"Hey! Open up! It's the police!" the voice shouts.
I cautiously walk over to the door and peer through the blinds; yep, it was a cop. I open the door for him and am startled by his youth; he couldn't be much older than 20.
"Hey, sorry if I startled you. I've just been assigned to your case and I wanted to make sure you were all alright," he starts off.
"Yeah, we're fine. Thanks," I reply, hesitant to bring him inside.
"I'm really sorry that I didn't call ahead of time, I probably should have. I'm Wilmer, by the way. And you are?" he asks, extending a hand.
"Demi," I say, shaking his hand and faking a grin.
"You probably know my little brother; he goes to high school around here. Joe?" he asks.
"Oh yeah, we have a few classes together actually. We talked a lot last year," I say, starting to let my guard down.
"Oh, that's great! You should get to know him more; he's a good kid. Well I gotta get going, here's my card if you need anything," Wilmer says, handing me his number.
"Thanks," I reply, and I close the door. I then move to the window and watch his car speed off.
Wow, that was a close one. I let out a sigh of relief as I head back to the kitchen, my heart rate finally returning to normal.
"He likes you," Maddie coos at me.
"Don't be silly. He's way too old for me," I say to her. And then I begin to think about her words...Could she be right?
Maddie and I spent the rest of the afternoon waiting for Dallas to come home from her interviews. To help pass the time, we watched a few movies and made some cookies. Still, something felt missing; it just wasnt the same without Eddie. For me, it still wasnt setting in that he was gone. I really wanted to have someone I could talk to about it; someone to help me cope and understand. But now, I was the adult, and I didn't want to upset Maddie. Death is a hard thing to understand for anyone, let alone an elementary schooler. So, I remained quiet and tried to keep Maddie distracted and happy.
Then, at 3, I heard a rustling of the lock and Dallas walked through the doors.
"Hey, I'm home!" she called out.
"Hey, Dal," I say, running to the door,"how'd it go?"
She places her purse on the table and Maddie and I awaited her answer.
"They had an opening and they hired me," she says with a smile.
"Dallas! That's great!" I say, giving her a hug.
"I just wish I could do more," she replies, hugging me back.
I lead her into the kitchen and hand her a cookie,"To celebrate your employment," I joke.
Dallas takes it in her hand and then says,"Yeah, well I won't be home much. I have night duty at the restaurant too so we can get by, so you'll have to act as mom for me, okay?"
Dallas places her hands on my shoulders and looks at me with concern in her eyes.
"Yeah, of course. I'll do anything you need me too," I say, feeling guilty that she has to do all of the hard work.
"Hey! We have a movie to watch!" Maddie interrupts, causing Dallas and me to laugh.
We all curl up on the couch together, acting as if nothing was wrong. As the clock approached 5, I was waiting for him to come home. I was waiting for that knock on the door, giving me the chance to run to it and open it again for him. Then, we would mob him in a group hug and we would share how our days went with each other; but that wasnt going to happen again...