Promptings from Valhalla - 1. Prompt 480

“I just have a simple question. Who the hell is asleep in your bed?”

Anger radiated off my boyfriend in palpable waves. His face was bright red, and I swore his eyes were going to start shooting flames at any moment, incinerating me on the spot.

I froze under his wrath, hand suspended inches from my mouth, the spoon I held dripping milk into my cereal bowl full of now soggy Frosted Flakes.

“You could have warned me before I went back there, you coward. At least have the balls to tell me face to face that you’re having an affair!” Spittle flew from his mouth and joined the milk dripping into my bowl.

I narrowed my eyes and lowered my spoon. “I know you’re mad at me, but that’s no reason to make up lies.”

My words had the same effect as the President pushing ‘the button’. I imagined my enraged boyfriend’s head exploding in a mushroom cloud of pure fury. I wondered how his heart withstood the strain.

“Lies? Lies? You’re the one with another man in his bed, and I’m the liar?”

“Sweetheart, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t ‘sweetheart’ me! Now I know why you keep cancelling our dates and why you’ve been so distant.” My normally stoic boyfriend had tears streaming down his bright red cheeks.

I rose from the couch and reached out to him, but he crossed his arms and backed away, shaking his head.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so distant. I’m horrible at expressing my feelings. The closer I feel to someone, the more I seem to pull away. I know it doesn’t make any sense, but I’m working on it. As far as cancelling our dates… I can’t pass up the overtime at work. The money’s too good.”

“Is it worth losing me?”

I shook my head emphatically. “No. But it’s mandatory overtime, Tone. I could lose my job if I refuse. I thought you understood that.”

His face was slowly returning to its natural color, and he raised an eyebrow. “So you’re really at work? Not at some other guy’s place?”

“Of course not! How could you even think that?”

He let his breath out in a slow stream. “OK. I believe you.”

I smiled in relief, and he finally allowed me to embrace him. “I love you, you know,” I whispered.

His arms tightened briefly around my back before he pulled away enough to look into my eyes. The corner of his mouth lifted into a tentative smile. “That’s the first time you’ve said that to me.”

I kissed him. “Well, it’s true. I may not be the best at expressing it, but I have loved you ever since I first met you.”

A fresh tear slid down his cheek. He pecked my lips, then looked at me evenly. “I just have one question for you.”

“Name it.”

“Who the hell is sleeping in your bed?”

I frowned. “Um…nobody?”

He pushed away from me, frowning. “I’m serious, Patrick.”

“So am I, Anthony. Nobody’s here. I’m not having an affair. You’re way too special to risk losing you.”

“I’m telling you that there is a man in your bed!”

“Maybe it’s just the way I have the covers bunched. Sweetheart…I’ve been here alone all night. I fell asleep on the couch watching a movie after I got home from work. I was too exhausted to even make it to my bedroom.”

“Covers don’t have blond hair.” He grabbed my hand and dragged me to my bedroom. “See?” He gestured toward my bed. There was, indeed, a blond man sleeping in my bed. The man stirred, yawned, and then started snoring.

I grabbed Anthony’s arm and dragged him into my living room. I fumbled around the coffee table, pushing papers and magazines out of the way, frantically searching for my cell phone. “Where’s your phone?”

He reached into his pocket and held it up. “Call 911,” I said.

“What?”

“Call 911! I have no idea who that man is or how he got in here!”

Anthony’s face paled. His hands shook as he pressed the buttons to dial 911. We headed outside to wait in Tony’s car for the police, keeping an eye on my house in case the intruder decided to leave.

It took the cops about five minutes to reach my house. We spoke with them briefly to explain the situation before they headed inside. After an interminable wait, they emerged with the man in handcuffs. He was kicking and yelling and putting up one hell of a fight. They stuffed him into the back of their cruiser before heading over to where we waited, near my car.

“How long have you lived here?” the officer asked.

“I bought the place a couple of years ago. It’s my understanding that the previous inhabitants went into a nursing home.”

“Well, apparently this guy grew up here. He thought he was home and didn’t understand why we were dragging him out of his own house. He seems like he’s either mentally ill or on drugs. You did the right thing by letting us handle it.”

“Do you want to press charges?” the other officer asked.

“I’d like to know more about the situation first. And I think I’d like a restraining order.”

“OK. We’ll be in touch with the details.”

I nodded. “Thank you, officers.”

They each nodded in return, then headed to their cruiser and drove off. I turned to Tony and embraced him tightly, shaking from the thought of a crazy person getting into my home without my knowledge. I wondered if I’d ever feel safe again.

“Why don’t you come stay at my place for a little while?” Tony asked.

“I have a better idea,” I replied. “Why don’t you stay with me?”

He laughed. “You just don’t like the way I keep my apartment.”

“Well, you are a bit of a slob, but that’s something we can work on.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean… I want you to be a slob at my place. Well, our place. Move in with me, sweetheart.”

He smoothed my hair away from my eyes and looked at me questioningly. “I know you’re scared, but we don’t have to make that big of a leap right now. I want you to think about it before making any rash decisions.”

I frowned. “It’s not a rash decision. I’ve been thinking about it for a while now. I hate coming home to an empty house. The nights you stay over are the times when I’m the happiest. Your lease is up next month, and I don’t want you to renew it.”

He smiled into my mouth before kissing me. “I don’t want to renew it, either.” He took my hand and started walking towards the house. “C’mon. Let’s celebrate properly.”

“OK, but on the couch. I want to throw out those sheets and put new ones on before we go anywhere near my bed.”

He laughed. “Sounds perfect to me.”