Reclamation

6 - Moving

I wake up to the sound of laughter coming from outside the bedroom. I stand up sleepily and walk out only to blink in surprise when I see Vic and Ella giggling together in the kitchen. They're both sitting on the counter since we don't have a table.

"Hey, Kell." Vic says, flashing me that smile. "I got us breakfast burritos."

"Burritos?" I ask.

"Yeah it's just got eggs and potatoes and stuff. Come on, it's delicious." He motions me over and hands me a wrapped burrito.

"Good morning, mommy." Ella says. Her mouth is full and her face is a mess. I laugh at how cute she is before I dig in. We never eat breakfast, ever. If Ella tells me she's hungry we either wait till snack at the daycare or I'll give her some of the crackers I borrowed.

"Wow, this is delicious!" I scarf it down. I glance at Vic who's smiling strangely at me. I can't believe how sweet he is, he bought me dinner and breakfast! "Thank you." I say.

He jumps off the counter and wraps his arms around me. "Anytime."

Ella excuses herself to go wash her face and Vic stands in front of me, looking upset or mad. I get nervous, hoping I didn't overstep.

"Kell," he sighs. "There's no food in this kitchen."

"What? Yes there is." I say quickly. I didn't really expect him to snoop.

"No, there isn't. I wanted to make you breakfast this morning and this is what I found." He starts opening all the cabinets. Each one is completely barren. Even the fridge just has a stick of butter and an opened beer Trevor never finished. The narrow pantry only holds the box of crackers I took from the daycare.

"That's because I..." I can't think of any excuse. He closes all the cabinets and stands in front of me with his arms crossed. The disappointed look on his face makes me feel small and embarrassed.

He opens his mouth to say something but Ella comes back in the room. Instead, he says "I brushed her teeth already, go get ready and I'll drive us to work."

For the rest of the day Vic is acting strange. He serves us a bigger portion of lunch and snack than usual and sits with Ella till she finishes it all. I find him staring at me several times, lost in thought. At the end of the night he drives me home. I try to think of anything to break the silence but I can't. I just sit and worry that this is the end of our relationship.

He reaches over and holds my hand tightly but doesn't say anything. That night I find a container of leftovers in my backpack. I give it to Ella for dinner but save the rest so she can eat something tomorrow.

THE NEXT MORNING

I wake up to the sound of knocking on the front door. It scares me so bad that I almost fall off the bed. I rush to open it before it wakes Ella. She's sleeping in for the first time ever.

I approach the door and in my heart I know it's Trevor but I can't not let him in. I have to. If I leave him out there he'll just bang the door down. I unlock the door and slowly peek out into the hallway.

Vic stands there smiling, a tote bag on his arm. "Good morning." He kisses my head and pushes the door open so he can come in. When he passes me he brushes his hand against my bare hip, making me blush. In my rush I forgot a shirt.

"Vic?" I say, sleepy and confused. "It's Saturday."

"I know. I thought I could take you guys out again." He sets his bag down on the kitchen counter and pulls out a hot plate, a mixing bowl, and food ingredients.

"I'm not ready." I say, still wondering what's going on.

"You have time. I'm making breakfast." He starts mixing stuff together and humming.