Cath Trilogy: Hey Jane

Jane finished her shower and ate her breakfast of cereal and milk in a fog from the dream. Derek had been nothing but kind to Jane; that didn't mean he couldn't haunt her dreams.

A rasp of knuckles and two pills brought Jane back to reality. Her clothing was already packed away for the three days that Rhys and Jane would be going along with other essentials. Still, she wasn't ready to leave at that moment.

"Candy gram!" Rhys shouted and banged on the door once more.

"Jeez, do you want me to get in trouble with my landlord again?" Jane opened the door to let Rhys in. "I just need to do a few more things. Do guy things for a few minutes."

"What are guy things?" Rhys asked as he flopped onto the couch and treated it like it was his own.

"Just do them," Jane waved absently over her shoulder and went back to her own business. She still needed to give the cat-- which was making his way to Rhys-- what he would need for the next three days that she would be gone. As she filled up the bowl, Rhys interacted with the cat.

"Kitty!" Rhys exclaimed as Vincent van Gogh rubbed against the familiar hand. Rhys put on a fake Italian accent, "Ay, Vinnie!"

"Stop scaring the cat," Jane called to him when she heard the scampering of paws against the granite floor of the living room.

"He doesn't like my accent," Rhys continued the attempt of an accent.

"I second that," Jane joked as she came out of her bedroom with suitcase and briefcase in hand.

Rhys pretended to be offended and put his hands over his face as though he were crying. His shoulders moved up and down, and Jane patted him on the shoulders before leading him toward the door.

"Come on big guy," she patted her partner with some difficulty with the head that he had on her in height. The nerving sense that she always got when she left the house filled her as though she had forgotten everything that would be of importance. As a sort of safety, she patted her pants to feel that she had her cellphone and wallet along with her apartment keys and Effexor which she was taking much more of than she normally did. The past week, she had only taken five and those were the days that she just remembered to take them in the morning.

"Forgetting something?" Rhys asked her when they were half-way to the elevator and caused Jane to stop in her tracks. She looked up at him without comprehension. "The door," he reminded her and Jane made an o with her mouth and ran back to lock the door to her apartment.

"Thanks," she smiled meekly and almost ran toward the elevator with embarrassment.

"Jane," Rhys called to her and waited

Jane then saw that she had left her suitcase next to the door. "Oops," she went completely red throughout her body.

"You seem a bit off today," Rhys pointed out. "Now that I think about it you were strange yesterday too."

"Just..." Jane had to think of something very personal to get Rhys off of her case. "I'm just on my period. You know it is just so bloody and gross."

"Eww," Rhys waved his arms for her to stop. "No need for details. Okay, but don't think that I am buying you any chocolate. Do that with your own money."

Jane just barely kept her composure when Rhys tried to understand female anatomy and desires. She knew he wouldn't stop asking questions, but Jane knew she was safe for the moment and hopefully the eight hour drive to Berkeley. She dared not ask Rhys to fly given the fact that she already knew his reaction. Still, why not miss a perfectly good opportunity to tease Rhys, "Do you know a really fast way to get to Berkeley?" Jane asked.

"What are you think about?" Rhys assumed that she meant directions as she knew he would.

"Airplane!" The two of them were standing alone in the descending elevator, and Jane jumped as high as she could without hitting her head and shouted the word. A smile was plastered on her lips as Rhys tensed when she landed and the lift shook.

"You are a terrible, terrible person," Rhys said as white as the shirt he was wearing.

Jane was too busy chuckling to herself. "I'm sorry. It was necessary," as she said these words she thought of everything else that was necessary for her.