Shoving his hand into his pocket, he sighed and headed for the stairs. An odd buzzing sound erupted from the kitchen. Dodger glanced back, wondering if he had forgotten to turn off an appliance. Wandering about in search of the sound, his eyes spied a cell phone that was vibrating against the countertop.

His stomach felt hot as he turned off the vibrations, knowing that it was Spencer’s cell phone; and that Aiden was calling.

***

Her hand was on the doorknob, the oily copper slippery in her palm, a filthy blemish to an otherwise sterile location. Sterile, if you ignored the towels strewn about, water all over the floor, a wadded up tee shirt, and Ashley’s lone right shoe that sat in the corner.

It was only then that Ashley realized she wasn’t wearing both shoes. Irritated by the fact that one leg now seemed longer than the other, she used her socked foot to kick the lone shoe off, it careening into the metal trash can near the toilet, knocking it over. A pile of crumpled wet Kleenex toppled silently onto the tile. Ashley stared at it, remembering wiping puke from Spencer’s mouth, only to have the girl surprise Ashley’s hand with more vomit.

Turning back to the door, Ash stared at her fingers still gripping the knob. She had no idea where Spencer had gone too, but was fairly sure she hadn’t left the house. After hours of sickness Spencer had cried herself to sleep in Ash’s lap, repeatedly begging Ashley not to leave while she slept. Ash promised she wouldn’t; and didn’t.

With one glance back at the mirror, she turned the knob and walked into Spencer’s room. Spencer sat on the bed, having changed clothes, her hair pulled back away from her face. She looked pale and weak, dark circles underneath her eyes. Spencer continually bit her lip, looking into her lap and then back up at Ashley.

Ash let out an audible sigh, filling the room with frustration and worry. Her eyes fell down to her lame socks; embarrassed that Spencer had seen them. The novelty had worn off, her excitement over their purchase having dissipated the second she set foot into Spencer’s house.

Ashley continually stared at her feet, even as they had begun to move, one step after another, finally stopping near the bed, a set of bare toes now staring back up at her.