What the hell am I doing here? I didn't actually think the detective was serious when he said I could stay at his place. Nevermind, I guess I had nowhere else to go anyway.
- Hey kid! I'm not going to carry all of your bags by my fucking self! Come give me a hand!
- ...Yeah, yeah I am coming!
- Kids our days...
I got out of the detective's car and picked up both my bags, the detective picked up a really thick folder of papers and a cardboard box full with even more papers.
- Are you planning a study night with your friends ?
- Very funny punk, now get your ass inside.
He headed towards his house and unlocked the door. The house was new and modern, from the outside there was a lot of big sized windows and the garden was well maintained. Once inside I looked at the very subtle decorations and absence of furniture.
- Oh, don't worry about it, I just moved in. All of the upstairs is furnished but the rest is coming next week. Stupid moving companies who don't know shit about moving.
- Where should I put my bags ?
- Come upstairs, I will show you.
I follow him up the stairs to quite a large landing with a couple of chairs and a library space.
- Not very complicated, here is the lounging space, down the corridor there are two bedrooms that face each other, yours is the one on the left and your bathroom is through this door here. So if ever you need a piss during the night, try not to make too much noise while going through the lounge.
- The layout isn't very well planned
- Get used to it, you won't be here for too long anyway.
- Right.
I make my way to my bedroom to put down my bags, the room is a 'normal' size with wooden furniture, a double sized bed, a desk, a wardrobe, a bed side table and a bookshelf. The usual casual white and brown bedroom, that was surprisingly very clean for a rude old man.
- When you're done doing whatever you are doing come downstairs!
Great that means more questions, not surprising. What did they mean? Has mum really been hanging there for a week?
How could I not notice... not only the body but the silence, the absence of alcohol reeking strangers making their way into my mums bedroom or raiding the fridge in the morning or even throwing up in the toilet. The abusive treatment she used to make me endure.
Maybe I was so used to it that I just decided to ignore it and kept ignoring it even though it had all ended. Well, that just shows how much of a fucking difference she was making in my life. I unpacked whatever clothes I had and made my way downstairs.
The detective was sitting on the floor... praying?
- What the fuck are you praying for ?
- Meditating.
- What the fuck are you meditating for ?
-.... You sure are a noisy one.
- You are the one who told me to come down when I was done.
- You have a point.
What an idiot.
- Come sit down in front of me Josh.
