February 13th, 2013
9:26 AM
A solid thump on my door snapped me from a peaceful slumber. Reluctantly, my eyes slid open and fell onto the clock on my bedside table. 9:23.
"Seriously?" I muttered. "It's my damn day off."
There was another bang on the door, followed by a shouted, "James! Wake the fuck up! Some asshole rang the doorbell and woke us all up looking for you."
I groaned quietly, willing myself to slide the comforter off my body and crawl out of bed. Certain my roommate wouldn't appreciate me answering.the door naked, I grabbed a pair of purple plaid pajama bottoms and pulled them on.
"Who the hell is awake this early on my damn day off?" I was met with a shrug as she walked away and into the living room, probably to crawl back into bed with Andy, her boyfriend, who had no doubt fallen back to sleep.
Sure enough, as I rounded the corner, I noticed his head buried beneath a pillow and Lana crawling back into bed with him, their puppy Icharus perking up at the sight of me.
"Don't even think about it, you little spaz," I muttered grumpily.
A gust of cold wind whipped through the apartment. I shivered, and my nipples turned into diamond cutters.
"Shit, bitch," I growled, plastering my hands over them to keep them warm."You couldn't close the damn door?"
She shrugged again before rolling over and nestling herself against Andy. A pang of mingled sadness and loneliness went through my heart, a vision of soft brown eyes and dimples closely on its heels. I clenched my eyes shut as they began to sting. Thinking about him was useless.
I wiped the painful image from my mind, annoyance returning, and I strode over to the door of our apartment to find an older gentleman, probably in his late forties, with a smiling face.
"James Stewart?"
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at him. "Who the hell are you?" I asked.
His smile slipped a bit, but he recovered quickly and said, "Oh, I'm Don, with FedEx. I just have a package here for him."
I paused for a moment. I hadn't ordered anything. I spied a thick manila envelope clenched under his arm and frowned. "What is it?" I asked, more suspicious than ever.
His smile returned. "Are you James?" he asked, avoiding the question.
I paused again, wondering if I should reveal that I was. What could it be? Another vision of him, his warm brown eyes, that adorable dimpled smile, flashed through my mind. I missed him,and it hurt. I bit the inside of my cheek painfully against the vision, tasting blood. The delivery man ignored my obvious pain and continued on.
"I have to deliver it directly to James. I've been given strict instructions that its for him only. If you're James then I can give it to you after you sign here," he said, raising his other arm and bringing an electronic signature pad into view.
"Yeah," I said, reluctantly. "I'm him."
"Great," he beamed. I grabbed the stylus and quickly signed my name as he handed me the envelope. As soon as my hand touched it, he spoke up again. "You've just been served." And with that, he turned and walked down the steps, leaving me dazed and confused as I stared down at the thick envelope in my hands.
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