. She woke up startled, but when she recognised me, she got up on her feet and made me pet her even more. I smiled at her and walked over to the kitchen. Bob was looking at the artwork hung on my walls.
"Bob?" He spun around on his heel, looking wide eyed. I chuckled at him as I grabbed the cat food out of the fridge.
"Would you like to see what I feed my cat? In case I, um..."
"In case you what?" He asked, walking into the kitchen.
"In case I'm not able to one day..." I mumbled. He immediately understood what I meant. I don't know if I'm going to be able to come back here.
"Oh. Okay, yeah sure. Show me what to do."
"Well first, you check if her dry food is full enough." I looked at him and saw him nodding and pointing at the food dish as if he was making a mental note.
"And then you take her wet food from the top shelf of the fridge." I said pointing towards the fridge. "You cut it with this plastic knife into a triangle and put it into her dry food dish." I did the actions as I spoke them.
He was still nodding and he looked up at me and smiled.
"Oh and- You should probably stick around for 10-15 minutes to pet her, or maybe clean her litter box every 2-3 days. She also throws up sometimes, so you may want to check for that."
Bob was nodding rather furiously now, he resembled a bobble head. I laughed thinking about it. 'Bob the bobble head.'
"Bob, you can stop nodding, you're going to hurt yourself." I smirked. He stopped nodding and smiled. His smile lead to him laughing. I laughed with him before I put the cat food away.
"I have to go pack." I reminded him.
"Oh yeah! Umm... Where's the cat's litter box?" He asked.
"I'll show you." I said, leading him towards a closet-like room. "The supplies are there, and that's all you need to know."
"Okay thanks." He said, dismissing me. I went to my room to go and pack. I took out one large suitcase that I've only used once. I wasn't sure of what I needed. I walked over to my wardrobe and put in five comfortable Tee shirts and a few pairs of leggings. I put in 3 bras and a variety of socks and underwear. Two sweaters and a couple tank tops were packed tightly and I put one black skirt in. There was still some room, but I figured I have enough clothes, so I packed up my camera and the charger. My iPod was back at Gerard and Mikey's, so I packed up my charger as well. That's all I really need in here.
I walked back into my living room to find Bob petting Tulla.
"What's her name?" He asks, not moving his eyes away from her.
"Tulla." I tell him as I wheel my suitcase towards the door. He's nodding again, and I wonder if he's aware of it. Wouldn't it be funny if he wound up with a sore neck every once in a while and thought 'Why the hell is my neck so sore.'
"I cleaned her litter box" He informs me. He's sitting on the floor and Tulla is curled up in his lap.
"Thank you"
"You're welcome. Do you want to bring your painting supplies with you?" He asks.
I have to think about it. Will Mikey let me paint? Will I find the time to paint? What will I do with the paintings once they're done? What if they yell at me for-
"Mikey might see that you've got talent. It'll also give you something to do." He says.
I stand there for a few extra seconds. I agree and Bob sets Tulla on the floor. He helps me fold up the easel and pack away the paints in a smaller suitcase.
Bob has my large suitcase in hand and I have the smaller one in mine. The lights are all out but it's not dark. The sun still struggles to shine through the clouds and into the windows. Tulla is curled up on her pillow again.
"Can I bring Ray here? To show him around and to meet Tulla and all? Ray likes you and he might like Tulla and it'll be nice to have more than one person over... right?" Bob asks, rather quickly.
Ray and Bob aren't bad men. They're actually quite nice. I feel like I can trust them in my house.
"You promise to take care of her?" I ask, looking him in the eye.
He sticks his pinky finger out and smiles. "I promise."
We lock pinkies and smile at each other. I lead him out the door and I lock it behind him. I hand him the key and he tucks it safely in the pocket of his dark wash denim jeans. Bob set the two suitcases in Mikey's room and he went home soon after.
The rest of us sat around talking about the ridiculous soap operas that were on the air. Mikey said they were unrealistic and dumb, Gerard said they were bearable and I said that they were just plain terrible. There was a loud knock on the door. It made me jump, but I played with my hair and tried to mask my fear.
Mikey went to answer the door. Out of habit, I pulled my legs closer to my chest. Gerard looked at me with sad eyes, as if he was saying 'You're not going to like him.' I looked away and buried my face in my knees. I heard their muffled conversation, the sounds of Frank kicking his shoes off, and finally the footsteps that came into the living room.
"Emilia" Mikey spoke softly. I looked up to see him and another man in front of me. This man was rather short, around my height, maybe a little bit taller. He was covered- from what I could see, in tattoos. He had a lip piercing that suited him... but there was something about his eyes. They were hazel, but they looked intimidating.
"This is Frank, Frank this is Emilia." Mikey said. Frank trusted his hand into my face; I could help but to flinch. I backed up into the couch, and removed my knees from my chest. I carefully placed my cold and thin hand into his strong and warm one. He had a tight grip on my hand and I had to pull my hand away after what seemed like ages. He didn't say anything so I looked away.
We could all feel the tension in the air, and after a few more moments Mikey speaks up.
"Let's have some drinks!"