Invitations

Miranda insisted on walking back to my place after I told her it was just around the corner. I wasn’t too happy about that, seeing the sports car I was being deprived entry into.

“Wait here, I’ll go talk to Hank.” She instructed.

“Boyfriend?” I asked.

She smiled, “Acquaintance.” And with that She made her way to the car and after a few minutes a ridiculously huge man stepped out of the vehicle and they made their way towards me.

My jaw was almost chest level. Did I mention this man was freakin huge? Like NBA star tall. Heck he’d make even those guys look small. How he fitted in his car was a mystery. He was almost seven feet tall, plus he wasn’t skinny. Seven feet of pure muscle. His jet black hair was combed back with generous amounts of gel. Plus his face; he looked like he fell out of a WebNovel mafia book. Perfectly symmetrical with eye brows that arched upwards and intense blue eyes. Next to him Miranda looked like a child. Plus bro was dressed in a friggin six piece, tailor made, Italian suit.

“Hello.” He said as he stretched his hand forth to shake mine.”I’m Hank.” His grip was like a steel vice and it hurt like hell, but the funny thing was I knew he wasn’t even trying to hurt me. “I’m Joshua, nice to meet you.” I withdrew my hand after what felt like an appropriate time for a hand shake.

“Have we met before?” Hank asked, furrowing his brows like one in immense mental strain.

“I’d say not, seeing you only came to Manchester yesterday.” Miranda said.

“I remember you.” He bellowed.

I was very surprised plus not to mention a little bit scared. “You do?” I asked apprehensively.

“Of course I do. You’re the chap who made a fool of himself at the coffee place.” And with that he went into a bout of laughter, punctuating his outburst with regular slaps to my shoulder. It was just my luck, dying from embarrassment and friendly bludgeoning from a somewhat friendly giant.

“What’s he talking about?” Miranda asked.

“Something we’d all do well to forget.” My face was already as red as a school girl’s and I didn’t want anymore tales from anyone.

“So where’s your place Josh?” Hank asked, pulling me out of the embarrassing situation he put me in the first place.

“Just around the corner.” I lead the way, walking a few feet ahead of my guests, preferring the company of my own solitude for the time being. Miranda and her “acquaintance” were on about something but I was too far ahead to listen. It sounded important but it was probably their relationship drama.

Wouldn’t want to get caught up with that. Especially if the person in a relationship was Miranda. But I did hope she wasn’t talking to him about me. About my illness.

We took the bend just before my place and the house came into view. My house wasn’t anything much. Just an old two story Victorian styled place I got from my mother after the funeral.

It wasn’t easy but I managed to find two clean mugs in the mountain of dump and filth and got about making coffee. Honestly It’s been months since I’ve had company (well the last person was my crazy neighbor and also the coppers when John Conner got killed; I’ll fill you in on that later.). I set the kettle to boil and made my way back to the living room.

Your stereotypical lot is probably wondering why an English man is always having coffee instead of regal tea. Well for starters I’m not English(American) and for seconds, i hate tea. I can’t stand it in anyway.

With Milk-yuck.

Sugar-disgusting.

Plain-I’d rather die, thank you very much.

I made my way back to the living room with two mugs of steaming coffee for my guests to find it empty. No trace of Miranda.

“Miranda?” I called. Maybe she had decided she didn’t want another dying person In her life. I wouldn’t blame her.

“Still outside Josh.” Her voice called back, and she sounded irritated.

I walked to the open door and found her and her boyfriend(did I mention the fact that he was absurdly tall?) standing just outside the house.

Miranda wore a frown on her face “You went in without letting us in?”

“I most certainly did not know I had to do that?”I replied honestly. I turned to her boyfriend wondering if this was something she had picked up in Australia.

“I’m Mexican and it’s culture. You don’t go into someone’s home without an invite.” Miranda replied in a matter of fact tone, like this was something I was suppose to know. She placed her right hand on the side of the door and gestured for me to let them in while her boyfriend just stood there mutely with an grimace on his very handsome face.

Something felt very off, I couldn’t place my finger on it but something wasn’t right.

“Well this is the first time I’ve seen you do something like this. You never ask for invites.” I said.

“Well I’ve decided to turn my life around.” Her boyfriend grunted at the sky and we all turned to see the colorful approach of dawn. Miranda turned to me and this time I could see the urgency in her eyes.

“What happens if I don’t let you in?”

“Well then the sun comes up and fries me to a crisp.” She answered the same way one would answer a forty year old simple arithmetic.

“Uhm ok.” I chuckled uneasily. She was joking. What the hell was I even doing? Keeping her outside in the cold.

“You do realize it’s freezing outside right?” Almost as if she read my mind.

I moved aside, already feeling ashamed. “You’re invited into my home…I guess.”

She smiled sweetly and gracefully made her way in. Hank nodded at me, “Nice place you got here?”

“Is that a question or a compliment?” I couldn’t get the tune of it.

“A little of both.” He replied and crashed on the three seater. Miranda sat on my French outside chair( supposed to be outside, I know. Leave me alone.)

I came back to the living room after a few minutes warming up the coffee to find Miranda had decided to pull all my blinds down and the only source of luminosity was the old counter lamp.

“Uhm, you cold?” I asked.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t really matter. You were about to tell us about your illness. And why exactly nobody else has known about this.”

“Fuck no.” Miranda had her hands to her mouth in horror after I finished my sorry story. Hank just stared at me quietly, his jaw firmly shut.

“So if my counts correct, I have until January. But hey let’s not get all gloomy. Tell me about the both of you.” I said in a happy tone. I was good at changing topics, it’s a hidden talent.

“We’re leaving that out for today Josh. You can’t have three months.” Miranda stubbornly continued.

“It’s fine. I’ve come to terms with it.” Saying “terms” made it feel like I had business with my brain tumor.

“So you’re just going to give up?” Miranda asked. She was pulling everything out of her weaponry and was now trying to test my ego. Too bad i didn’t have much of that left these days.

I kept quiet. How do I explain to her that I was scared of the fight. That watching my wife fight so bravely and fall still scared me. How’d you explain that to someone who was scared of losing someone she just got back.

I looked at her and sighed ,“Even if I did want to fight Miranda. There’s nothing I could do.” I grabbed their coffee mugs and made to stand up when Hank grabbed my hand, causing my last two good coffee mugs to fall to the floor and shatter.

“Dude.” I said tensely. Talking about everything had brought back scars, and I was trying to fight back tears…and anger.

But Hank just kept my arm in his huge hand, his grip my like a ……..

His face grim, his jaw set. “What if there was a way?”

“Hank…” Miranda called, her voice conveying the slightest hint of fear.

“I don’t want a way. I’m fine with this. Now let me go.” It was getting harder to get the anger out of my voice.

He did not.

“You want this because you think you get to see her again.” He continued, his voice deep and primal. “But she’s not there.”

I knew who exactly he was talking about and every hair on my body stood on end. I grabbed his hand that grabbed my arm, the broken mugs on the ground forgotten.

“Impossible.” I muttered, my voice as fragile as my broken body. Hank smiled for the first time in thirty minutes, revealing canines that were definitely too long.

“Oh it’s so possible.”