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Merlynne's apartment - Metropolis, DE.
Nov. 15th, 2005 12:25 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
caleb-z.livejournal.comIt wasn’t all that long ago. 2003 - his prior apartment, on the outskirts of Washington D.C. Things were all packed up, as he was preparing to leave this place once and for all. Only a few items remained to be placed inside the few empty boxes. For years he’d worked for the DEO. For years he’d tolerated the bureaucrats at the top in order to serve the greater good. Not anymore, and never again. He’d never trust them again.
“Hey, babe,” said the figure who now appeared in the doorway. Her name was Natalie, and she was the ebony beauty he’d met a few years earlier at the United Nations summit. She was also an English immigrant, and the two had discovered a mutual love of each other.
Well, had – past tense. He turns away from his packing, and looks Natalie in the eyes. “Hello. Was there something you wanted?”
Silence for a moment. “You’re in a cheery mood today.” She walks in and begins to remove her coat.
“Don’t bother, love. I, uh .. rather suspect this will be a brief visit.” He didn’t allow himself to trust many people, and allowed himself to become close to even fewer. They all left eventually, anyway – why allow it to hurt more than it needed to?
Confusion mixed with fear as Natalie’s voice grew sheepish. “…why’s that?”
“Today was the end of my two weeks. As I left, I saw something familiar. You, uh .. you wouldn’t happen to know how a box of my special rifle rounds managed to find their way to the DEO, would you?”
Feigned innocence in her voice. “No. Why would I? ...Caleb! You’ve known me for years! Can’t you just finally trust me, already?”
A smirk and an impassive nod. “You’re right. I, uh .. I should trust you.” He resumes packing. “Just as you should trust me when I tell you I’ve never cheated on you.”
A roll of the eyes and an angry voice. “Oh, here we go again! I came here to help you pack, not to pick a fight!” She scratches the back of her neck before proceeding in a calmer voice. “I already told you it was a misunderstanding. I know you never...”
“Karl told me where the rounds came from,” he interrupted. “You’re dating a millionaire, and yet you felt the need to accept a $20,000 bribe?”
All color drained from her face. For years she had never managed to keep secrets from Caleb, and yet she still tried. A girl’s gotta have her secrets, right? “You were –snooping- around on me?”
A cold glare is Caleb’s only response.
She continues in a voice that reflects the panic she feels as she holds back tears. “Caleb, I’m sorry … I did it before I realized you weren’t sleeping with Kenna again, and…”
“When I depart Washington tomorrow, I’m leaving my old life behind me. No more betrayals, no more suspicions, no more politics.” He walks over to her, and gives her a quick peck on her cheek. “There’s no trust here. That much is evident, now.”
She fights a losing battle to maintain at least some composure as tears begin flowing forth. “Please don’t say that… I’m sorry… really, Caleb…”
“Goodbye, love. I wish you well.”
Caleb’s eyes open as he sits up sharply. He looks over, and views Corrine peacefully sleeping beside him. He trusted her, and knew that she trusted him. His relationship with Corrine was in every way superior to what he had with Natalie, but the memory still pained him. He rolls out of bed and wanders into the kitchen. Producing a glass and a 2 liter of Pepsi, he begins tending to his dry throat. As he does, he remembers the rest of the story. The thoughts, he notices, are atypically vivid.
Wanting to trust her, he took her back. Within a week, there was another misunderstanding. She was rummaging through his medicine cabinet at 3am looking for pills to help her sleep. She didn’t even know about the mystical tablets Caleb kept in there. By pure dumb luck, her hand was touching one of those bottles when Caleb found her, and, based on experience, assumed the worst. They argued for hours before Caleb came to believe her, but finally realized that there really was no trust here. There never could be, either. The next morning she left, never to return.
“Hey, babe,” said the figure who now appeared in the doorway. Her name was Natalie, and she was the ebony beauty he’d met a few years earlier at the United Nations summit. She was also an English immigrant, and the two had discovered a mutual love of each other.
Well, had – past tense. He turns away from his packing, and looks Natalie in the eyes. “Hello. Was there something you wanted?”
Silence for a moment. “You’re in a cheery mood today.” She walks in and begins to remove her coat.
“Don’t bother, love. I, uh .. rather suspect this will be a brief visit.” He didn’t allow himself to trust many people, and allowed himself to become close to even fewer. They all left eventually, anyway – why allow it to hurt more than it needed to?
Confusion mixed with fear as Natalie’s voice grew sheepish. “…why’s that?”
“Today was the end of my two weeks. As I left, I saw something familiar. You, uh .. you wouldn’t happen to know how a box of my special rifle rounds managed to find their way to the DEO, would you?”
Feigned innocence in her voice. “No. Why would I? ...Caleb! You’ve known me for years! Can’t you just finally trust me, already?”
A smirk and an impassive nod. “You’re right. I, uh .. I should trust you.” He resumes packing. “Just as you should trust me when I tell you I’ve never cheated on you.”
A roll of the eyes and an angry voice. “Oh, here we go again! I came here to help you pack, not to pick a fight!” She scratches the back of her neck before proceeding in a calmer voice. “I already told you it was a misunderstanding. I know you never...”
“Karl told me where the rounds came from,” he interrupted. “You’re dating a millionaire, and yet you felt the need to accept a $20,000 bribe?”
All color drained from her face. For years she had never managed to keep secrets from Caleb, and yet she still tried. A girl’s gotta have her secrets, right? “You were –snooping- around on me?”
A cold glare is Caleb’s only response.
She continues in a voice that reflects the panic she feels as she holds back tears. “Caleb, I’m sorry … I did it before I realized you weren’t sleeping with Kenna again, and…”
“When I depart Washington tomorrow, I’m leaving my old life behind me. No more betrayals, no more suspicions, no more politics.” He walks over to her, and gives her a quick peck on her cheek. “There’s no trust here. That much is evident, now.”
She fights a losing battle to maintain at least some composure as tears begin flowing forth. “Please don’t say that… I’m sorry… really, Caleb…”
“Goodbye, love. I wish you well.”
Caleb’s eyes open as he sits up sharply. He looks over, and views Corrine peacefully sleeping beside him. He trusted her, and knew that she trusted him. His relationship with Corrine was in every way superior to what he had with Natalie, but the memory still pained him. He rolls out of bed and wanders into the kitchen. Producing a glass and a 2 liter of Pepsi, he begins tending to his dry throat. As he does, he remembers the rest of the story. The thoughts, he notices, are atypically vivid.
Wanting to trust her, he took her back. Within a week, there was another misunderstanding. She was rummaging through his medicine cabinet at 3am looking for pills to help her sleep. She didn’t even know about the mystical tablets Caleb kept in there. By pure dumb luck, her hand was touching one of those bottles when Caleb found her, and, based on experience, assumed the worst. They argued for hours before Caleb came to believe her, but finally realized that there really was no trust here. There never could be, either. The next morning she left, never to return.
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