“You can still do that. I would be grateful if you actually did, that’s for sure. But I better get out of here too. I have some other write ups to finish.” She slapped her hands on the table and stood up.
“Cool,” I responded.
“Why is she calling you for the rescue? Why doesn’t she call me?” Angie complained with a sour look on her face.
“We are not fighting over Delphia. I’ve lost someone, and that’s something you don’t understand, Angie. Leave it to me.” We both walked out to the door and into the Holbeck sun to go our separate ways.
Angie shook her head as she pulled her keys out of her pocket. “Alright you win. I’ll follow your lead for once.”
My lips curved upwards at winning a minor battle with Angie. “Thank you, princess.” I was deliberately trying to grate on her nerves.
Angie was anything but a princess. Her squinty eyes and pause to scan me up and down let me know that. “Let me know what you can do, but know that if you can’t get her to talk then I will step in. Since you don’t want that… I suggest you fix it.” As she turned away, her long flowing blonde locks flicked out behind her.
I shook my head at her aggressiveness.
I rode out and picked up a few things from the grocery store. I decided to stop by and see Delphia on the way home. I walked inside the station to her looking fresher and brighter somehow. Her hair even looked shinier or something.
Delphia was stacking orange juice in the fridges and didn’t see me right away, even though she would have heard the double doors open.
“Looks like you’re working hard,” I blurted.
She stacked one more shelf before she turned back to me. “Hey, Bear.” Even the way she smiled looked joyful.
This made me want to know who or what was putting it there. “That smile is pretty wide there. Any reason?” I asked curiously.
“Well…” She shrugged lightly. “You’re here… and I’m trying to be happy even if things around me are shit.”
The fact that she had wanted to see me made a burst of fire run deep in my veins. “You’re doing a great job, by the way,” I said as I stacked the last of the orange juice for her.
“Thank you. I made some plans with friends as well, so I feel better about things.”
“Look at you. I told you it could be done.” I silently applauded her resolve.
Delphia might have been young, but she was a determined and resilient young lady. “It’s a small step, but like you said… you have to live your life, you know.” She again smiled at me.
“Yeah, we do.” I shifted from one foot to the other with my helmet in hand. I was procrastinating on asking her to the movies for real, but hearing that she was moving forward with her life was an encouraging sign. “Speaking of living life, you still in for going to the movies? That Star Trek rerun of films is this weekend. That work for you?”
She picked up the crate beside her and shot me a smile that made me want to kiss her inviting lips. “That works for me. Do you remember where I live?”
“Sure do. I have a pretty good memory. Speaking of memory, did your boss get that camera fixed out back?”
“Yes, he’s working on it and he’s going to put another one there as well.”
“Good, any more interference, or anything going on?”
“No, so far nothing, but I know it’s not done.” The flicker of fear in her eyes was all too real.
“Don’t be afraid to call me, Delphia. Even if you just want to bounce something off me. I’m around.”
Delphia swept her hair behind her ear, giving me a better look at her face. “I know. Thank God. I think I’m going crazy sometimes. I just want peace for my brother.”
“You’ll get it. Trust me you will,” I reassured her. I’d already set my mind to it from the day I dropped my keys at the pumps. Bringing up Angie right now, would not be the right timing, so I talked to her for another couple of minutes and left. I felt satisfied that I would be able to take her on a date and that she was going to be courageous enough to live her life.
The rest of the week went by without a hiccup. I wanted Delphia to have a good time, so I did what any road captain would do and mapped out a scenic route around Holbeck that she might not have seen. By the time I picked her up at 11, I’d planned for us to ride and relax for a while and then finish off in the late afternoon with the movie.
I knocked on her door while feeling a little nervous, which wasn’t like me.
She opened the door with a smile on her face. “I’m ready to go.”