Aftershocks ➳ Philkas/Eyewitness

13

Episode 13: All the Way to Red Hook

Philip stares at his reflection in the mirror with dissatisfaction, repeatedly threading his fingers through his hair to adjust his fringe. A slight frown settles on his lips as his mind begins to pick out every little flaw in his face: the faded scar on his forehead, the little mole under his lip, the crinkles next to his eyes. He can feel his heart thudding against his rib cage in anticipation.

He bites his lip and contemplates bailing on Lukas. The thought of going to that party with him was exciting at first, but he's starting to have doubts. What if Lukas's friends suspect something more than friendship between them? What if it turns violent? He could easily just tell Lukas that he's sick, or that he's regretting their decision to go together. It's not like Lukas was super keen on the idea to begin with, anyway.

Abruptly, there's a soft knock on his bedroom door. He looks up to see Helen stepping inside with a soft smile on her face. She's not wearing her sheriff uniform, which Philip has become deeply accustomed to, and he sort of forgot that her work uniform isn't permanently attached to her body. Instead, she's opted for a pair of jeans and a white button-up shirt.

"I just got a call from your mom's old landlord," she says softly, sitting at the edge of his bed across the room. She brushes a few stray hairs behind her ear. "He was cleaning out her apartment and found some things that we must've missed. Do you wanna go pick it up?"

Philip eyes her in the corner of the mirror. "Oh, um. Yeah, I guess so."

Helen nods slowly. "Okay. I called Tony and took the rest of the afternoon off. We can go get some lunch afterwards, if you'd like."

Philip's lips twitch into a smile. "Yeah, I'd really like that."

"I'm sure you've missed authentic New York City pizza."

Philip laughs, shaking his head. "You have no idea."

  ° ° °

When Philip walks into his mother's old apartment, he barely recognizes it. It's a shell of its former shelf, stripped of all evidence of Anne's existence. All of the furniture is gone now, and the air smells like cleaning sprays and disinfectant rather than her favorite vanilla candles. Her former landlord, an older man with a beer belly and grey hair, is busy scrubbing the walls with a sponge to remove all the smoke stains, which cling like grey clouds to the corners. He doesn't notice Philip's presence until he clears his throat.

The man, Todd, looks over with a startled expression.  "Oh, hey, Philip. I put the rest of your mom's stuff in a box over there in the corner," he says, nodding towards its direction. "Found it in the back of the coat closet."

Philip mutters a quiet "thanks" under his breath before walking over to the box. He kneels down and begins sorting through its contents. It looks like mostly photographs and a few pieces of random jewelry, which she always had a knack for collecting. One of the photos is of the two of them together, taken just a few months before Philip was placed in foster care for the last time. It was during Christmas at the Manhattan Mall. They both look so happy, and there's a faint glimmer of holiday lights glowing behind them. He feels his throat tighten at the sight.

"I'm really sorry about your mom, kid," Todd says sadly, wringing out the dirty sponge in the sink. "She was a real nice lady. Really enjoyed talking to her when she was around."

Philip blinks a few times before responding. "Yeah, she was... great."

"It's a shame," he says, shaking his head.

Philip picks up the box and tucks it under his arm. "Well, I should go. It's a long drive back to Tivoli."

"Take care, Philip."