Home Again

Wager Day

Outside the morning air blew and Clover began to cook breakfast in the confines of her cozy kitchen. She did not have to go into work today but still she was up earlier than normal. Having an unexpected guest made her feel increasingly tense.

After rising out of her bed this morning, Clover had quietly gotten dressed and stepped lightly from her room. She had to sneak past the sleeping figure on the couch in order to covertly make her breakfast. Clover remembered when T.J. had come inside the night before. She had offered him tea but he refused, choosing to lie on the couch and shiver for hours before finally nodding off to sleep. Even while he slept, Clover could see that his body unconsciously shook from the cold that seemed to have seeped into his bones.

The bacon Clover had set out was now sizzling in the pan. She watched her food automatically as her mind wandered to other things. Clover slowly moved the meat around the pan several times, finally flipping it over. The hearty smell was beginning to permeate the air. Then Clover was present to another smell.

"Good morning," a voice behind her said.

"You smell like tobacco and halitosis," she said, keeping her back to him.

T.J. rolled his eyes and stiffly walked toward the washroom.

"Good morning," Clover said, when he had taken a few steps.

He turned around with a groggy look but she paid him no mind, attending to the food before her.

~

"When will you be out by?" Clover eyed T.J. carefully. He seemed to only be focused on the plate of food before him, greedily making progress across his plate. "Hey," she put her hand on the table and leaned in closer, "when are you leaving?" She sat directly in front of him.

He followed her with his eyes only. "Why do you want to know?" He spoke with his mouth full.

"Why do I want to know?" She repeated, incredulously. "It's my place, that's why."

By now, Junior had cleaned his plate and was wiping his mouth. "I'll let you know when I decide," he said. With that, he stood from the table.

"That's not a good enough answer. You need to get out of here. I don't know what problems you have but I don't want them around me. I'm telling you to get out."

He stood motionless with his back to her, looking out of the window. Silent.

"Did you hear anything I just said?" She asked.

He leaned closer toward the window.

"Hello!" She called.

His head turned and he side-eyed her. Slowly, he faced her. "What's going on out there?" He asked, nodded his head toward the window.

"What are you talking about?" She could not believe his utter disregard for her previous statements.

"Out there?" He motioned again, taking out a cigarette.

With a groan, Clover pushed past him and peered out of her window.

"Why does it seem like all the men are leaving their houses?" He asked.

Clover surveyed the scene he had described with her eyes.

"And they're all going one general direction," he continued. "To where?"

"... third Saturday of the month," Clover whispered to herself, "so that means...Wager Day," she told him.

"What's that?" He asked.

She turned to face him.

"You came at a shitty time," she said. "You may get to see the neighborhood at its worst." She turned to look through the window again. T.J. saw her fingers subtly run along the door's lock, checking to see if it was secure. "Unless he's here," she continued to herself, "then that would be bad for a completely different reason."

"What?" T.J. was growing curious and impatient. He watched her observe three more men passing before his patience had completely ebbed. "I'll be back," he said and then forced his way out of the door. He ignored her calls and warnings. He was a grown man and did not need to wait around for someone to give him permission to get answers. Junior lit a cigarette and took one last look back at Clover's house. All he could see was her face in that small window. She had locked the door by now he imagined. Maybe he would not have to return. Enough time seemed to have passed for him to move on from his hiding place. Still, the black suits would be in pursuit of him no matter where Junior decided to go. He would think more about this later. Now, he was going to cure some boredom and get some questions answered.

~

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