Chapter 47

Charlie hung up the phone, shocked.  Jenny would stay with him, he hadn't even needed to ask.  She had changed.  He honestly thought he'd have to do some caveman kidnapping in order to protect her.  That, he mused, would have gone badly.

He raked his hand through his thick blonde hair, worried again it might be thinning a bit.  "I'd love you bald" Jenny had told him in High School, "I'd love you burned and crippled."  Happily none of that had ever happened.  Hopefully she still loved him with some of that youthful intensity. 

He checked his litter inventory.  Jenny was bringing the special senior cat food, which Baby Girl would probably eat, while Princess ate the kitten food (he was right).  He had plenty of litter and, he peeked in the fridge, plenty of people food.  He frowned at the catfish nuggets; he'd have to cook them tonight, before the power went out. 

He bustled about his small home, preparing to welcome Jenny into it, and his life, once again. 

Jenny hung up the phone, exhausted.  Her mother had had hysterics, unabated until she'd actually called Charlie to confirm Jenny would be staying with him.  It was telling, Jenny thought, that Mom actually liked Charlie when the hurricane was coming, but hated him pretty much all the rest of the time. 

The storm made landfall at 8:01 PM.  The skies had darkened for a while first, thick gray walls of cloud moving with imminency and a suppressed feeling of doom.  The breeze had gradually picked up into gusty winds, which became more powerful as the night wore on. 

Jenny and Charlie dined on fried catfish nuggets, the cats eating grilled, as the wind picked up and the rain rattled the windows.  Hurricanes in Houston aren't a very big deal, inland, as long as you are in proper shelter, in a location that doesn't flood.  They flinched now and then as they heard mysterious loud BANGS. 

They sat on the couch, watching the coverage - the crab at Gaido's being evacuated, big waves on the seawall, until the power went out.  Then they sat in the dark, wondering, separately and together, what was happening to Jenny's small home.  Charlie put his arm around Jenny and she leaned into him, as they fell asleep. 

Charlie awoke to the sound of Jenny's laughter, as the rain continued the next morning.  She was doubled over with giggles, pointing at the kitchen ceiling as a wide water leak spread across the drywall. 

"Safer here" she giggled  "I think you lost some roof!"  Charlie groaned, thankful at least he was renting, and his renter's insurance had been paid. 

Chapter 46

The next morning, Jenny rolled out of bed, reluctantly, petting Princess.  Princess stretched, showing her fat, fluffy, tummy, demanding a rub.  Jenny obliged, peeled off her nightgown, and took a quick shower. 

The humidity was horrific, she mused, staring at the white plastic wall of her shower enclosure.  When would it end? 

She dried off, dressed, and took out her Bible.  Yes, she had problems with religion, but she didn't have issues with God. 

10 miles away, Charlie closed his Bible and turned on the TV news as he ate an energy bar.  Unlike Jenny, he didn't have to eat at set times in accordance with a dosing schedule.  He could also eat whatever he wanted, when he wanted, without having to choke down an oversized handful of toxic drugs.  Poor Jenny, he mused. 

What?  He turned up the volume as the newscaster announced Hurricane Kitty was taking a turn for Houston.  Oh, crap. 

Jenny lived in a trailer. 

Jenny, in the meantime, had just heard the news on her small radio.  She sat and thought for a few moments, a fierce desire for independence battling against the inevitable conclusion. 

She couldn't stay.  It wouldn't be fair to Princess, if nothing else. 

She had to stay with someone.  Mom, or Charlie? 

She picked up her cell phone and started looking for the cat carrier.