Reckless Entitlement

Chapter 23: Maya

"Charlie!" I exclaimed as I cleaned up the mail he'd knocked off the living room dresser. "Please, be careful."

He blinked up at me, acknowledging me for a second before going back to what he was doing. I sighed as I watched him claw at the posts of his cat tree. I've realized over the past few days that having a cat is a lot like having a child. You constantly have to clean up after them, feed them, watch them, nurture them, and it's exhausting.

But also fun.

Charlie is by far the clumsiest thing I've ever come in contact with. He's always bumping into things and slipping off furniture. And he's so cuddly. This morning I woke up to him laying on my chest, just staring at me. At first I thought he was going to kill me, but no, he just wanted me to scratch behind his ears. He loves when I do that.

With Nick here I don't have to worry about feeding him in the morning, by the time I've woken up he's already done it. Nick loves him and spoils him as much as I do. Granted, he's less protective than me. I'm constantly worried that he's going to jump off of something too high and hurt himself, but he's much more relaxed. Letting him play wherever and however he pleases.

Nick had slept over the past few nights, or mornings I should say, he doesn't go to sleep until the early morning hours. He has an awful sleep schedule, but recently so have I, so maybe I shouldn't judge him so hard. He's currently in my shower preparing to go hang out with Marcus and Sam.

I've gotten so used to being able to look out my window and see him working, or being able to go outside and talk to him while he worked, I forgot that he had a life outside of fixing my car.

Hell, I haven't hung out with anyone other than him in weeks. But that's going to change today. Tasha, Nia, and Lavender are coming over and I can't wait for them to meet Charlie. Also, I heard from Nia that Lavender and Sam are hooking up and I have to know what that's about.

I don't want to become so consumed with him that I forget to hang out with my friends. I never want to be one of those girls.

I was scooping food into Charlie's bowl when I heard a knock on my front door. That must be the girls. I moved around Charlie, who would usually follow me, but he was serious when it came to meal times. He wasn't going anywhere until his bowl was clean. Padding across the living room floor, I opened my front door.

"Hey, bitch, we're here," Tasha announced once I opened the door.

"She can obviously see that," Lavender commented from behind her.

"Well, now she can hear it too."

Nia pushed past the both of them and into my apartment. "I'm sorry they are such a mess," she hugged me. "Hi, I've missed you."

"No need to apologize," I laughed. "I'm used to it."

"Ugh, I've missed your face so much," Tasha said hugging me tightly. My face was directly in her big curly hair giving me a nose full of her many conditioners and butters. I don't see how she lives with so much hair, I get hot just thinking about it.

"I've missed you too, Tasha." And I have. I have missed hearing her non-stop talking, and watching her apply her many lipsticks. Today she wore red. Red lipstick to match her red skirt.

I hugged Lavender too. She wore a leather jacket that called to my spirit.

"Do you guys want anything to drink?" Nick and I went to the grocery store yesterday and I had stocked up on juice, soda, and lemonade.

"Sure," Nia replied. "I could use some water."

"Wow, it looks so nice in here," Lavender complimented as she followed me into the kitchen.