Old Friends (Janet and Toni Fanfic)

Chapter 56

Janet

My bed was empty when I opened my eyes the next morning. When the sound of running water and Toni's angelic voice singing sweetly filled my ears, I remembered that today was the day. My Toni Michele would finally be living with me. And I could not wait.

It was only about 9:30 in the morning, and I was so surprised she was awake already. She must have been excited too and barely got any sleep. I was just grateful that she was in such good spirits. This change was exactly what was needed to move us out of that sad spell and on with our life together.

  "Toni Michele, is that you?" I said after getting out of bed to get myself ready.

"Hell, I better be the only person in your shower," she said back. I could see her silhouette moving gracefully behind the frosted glass door as she bathed herself. Steam was seeping out from inside, along with the smell of the French vanilla body wash I gifted her a while ago. Lord knows she loved it. So did I. There was a warm, calm energy about her that filled the master bath. It was a pleasant aura to wake up to. She continued to hum giddily as I brushed my teeth and contemplated the plan for today. Movers would need to be called first and foremost, and with that, we wouldn't have to lift a finger until it was all back here and ready to be unpacked. It sounded much simpler than I knew it would be.

  "Come here," she called as I finished up. She peeked her head out of the door with puckered lips as I approached her. "Good morning." She kissed me softly.

  "Good morning to you, too. How are you?" I ran my hands through her damp hair and smiled.

  "I feel so good. Come in here with me."

  "I think I'll take the guest bathroom today. We got too much to do," I said knowingly.

  "This one's already hot! Come on." She stuck her arm out of the door now. I held her hand, but still declined.  

  "No. Not now. Just finish up and get the movers called, okay? I want to get done as soon as possible."

She smacked her lips, snatching her hand away and closing the door back to finish washing herself.

"Okay, but the house isn't going anywhere. What's the rush?" She asked.

"It's just a lot to do. You got a lot of stuff." I grabbed a new towel and the rest of my toiletries to start down the hallway. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Toni's phone light up. I wasn't usually nosy, but today I picked it up to see what it was: a missed call from her mother. I gasped to myself. So soon? Too soon, in my opinion. I wondered whether or not I should tell Toni; she was in a good mood today. We had big plans today. It didn't seem like the time to ruin that. So I dismissed the notification and got dressed.

  An hour later, the both of us were on the phones trying to get our troop of movers together. We were to begin with all of her clothes first, and then move to other personal items she felt she wanted to bring. There wouldn't be much of those since she'd still have the house. But there were some family photos and artwork that were must-haves, along with her cars. It was a heavy task to take on. But we were blessed enough to have it run smoothly and without too much work on our part.

  As we sat on her bedroom floor, packing up clothes in boxes, her phone rang. I prayed to god that it wasn't her mother again—she'd been in such a good mood—and it was someone else calling on a lighter note. But the audible sigh didn't sound too promising as she looked at her caller I.D.

  "Who is it, honey?" I asked, folding a pair of jeans over my arm.

  "Face."

  "Face?" I furrowed my eyebrows. "The hell does he want?"