Chunk.

VI. CHANGES

Erik was comfortable. More than he had been in a long time.

He felt at home with Chloe asleep in his arms and her warm breath blowing on his chest. They had made love in her dark apartment while the rain beat down around them. Chaos outside, but peace and unity between the two of them. Content, he traced hearts and constellations across her back with his fingers, thinking of what to do next. He didn't want to leave her bed or leave her side ever again.

"My head too heavy?" The sleepy rasp of her voice startled him. Chloe stretched her arm across his torso, embracing him in the stillness of the night. The power had been off for some hours now. Fortunately, she didn't have much food that would spoil.

"Nah, you good, baby. I wake you up?"

"Nope." She yawned and snuggled into him again. "I just needed to find my spot."

Erik's hand caressed the length of her spine, the back up to her shoulder. Chloe could feel that he had something on his mind and rubbed his sides in return. She placed a small kiss on his chest as he cleared his throat to speak. "You remember my birthday party when I turned 8?"

Chloe thought for a moment. "At the park, right?"

"Yeah," Erik smirked and let his fingers fall into her hair again. "My mom was drinking a little bit, but she was still pretty straight. Your granddad cooked us hamburgers and hot dogs."

"And that fucking Superman ice cream that stained my mouth..."

Erik remembered that day well. They had played together in the projects their whole life, but when he saw chubby-cheeked Chloe, with her blue tongue and long braids, he knew she was special. He fell in love. Despite the other kids at his birthday party, he focused on her. He chased her just to watch her laugh and never shied away when the other kids would tease them.

Chloe laughed softly at the memory. He always stuck by her, even then. "I was the little fat girl and you were a little hood booger with silver caps. Being a badass."

Erik smirked and looked up at the ceiling. Her fan was at a standstill, shaking every now and then when thunder would rumble. "I wasn't bad. Just...curious."

"Well, curiosity killed the cat."

"And satisfaction brought him back."

They laid in silence for a few moments and listened to the storm. Neither of them had any idea what time it was. Erik had gotten so lost that he had almost forgotten the day. And that he didn't live in Miami any more. And that he had to leave soon. But he didn't plan to leave her behind.

"Why'd you leave me, Erik?" Chloe asked. Her voice cut through the silence as sharp as the thunder did. She had been waiting all night for the right moment, but, as always, had gotten caught up in his charm. She wasn't going to turn him away regardless, but she had to know. What better time to ask than when they were at their most vulnerable?

Erik closed his eyes and swallowed hard. Chloe was still tucked under his arm, unwavering and waiting for an answer.

"I was fucking up your life. And mine, too."

"What are you talking about?"

"If it wasn't for me, you never would have had problems with Jessica. You were suppose to be the one that made it, Chunk. You're so fucking smart. Then you got suspended and labeled a delinquent and it was my fault..."

Chloe sat up and looked down at him. "That was her fault for being a bitch. She deserved every bit of that black eye and broken jaw. You couldn't control her. Or me. None of that is on you, Erik."

"I was a bad influence. I was running the block trying to be a big man. Trying to be like Maceo and his boys."

"Maceo didn't even want to be like Maceo. That street shit is what got him killed." Chloe paused. It had been a few years, but the loss was still detrimental. No matter how hard Maceo was on her, she still missed him.

Erik sighed and shook his head. "I should have come back..."

"You should have...but you didn't. We can't do anything about that now. I just wish you had told me goodbye at least." Chloe rang her hands together and her voice lowered. "Nobody had heard from you all those years. I thought the streets had ate you up, too."

Erik grabbed Chloe's hand and let it rest on his chest. She ran her fingers over his bumpy scars like braille. His heart was thumping against his ribs as he prepared to tell his story. His truth.

"I came home one night and my grandma had found my stash. Weed, money, all of it. She packed all my shit up, sent me to Oakland, and told me not to come back. She thought my dad would take me in, but he couldn't." Erik cleared his throat again. "He was gone. Died, not too long after my 8th birthday..."

"What did you do?"

"For a while, the only thing I knew how to do - hustle." He looked down at Chloe's fluttering fingers. "I got to them before they got to me. Luckily, I dipped out before things got out of hand and went into the military. Navy. Back to Oakland and went to school. Found some of my dad's family and they helped me develop an outreach center for kids that were lost...like me..."

"You didn't think to call?"

"I thought you hated me."

"I did...for a little while." Chloe shimmed back under the covers and propped herself up on her elbow. Erik turned to face her and did the same. He could sense her frustration, the anger she had been holding in all of those years. "People didn't bother me anymore because they thought I was tough, but I missed you being around. I could never find anyone else to eat with me on the beach. No one else listened. Nobody else cared about me like you did."

"Somebody cared about you..."

"But not like you did. Nobody cared like that jit with the silver caps. Or that cocky nigga with a fresh haircut every week."

Erik pulled her closer, pressing their naked chests together.

"Chloe, I'm sorry I fucked all this up."

"Stop being sorry. Start making it right."

A cool breeze swept through the room as her ceiling fan started to spin. The TV in the living room came back on, loudly blasting the weather report, and the lights flickered back on in the kitchen. It would have spilled into the bedroom, had it not been for the closed door.

"Come live with me. In Oakland."

Chloe's eyes bucked and she nearly lost her breath. "Erik, you just came back to Miami. Why would I pack up and leave?"

"What's keeping you here, huh? Some job at a diner where they don't appreciate you. Nostalgia?"

"When you leave, you don't like to come back."

"It doesn't have to be like that anymore. Nothing has to be like it was anymore..."

Things were happening too fast for Chloe. She sunk down and rested her head on a pillow. Erik still sat up on his elbow and looked down at her puzzled face. They hadn't been together 24 hours and he was asking her to uproot. As much as she cared about him and loved him, she couldn't jump. Not like that.

"Chunk..."

"We ain't gotta have this all figured out yet." Chloe closed her eyes and exhaled. She'd had enough surprises for the night. "Let's save that conversation for the morning..."