A Settled Heart: Part 1
#7 of Heart
"Finally!"
The grey wolf's tail wagged slightly as he looked at the cell phone in his paw. Mike was connected to the world again. Not that he had been completely dependent on his phone. He preferred calling to texting and face-to-face to calling, but he used to text a lot because that was how all his friends communicated. He hoped he remembered T9word. It had been over a year since his phone had been taken back by his father, and this was the first time he could afford one since.
The wolf walked away from the Sasktel kiosk with a feeling of satisfaction and almost giddiness. Some of his friends probably thought he was dead. His only communication since he had moved out had been rare chance meetings and email, and Mike didn't even have all of his friends' email addresses. Luckily, he still had their phone numbers in an old-fashioned address book, so he could finally tell his friends he wasn't dead and find out who wished he was.
Mike tried not to be too pessimistic as he stepped outside and started to type numbers into his social lifeline. He was all too aware, however, of how many people were uncomfortable with gays and bis and how those were easily swayed by the small percentage of bigots and gay-haters who actively bullied people such as himself. Fortunately, his small friend group from before his unintentional coming out and the absence of a social life after had protected him from those people. However, this fact slightly clouded Mike's mood. He was happy to reconnect with his friends, but he was also nervous about how his friends would react to his reappearance. Calling them would make him vulnerable, and despite the happiness his friends could give, Mike was almost tempted not to call them.
Almost.
He still wanted to get back in touch. He talked to his co-workers at Smitty's, but hadn't become too close to any of them. He had tried to find some kind of club or activity that interested him, but with all the time he spent at work and the lack of initiative, he hadn't joined anything. Mike felt lonelier than a rain cloud in the Sahara. Outside of work, his only real social interaction happened with the church choir he had joined a year before he was kicked out. The choir knew he wasn't living at home, but Mike had been deliberately vague on the details. He didn't want to risk losing that connection and the opportunity to play piano. Playing piano had long been one of his favourite pastimes, and now that he lived broke and alone, the only chance he had to play was at the practices and masses.
As Mike was reflecting on his life's somewhat sorry state of affairs, he recalled it was Wednesday: practice night. He would have to catch a bus for seven o'clock and either catch up with friends this afternoon or put it off until tomorrow evening. No, Friday, the wolf thought tiredly. He was working an eight hour shift tomorrow, and even if someone wanted to get together as late as 8:30 or 9:00, he would be too dead to be good company.
A sudden Honk! brought the wolf back to his senses. He'd been so wrapped up in his thoughts and phone that he had nearly walked out into traffic. He shook his head to clear it and walked a dozen yards over to the crosswalk. He arched back in a stretch as he waited for the light to turn.
A mistake, as it turned out.
Mike suddenly folded, the air leaving his lungs, as he was tackled to the ground. The wolf hit the snow with a soft thump and a muffled curse. He lowered his muzzle to look disapprovingly at the cheetah who had assaulted him.
"Was that strictly necessary?" Mike asked with mock sternness. "Most people just say, 'Hello.' "
"Yeah, well," the cheetah replied, "this was more fun. And I'm not most people."
"Luckily for you," Mike retorted, "neither am I. Most people would punch you out for that, at least."
"They'd need to catch me first," The cheetah said with a smile. The smile only grew broader as he helped Mike to his feet.
"I would ask how you are," Mike said, "but I see you're as excitable as ever, Nicholas."
"Hey!" the cheetah exclaimed. "I told you: my name is Nick."
"It's the least I can do after your rough treatment. How am I supposed to play piano tonight if I'm one big bruise?"
"You'll manage. No work today? I swear, you're at Smitty's all the time. If I'm not passing you in the kitchen, you're serving me and my buddies at the table."
"Believe it or not, I don't live there, and--"
"I don't believe it." Nick's smile hadn't left his face and somehow grew even wider.
"Shut up," Mike said good-naturedly. "As I was saying, I'll be back there tomorrow. Eight hours. Ugh."
"Well, you get four of fun then. I'm there 12:30 to 4:30."
"Gee, that's great. Four hours with the ADHD caffeine junky. I'm kidding," Mike added with a smile as Nick bristled.
Nick's good humour came back as if it hadn't left. If my friends thought I was hyper, Mike thought, they should meet this guy. He makes me look constantly depressed by comparison.
"So," Nick inquired, "what brings you out in the snow?"
"Well, I wasn't in the snow until you came along." Mike noticed Nick was following him back towards his apartment. "You're going this way?" The two worked together and occasionally went for drinks afterwards, but Mike didn't know where Nick lived. Although, Mike supposed, Nick might not be going home right now.
"Yeah. We haven't talked for a while and this seemed like a good time to catch up. Every time I ask after work, you say you're too tired--"
"Which I am."
"So," Nick continued, ignoring the interruption, "I thought I'd catch you when I saw you now. What were you doing at the mall?"
Mike was well used to the abrupt changes in conversation with Nick by now. "Getting this," Mike said, holding up his phone.
"Ooh, let me see," Nick said quickly. Before Mike could reply, the fast hands that had saved many a falling cup had snatched the phone from his fingers.
"Hey!" Mike yelled, trying to wrest his phone back. He was chagrined to find that not only was the cheetah fast enough to keep the phone away from his questing fingers, he was able to play keep away while navigating menus and typing hurriedly on the phone's slide-out keyboard.
"There," Nick said, finally handing the phone back. "Give me a call sometime when Smitty's can spare you."
"Ha, ha, very funny," Mike said sardonically, tucking the phone back into the 'holster' at his hip. "Next time I feel like being blindsided, I'll give you a call."
"Good," said Nick, blissfully immune to the sarcasm. "Well, this is me," he added, stopping on the sidewalk.
"I think you mean, 'This is mi--' " Mike's breath caught in the middle of his correction when he saw the building Nick had indicated. "Jesus," he breathed.
"This is Jesus?" Nick said, still smiling. "Why would I mean that?"
"You know what I mean," Mike grumbled. He was still having trouble accepting what he was seeing.
He knew from prior conversations that the cheetah had moved out on his own two years ago at seventeen. Nick had said his parents were well-to-do and that he wasn't tight for money; he often paid for Mike's drinks since Mike would have to decline going to the bar for lack of funds otherwise. Mike didn't want to force his colleague to pay, but with rent and utilities alongside trying to save money for... well, everything, he couldn't afford to go out too often. However, these actions and Nick's modest comments didn't prepare Mike for the sight before him.
Mike had expected a nice apartment block. In front of him was a house.
It was certainly no mansion, and Mike's old house was bigger, but it was certainly bigger and nicer than a bachelor would normally have. It was obviously a relatively recent addition to the neighbourhood at perhaps five years old. A fir tree stood in the yard, circled by stone blocks. The tree had low enough branches to keep to much snow from settling directly beneath it, allowing red rocks to be seen filling in the circle. A path of dark red brick ran up the side of the yard before taking a ninety degree turn towards two steps graced with an elegant railing. At the top of the steps, the front door was white with frosted glass in an oval in the centre. The house itself was white with a smoky grey shingled roof, and in addition to regular windows, had a bay window for the living room.
"Basement suite?" Mike asked. He couldn't stop staring at the house. Just how much money does Nick have? he wondered. And if he's loaded, why is he working at Smitty's?
"No," Nick said, surprising the already stunned wolf further. "The whole place is mine."
Mike couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy. He was working long hours just to make rent on a one-room apartment, whereas Nick, younger than he, had his own house. Mike's face gave away none of his emotions, and he took a moment to breathe so his voice was controlled. He also didn't want to make an angry, thoughtless comment. He was just beginning to move past co-worker towards friend with Nick, and he didn't have enough friends to throw one away for something as stupid as money. Mike had been working with Nick since his first day at Smitty's, but had only recently started to really hang out with his colleague. He was slow to trust people after leaving home. Consequently, Nick--and everyone else at work--didn't know he was bi.
Drawing his mind back to reality, Mike asked, "Have any housemates?"
Nick also seemed to be in thought. In fact, he was thinking about the wolf's reaction to his property. He hadn't thought about how nice the place was. He had lived there long enough for it to be normal to him, and hoped that the wolf didn't think he was flaunting his money. It was a moment before the cheetah replied, "No. Why? You interested?"
Mike was taken aback by the sudden offer. The steady smile on Nick's face made it impossible for Mike to guess if his acquaintance was serious or not. Finally, Mike managed to splutter, "Well, no-- I mean, I couldn't possibly-- Just curious--"
"You okay, man?" Nick asked, his smile turning slightly perplexed as he studied his friend's embarrassed face.
Mike finally pulled himself together. "Yeah. You just surprised me, that's all."
"Where are you at?" Nick asked. "Far from here?"
"No, I'm just at the apartments down there," Mike said, pointing.
"Those? They're tiny!" Nick exclaimed.
"Yeah, but affordable. How'd you know? Been there?"
"Had a friend who lived in 2D there. He's moved though. Southern States somewhere. We fell out of touch."
"That's a shame."
"But really? My friend was a mouse, and it was small for him. You're furniture and stuff would be bigger than his. And the kitchens! No wonder you use your employee discount so often!"
"Hey, it's livable, and more importantly, not as expensive as everywhere else in the city."
"Couldn't you get a loan? Find someplace nicer?"
"And pay it how? I'm lucky I can afford a cell phone plan. A loan would cost more than it's worth."
Now Nick was feeling a little embarrassed. He had assumed with all the hours the wolf had been working that he was doing all right financially. While before he had worried it might seem that he was flaunting his wealth, he felt now that was exactly what he was doing.
Mike saw the smile slip a little and set out to fix what had become an awkward exchange. "Hey, man, don't worry about me. I'm doing okay, and it's really not bad over there. Sure, it's small, but I'm not going to be cooking up a dinner for three hundred of my closest friends anytime soon."
"And would I be included in those three hundred closest friends?" Nick asked jokingly.
"No," Mike said with a slightly sardonic smile. "You'd be included in my list of, like, the six friends I have."
Nick gasped first in pretended outrage, but while he had known the wolf was joking, he was realizing that he really didn't know too much about his co-worker. "My friend," he said, falling back on levity, "you need to get out more."
"I get out all the time," the wolf said with a smile. "You'd think Smitty's would be a great place to meet new people, but..." Mike let the thought trail off with a chuckle.
Nick smiled too, but the wolf's earlier comment about friends, or lack thereof, was still bothering him. Thinking back, he was realizing just how much of the wolf's attitude had been simply keeping good relations with the customers and how much was genuine happiness. The wolf didn't seem depressed, but on breaks he was surprisingly withdrawn considering his constant smile out in the restaurant. Nick supposed he hadn't noticed much before because he was usually happy himself and not afraid to show it. His mood had coloured his perception. He also recalled a staff party a few months ago. The wolf had been hanging out at the fringes until Nick had drawn him into the crowd.
"So, got any plans for the rest of the day?" Nick asked, still thinking.
Mike noticed the thoughtful expression on the cheetah's face and wondered what he was thinking about. The ever-present smile was, for once, not present. "No, not really," Mike said, still half-distracted. "I got choir practice at seven, but that's it."
"Wanna come in for a cup of hot chocolate?" Nick asked. "I don't know about you, but I'm cold and could use a hot drink."
Mike looked up at his friend, slightly surprised by this offer, although not as much as the offer to live with Nick had. Mike still wasn't sure how serious Nick had been. He was about to decline and head home when he realized that he really wouldn't do anything anyway. "Sure," he said. "That sounds good."
Smiling once again, Nick led the way up the path and into the house.
Well, here's part one. Wasn't going divide it, but I wanted to post something, and this is all I have time for. God, it's late (or early, depending on how you look at it). Anyway, please, please, please leave comments as they are the food for my writing soul. Wouldn't want that to die would you? Maybe don't answer that. I like my self-efficacy where it is, thanks. Anyway, this part will have a direct continuation coming out soon (I hope). Then, back to my novella (I think). Oh, and sorry for leaving out a description of Nick. Didn't think of it, and at least some of you probably want to know. I'll put it in part two, which will hopefully be the last part of this short story. Not that I want it to be too short, but more that I don't want to have to divide it anymore. Oh, and I'm not happy with the title. Please tell me what you think about that, and suggestions would be incredibly welcome. Well, despite my best intentions, my comments aren't to brief. Sorry, see ya, and COMMENT! Please.