When the two struggling boys carrying a large man between them have entered the apartment, I close the door behind them. I did not realise during the pandemonium of getting Hunter inside that I must have scraped my knees on a rough surface at one point. I only feel the soreness of them now. Feeling through my pants, my fingers come away slick around the are where my knees were in contact with the floor while I had Hunter's head resting on my thighs. The friction of it must have been great enough that it broke through the skin, scraping away the top layers until it drew blood.
Ash and Brad huff and puff their way to the couch before laying Hunter down on it carefully. I set the candle down on the kitchen counter, into an empty brass candelabra that I bought in a flea market two years ago, and make my way to the couch. Karlie trails behind me, waiting for an explanation.
