DYSFUNCTIONAL LOVE

Chapter 10

Heaven
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I sat on the bed waiting for him to come back into the bedroom.  I heard enough of the conversation to know that there would be questions.  I also knew that we needed to decide what to do next.  He couldn't keep me here too much longer.  People would definitely start to wonder.  I would have to at least go back to work.  School was never my thing, so I could live without that.  I could get my GED or something.  But I know Miss April would start to worry if I didn't go back to the diner soon.

He finally came back to the room.  I was sitting on the bed wondering if he was going to speak first or if I was going to have to break the silence.  We just sat there for a while, starring at each other.  I have to admit it was a little awkward.

He finally spoke up. "I guess we should talk to each other huh?

I didn't even know where to start.  Here's a man who murdered my father, who was raping me.  I'm grateful he was there but I still don't know HOW he got there.  I don't know his name.  The cops were questioning him about him, so clearly people were wondering about my involvement.  For all I knew, they thought I did it. Oh, and he's sort of kind of holding me captive.    Where should we start first?

"Maybe you can finally tell me your name?" I asked him.

I guess that was funny to him, because he smirked a little.  "Right.  I'm Chris.  Chris Baker."

Hmm, he gave me his name.  His full name.  That could mean two things.  Either he's not as bad of a guy as I thought.  Or he doesn't plan on letting me leave here. Whatever the case was, he finally seemed to want to talk, so I took advantage of that.  "I haven't figured out a way to ask this, so I'm just going to ask.   How did you know where I lived, and why did you kill Greg?"

That question opened the can of worms to our entire conversation.  He told me everything.  I knew about him being hired.  How he didn't shoot Greg.  How our crossing paths again was completely coincidental.  I also decided to tell him everything.  I told him my real name was Heaven.  I gave him the brief back story on Miss April's nick name for me.  I told him about Jessie.  I told him about my history with Greg, and the events leading up to what happened.  Saying it out loud must have hit a nerve, because out of nowhere I started to cry.   I had never cried in front of anyone before.  I don't know why I felt comfortable crying in front of Chris, but for some reason I was. 

I know the sight of my tears opened a soft spot for him.  Because the next thing I knew, his arms were wrapped around me, and just for a second, everything felt like it would be okay.

I didn't want to let myself become vulnerable to him, so I backed away from him. "You don't have to do that.  I'll be fine."  I wiped the tears from my eyes, pulling myself back together.

Chris

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I didn't want to let her go.  I wanted to keep comforting her.  It was no secret how beautiful she was.   After finally speaking, we both knew our age different.  But neither of us seemed to care.  She wanted to give off that strong persona, but I knew better.  She was hurting, and she needed somebody.  I wanted to be there.  But I respected her space. 

Under these circumstances, could we really be thinking about this right now?  It was weird.  She didn't seem scared of me though.   Did that mean I had a chance?  I doubt it.  People don't usually overlook the fact that you've kidnapped them.  It was just something about the vibe that she had when I was holding her though.  I knew she wasn't afraid of me.

She decided to speak "You know, I can't stay here.  People are already asking questions.  At the very least, I need to go back to work. I can do something different about school.  My boss and I are close.  I know she'll start to worry, if she hasn't already.  For all I know, that's why that cop showed up here."

She was right.  I couldn't just keep her here without there being even more problems.  But I didn't want to give her too much of an opportunity to say anything before I figured out what to do about everything. 

"Okay.  I know this may not be exactly what you want.  But this is what has to happen.  I'll take you to and from work every day.  But I need you to stay here.  It might not make sense to you, and I get that.  But that's what has to happen."

"Okay."  She agreed.  I was a little shocked.  She didn't even think about it.  I'm guessing based on what happened to her, living with a stranger was better than where she was at.  Based on her answer, it was the best option she had.

Heaven

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The next day we were in his car, as he drove me to work.  I called Miss April, she was relieved to hear from me, and didn't hesitate to let me have my job back.  I couldn't believe I agreed to live with Chris.  The general idea of it was exciting.  But under these circumstances, it made me nervous.

He dropped me off in front of the diner, I let him know that I would be getting off at 11:00pm.  I don't think he planned on leaving the area.

I walked in and Miss April was overjoyed to see me.  She greeted me with a big hug.  Up until that very moment, I didn't know just how bad I needed that. 

"Are you hungry? I made a casserole."  Oh how I loved Miss April's cooking.

I smiled at her. "Yes, I'm pretty hungry."

My shift went by pretty quickly.  After I sat and had a quick bite to eat with Miss April, the crowd started pouring in.  Even though this place is really old, the food here is great, so it's very popular. 

By the time I finally looked up at the clock it was 10:30pm.  Almost time for my shift to end. 

Miss April was wiping down a table "Honey your paycheck is in my office on my desk.  If you want to grab it and get out of here, you can.  I can finish up here."

"Okay."  I pulled off my apron and walked into the back office.  I looked around the desk for my check.  I've always been known to be a little clumsy.  When I reached for my checked I knocked over a box of papers that were sitting on Miss April's desk. "Damn it."

I bent down to gather up the paperwork.  As I was cleaning up the mess I made one of the papers stood out to me. 

"Birth Certificate?"  Why would Miss April keep her birth certificate here at work?  I looked at the document further and Miss April's name was on it, but her name was under the box that said mother.  She never mentioned having any kids.  I kept reading the document.

"Miss April has a daughter?" I whispered to myself.   I looked for the name.  When I found it, tears instantly built up in my eyes. "Diamond Williams."  The words Miss April used when she gave me my nickname went through my head "You're my Diamond in a rough."

Somebody had some explaining to do.