Page 31 of Infinity Chronicles 1
I tap on the warped screen door to the trailer in lot number one. It’s a single wide, with a wooden deck. There’s even a shed next to it. This trailer is the kind you’d expect to find in a trailer park, the ones that are actually designed to live in, a true mobile home. I hear a curse, followed by stomping footsteps. The older guy who answers narrows his eyes at me, and then looks behind me. I look over my shoulder out of curiosity. “What’d ya need?” he questions when he’s satisfied there’s no one else with me.
My throat goes dry, “I lost the keys to my RV. I was—”
“Where’s your momma?” he cuts me off.
Not expecting the question, I stammer, trying to come up with a quick answer. “Oh, she… I… just got home from school. I stayed later with a friend to study. I think she was going to turn in some applications today, but I’m not sure when she’s getting back.” The lie stops me from meeting his eyes, but that’s nothing new. “I was hoping to use your phone to call a locksmith.”
He swings the screen open in invitation. I don’t really want to go inside, but he seems almost as suspicious of me, as I am of him. I skirt around him and enter a surprisingly clean living room. The kitchen is visible just to the left. All the appliances are a dingy olive green, but they’re clean and it smells like he just got done with dinner. My stomach chooses that moment to grumble at the fact I haven’t been eating very much over the last few days.
Warmth invades my cheeks, but he pretends not to notice as he reaches for a phone sitting on the side table next to the sofa. Using his pointer finger he jabs at the screen a few times, unlocking it before offering it to me. I hadn’t thought this through. I have no idea who to call, or how to get the number without a phonebook. “You don’t happen to know any companies that would come out here, and not charge me an arm and a leg, do you?”
He heaves a long sigh. “I can call Eddie’s grandson. He works over at the service station. You sure you don’t wanna just wait on your mamma?” His eyes run down to my shoes, then back up, but he’s not leering. It’s like he’s checking to make sure I’m not going to fall apart in his house.
I shake my head looking over his shoulder. “No sir, I’d appreciate you making that call, she could be awhile.” He grunts. He probably thinks my mom is out at some bar, or this is our normal. I don’t correct him. It’s easier if he thinks that. I don’t need him calling CPS or something if he finds out she’s gone.
Taking the phone back from my hand, he squints at the display screen. The low hum of the TV draws my attention to the evening news while he makes the call.
“Charlie, hi. This is Mike over at Turtle Creek.” He goes quiet, listening to the phone. “Good, I’m good. How’s your grandad?” Mike nods his head. “Glad to hear it, I been meaning to stop in and see him… yeah I will. Listen, I have a camper here that’s locked out of her mobile home. You got anything to get her door open?” A few more words are exchanged, before he hangs up.
“He’s gotta run up to the shop to get a tool, but it shouldn’t be more’en twenty minutes.”
I rub my finger over my lips, “Thank you sir,” I mumble. “I’ll go wait by my RV. I really appreciate your help.”
“Damn it,” he curses under his breath. “Wait, you can stay here while ya wait.” He eyes the door leading outside, noting the fading light as evening slides closer.
I wince, not wanting to inconvenience him further. “That’s okay, I’ve interrupted your night enough.”
Mike rocks forward on his toes. “All right then,” he sighs.
I walk slowly back to my RV, stopping at the bathhouse before I clean up the items still on the stairs from my backpack. True to his word it’s not even twenty minutes, before an older blue Ford F-150 creeps up, stopping behind my RV. The door pops open, and a guy around my age hops out. He’s pretty tall, maybe around six feet. His hair is short on the sides, and a little longer in front. He flips his head to the side, pushing his floppy brown hair away from his face.
“Hey, you the one locked out?” He stops mid stride once he looks at me. “You’re the new girl.” He looks behind me, then his eyes quickly snap to the ground.
“Yeah,” I respond answering both of his questions.
“Sorry it took so long. I’m Charlie by the way,” he mutters, tapping a long thin wire against his leg.
I shrug, “I’m just happy you could help.” I clear my throat turning to the front of the mobile home. I make my way over to the driver’s door with him following behind.
“I was worried this wouldn’t work.” He holds the thin wire he was carrying up. “But, with these doors it should be the same as a car or truck, right? I hope, anyway,” he adds under his breath.
After taking one look at the door, he jogs back to his truck, before returning with a green plastic milk crate. He squares it up and stands on top of it. Charlie pulls a small orange blood pressure cuff out of his pocket, placing it on the roof. He slides the long slender tool into the top of the doorframe and wiggles it until it slips down in the door, then turns it so the top doorframe is wedged open. Holding it with his left hand he grabs the cuff with his right arm and shoves the orange balloon part into the gap. With that in place, he grabs the black rubber ball and starts squeezing, inflating the orange cuff so the gap widens enough so he’s able to use the long tool to hook over the pull up knob for the lock. It springs free and he woops in delight. “Can you open the door?” He angles his head down while keeping his hands on both of his tools. I step forward and lift the handle. He leans back enough so the door doesn’t hit him, then pulls his tools away before jumping down off the box.
For the briefest moment I think I might cry, I’m so relieved. Instead I close my eyes and blow out a deep breath. I want nothing more than to slide in the door and lock myself inside. I stop myself when a throat clears. “Bad day?” he questions after returning the tools to his truck.
“More like a bad year,” I admit hastily “Sorry, let me grab my cash. How much do I owe you?” Charlie stares at me with interest.
“Call it a welcome to town gift.” He grins and rubs the toe of his shoe over the cracked concrete.
I immediately shake my head in refusal. “No, I can’t accept that, please tell me how much I owe you?” Charlie pushes up his shirtsleeve and takes a few steps in my direction.
“Really, it’s no big deal, I wouldn’t feel right taking your money.” The moment the words fall from his lips I step back and drag in a breath. I take a second to look around the RV park and our dingy camper. Charlie’s eyes widen. “No. Not like that. That’s not what I meant.” His forehead winkles. “Honestly, if anyone from school called I’d offer the same.” His hands hang at his sides with his shoulders rounded forward. The words still sting, I have no way of knowing if he’s telling the truth or not. I jut my chin up and offer, “Let me give you a couple bucks for your time and the gas you used coming out here, you can grab a burger or something.”
Charlie drops his eyes to the ground but nods his head. “Yeah okay, if that’s what you want.” I think he’s trying to appease me. I rush over to the driver’s door and crawl in over the seat. I hustle back to my room and dig through my sock drawer to find the small roll of bills tucked away, unraveling a twenty-dollar bill.
He’s still waiting for me near his truck when I step out the side entrance. I bite the inside of my cheek and shuffle over to him with the money extended out. Charlie’s eyes go from me to the bill, then back up to my eyes. He hesitates for a brief second then takes the money from my hand, tucking it in his front pocket.
“It’s not much,” I hedge with a small shrug.
