Buried Feelings

It had been 20 minutes since I had sent my text and there had been so response, I felt comfort in knowing that he read it and decided not to say anything. Maybe this trip down memory lane was finally over. I completed my pre-bed routine and cuddled up with my dog, seconds after I felt myself drifting off I heard my phone begin to vibrate followed by my ringtone.

I must admit-I can't explain-Any of these thoughts racing-Through my brain-It's true,
baby I'm howlin' for you

I run my hand over my nightstand searching for my glasses to see who is calling while The Black Keys beckon for me to answer my phone, remembering that I left my glasses in the bathroom, I grab the phone and groan.

"Hello?" I grumbled into my iPhone as the glare blinds me.

"Good evening sleeping beauty," the mystery person says, but of course, it would be Kris. "How have you been lately? Not busy out partying?" I can hear his smile over the phone.

"How can I help you Mr. Versteeg? If you can't read a clock it is 11pm and unlike some people, I have a job I have to go to in the morning and desperately need my rest." I spit out, I am annoyed; no, more than annoyed, I am angry.

"Ouchhhhh," he says like a child, "Implying that I don't work? That isn't very nice."

"Not what I meant, I meant, ugh. I am too tired to explain what I meant. Why are you calling me?" My anger and annoyance is clear in my voice, if I can hear it, then he definitely can.

"Well, Kaebay, I am calling because I need a favor." He asks with the pleading tone in his voice that we both know used to melt my heart, throwing in the pet name he had for me, if this had been 3 years ago I would have succumbed to just this alone, but not today, not now.

"One, please do not call me Kaebay, I go by full name now and I am not your 'bay'. Two, a favor? From me? Seriously, Kris? You just couldn't call, I don't know, one of your two dozen new teammates to help you out?" I start mentally counting down from ten in my head, I don't want to have a panic attack on the phone with him, or when I get off the phone. I need to sleep.

"My apologies Miss Michaelagh Rose Baker, I will address you by your full name from now on," There, I definitely can hear him smile his goofy smile, "And no, to answer your other point, I cannot ask any of the guys. My problem is that I am moving back to Chicago, obviously, and tomorrow I have to be at the game in Nashville. Now that doesn't leave me anytime to get my condo here packed, find a new place there, and coordinate the move. Luckily my housekeeper will come tomorrow, pack my stuff up and have the shipping company take them up there, but the problem lies in the fact that I have nowhere for this stuff to go, and if I remember correctly you have a large basement that I could store my stuff, so I was hoping that you would help an old friend out for a few weeks until I get settled, pretty pretty please?"

I take a minute and feel my eyes roll, I cannot believe the audacity that this man has, we haven't spoken in 11 months and 8 days and he thinks it is just okay to call and ask for this? RIDICULOUS. No, no I won't say yes, I will tell him he can ask Pat or get a storage unit. I am not his friend and not someone who is willing to do any favors.

"Hmph." He clears his throat, clearly growing impatient at the time I am taking to think this over.

"Kris, I don't know. Can't you ask Pat? Or someone else? Or get a storage unit?" Well, okay. That didn't come out as strong as I wanted.

"No, none of that will work. Besides you have that giant basement." He is unrelenting, he doesn't hear the pleading in my voice, pleading him to say he will figure something else back and get out of my life again.

"I don't live there anymore, I bought a condo and I don't know if it is big enough for my stuff plus yours."

"Oh, I guess I didn't know that, it would just really be helping me out, it would be for a week, maybe a little longer, and it wouldn't be very many boxes, please?"

"How many boxes? I can make some room in my living room." My voice betrays me before I can even think, I cover my mouth and am in shock that I said that, fuck. I gave him his in, he was going to be taking up space in my condo for two weeks and everything I have been avoiding for the past three years is going to be smacking me in the face on a daily basis.

"Dunno, maybe five, six total. I don't have a lot of stuff so it shouldn't be too many. I really appreciate you doing this for me, I promise I will make it up to you." A smile creeps over my face, maybe subconsciously this is what I want, maybe I want him back in my life as a friend, maybe we can do the friends thing, I can get some closure on the relationship and have a good friend.

"That shouldn't be too bad, I will text you the address and you can let me know when the moving company will be here, I will make sure I can let them in or my neighbor will do it for me."

"Perfect. I am hoping they will be there Saturday or Sunday." he sounds genuine, sweet, just like the Kris I originally fell in love with, "Oh hey, one more favor."

"What's that?" I half expect him to ask to stay with me, or to let his girlfriend stay with me, something absurd to erase the moments of the Kris I once loved away again.

"Can you pick me up at the airport tomorrow night after the game? Nobody is going near the hotel I am going to be staying at until I get a place and it would be nice to see a familiar face who doesn't smell like sweat or I just spent twelve hours with." Not quite as absurd as I anticipated, but still, he has a lot of audacity to ask a thing of me. I try to come up with an excuse but I know I don't have any plans and maybe it would be nice to see him again. At least to just give him my spare so he could get his stuff if he needed. I wonder if his hair is short again, I always loved it short. I shake my head and get those thoughts out of my head.

"Sure, why not. I can give you my spare so you can get your stuff even if I am not home." There, I will pick him up not because I want to see him but because it works for the arrangement, purely platonic.

"Works for me, I will text you the ETA for tomorrow night. Time for you to go to bed Michaelagh Rose, sleep tight." And he hangs up before I can chastise him for using my full name when he knows I meant Michaelagh instead of Kaela or Kaebay.

I take a deep breath and begin to realize what I am getting myself into, it is like a child's favorite ride at the carnival, it may make them sick and they may want to get off as soon as they get on, but once they are off, the lights, the sounds, and the allure drags them back in. Apparently Kris is the amusement ride that I cannot get enough of.