Chapter 2
Present Day…
Macy Yardling had what she liked to call the perfectly easy life. She had a simple job, driving buses which let her meet many different people, and as often as she could, she volunteered with the local fire department. Some may have said that she was reckless with her life but as far as she knew, she was living the dream. But as far as her roommate was concerned, she was always putting her life in danger. Living on the edge as he called it. Every single day he thought of her on those fire trucks was another day he had to struggle to keep himself from dropping everything just to stay by her side.
It was probably why she had been feeling a sense of peace for the past week without her housemate always hovering. It was not that she didn’t appreciate having someone looking out for her, but she always thought that Leo put his life on hold just to take care of her. It was sweet…amazingly sweet. But he had a life of his own. He had a thriving fashion career, a great life partner, and for some reason, he had decided to embed himself into her life. And it was great. Especially since he was the only one she had, the closest thing to family she’d ever had.
As far as she was concerned, he was a necessary evil. She missed him when he was away, but sometimes, she could hardly stand him when he was around. Their relationship was that weird.
It was on a Tuesday evening and after she had walked into her apartment, she only wanted to sit in front of the TV and feast on her beef bacon cheese burger. She was a little more tired than usual that day. And she could feel the exhaustion as she stood in the bathroom with the water running down her body. It might have been the fact that she had not had a decent night’s sleep in the last four days. She put on a bathrobe and made her way to the living room where she switched on the TV. She sat down and unwrapped her burger before she pulled her milkshake out of the brown paper bag. She then closed her eyes and smiled to herself as she bit into her burger. After a long day’s work, nothing else made more sense than a perfectly grilled juicy patty whose taste married perfectly with the smoky crispy bacon. She leaned back in her couch as she looked at her TV. It might have been on, but she was not really watching it. She was a little too engrossed in her burger to pay attention to anything else. She had just bitten into her burger when she heard the front door open.
“Beef and bacon cheeseburger. Again?” She heard her roommate Leo’s voice as he made his way into the apartment.
“What? I was hungry and tired,” Macy said before taking another bite.
“What’s the point of getting all that food in Tupperware containers in the fridge if all you are going to do is just stuff yourself with junk?” he asked and she gave him a guilty look.
“You’ve been gone for a few days, Leo. The only Tupperware in the fridge is just leftover pie,” she said. “Well, a quarter of leftover pie.”
Leo dropped his bags by the door and made his way to where she was. He sat next to her and looked into her eyes.
“I look at you, kiddo, and I am scared for the day I will finally move in with Andre,” he said before he pulled her close and kissed her forehead. She leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, smiling.
“Is that your way of telling me you’ve missed me?” she asked and he forced out a laugh.
“Yeah, I guess it is,” he said before he pulled away from her. “And what is more curious is how you manage to keep that body tight even after all those burgers and hotdogs.”
She laughed as she pulled away from him.
“You think I pull all those extra hours at the gym because I enjoy it?”
He shrugged.
“Honestly, I have always thought that you spend all that time to pick up guys.”
She flung a pillow at him, careful not to drop what was left of her burger.
“Idiot,” she said in a soft voice.
“Hey…idiot with awesome hair,” he said, trying to correct her as he ran his fingers through his thick dark hair. Macy rolled her eyes and shook her head.
“I never thought it would be possible for a man to use more hair product than I did and then I met you.” She shrugged. “Funny how things work out, huh?”
He nodded.
“Yeah, funny.”
He reached for her milkshake and took a sip as she went on eating the burger.
“So, how was New York?” she asked and he sighed loudly.
“Same old, same old. You know how things are in the Big Apple.”
“For someone who claims to love his career, you sure have a lot to complain about when it comes to your New York trips.”
“That’s because the fashion industry makes it sound like New York is the next best thing next to Milan during fashion week…but when you get there, it’s noisy, loud, and there is this stench in the air that never seems to go away.” He took another sip of her milkshake. “Frankly, it’s a little unsettling every single time I am out there.”
She smiled and shrugged. “I’m trying to get the downside of getting regular trips to New York and I just can’t get it.”
“Says the person who looks for an everyday thrill by being a joyrider with the SFFD,” Leo pointed out.
Macy looked at him and rolled her eyes.
“The term you are looking for is ‘volunteer firefighter,’ Leo. That’s what I do and it is not just about joyriding. It is…I’m helping out where I can.”
“Half the time you are getting cats from trees and rescuing puppies from flooded rivers,” Leo said matter of factly and she shrugged.
“I know. And every moment is precious…I actually love doing it.”
The room suddenly got a little too silent and she noticed the look he was giving her. It was like he was reading her or trying to figure out how he should say whatever was on his mind. She took one last bite and shrugged.
“What?” she asked as she looked at him and he sighed loudly.
“Nothing…I’m just worried about you. Really, really worried.”
“Really? The fashion designer who had a runway attack incident is worried about a bus driver?” she asked and he shook his head.
“You are more than just a bus driver. Did you just forget all about your moonlighting job?”