The sound of the door closing roused Hutch. Jingling of keys and the sudden illumination of the entryway caused him to shift and sit up.
"Hutch, you…" Cherry began, stopping when she turned to see him sitting on the couch rubbing at his eyes. "What are you doing sitting in here in the dark? At least open the curtains and let some light in."
"Sorry. Fell asleep on the couch," he replied, scratching at the back of his head, his hair now dry.
Setting the pillow back where it belonged, he grabbed the card from the coffee table and stuffed it into his pocket as he stood to help his mom with the bags she was carrying.
"What is all of this?"
"Thought I would take care of getting the groceries. And yes, I made of list of what you've been buying and didn't get anything you wouldn't. Except for the ice cream. It was on sale, I couldn't pass it up," she replied, setting the bags on the floor by the end of the counter.
"Is there more in the car?"
"A couple more bags."
Hutch headed out to the car and brought in the rest of the groceries. When everything had been put away, he returned to his place on the couch, while Cherry went and changed her cloths and fixed up her hair. When she came out of her room, she filled a bowl with pieces of chicken from the take-out she'd brought home.
"I know I have to leave in a few minutes but tell me how your trip into the city was," she remarked, carrying her plate to the couch, and sitting down on the opposite end.
"It was different. Completely unexpected. Everything was basically normal and going great, and then lunch happened. We ended up eating at the 65th Floor."
"What?! You can't be serious! I gave you a ten, not a hundred. You didn't let John pay for you, did you?" She sounded both shocked and upset.
"No. It wasn't like that, and I still have the ten. Our lunch was comped. Courtesy of the Cascel Tower CEO, Celina, who came to join us. It was an experience, to say the least, and she gave me this," he explained, pulling the business card from his pocket. "She told me to call this number and that there might be a way for me to pick up the extra credits I need, doing an after-school co-op. If it works out, I might be able to graduate on time."
Setting her plate aside, she took the business card and looked it over. "You're serious?" she asked, starring at him, expressionless.
"Yes?" he responded, uncertain of how she had expected him to answer.
"That's incredible, Jules!" she exclaimed, throwing out her arms out and leaping on him, hugging him irrationally tight. "I'm so proud of you!"
"Easy, mom," he said, gently pushing her back onto her knees. "I know it sounds promising, but there were no guarantees made. There might be an application process, or the high school might reject the idea. Not to mention, this means most nights after school, I'm not going to be coming directly home, and I don't want you to start freaking out and thinking I'm back to being a screw up."
"Jules," she stated, grabbing him by the cheeks, "you listen to me, and you listen good. You fight for this. I don't care who you schmoose, charm or hob-nob with, you do whatever it takes to get ahead in this life. Clearly, you made an impression to get this offer, so don't hesitate for a second to drop that CEO's name. Every chance you get you say, so and so gave me this opportunity." Lowering her hands, she slid back from him. "You were never meant to be raised this way; you know, living in this dump, pay cheque to pay cheque, by just me. This is your chance to rise above the decisions I made. I may not understand it, but I've become oddly grateful for that overnight in the hospital. You've turned your entire life around. This must be the universe rewarding your better angels. But it also means we need to talk about you getting your driver's license. And how I'll have to start saving up to help you get a used car. It's not going to be anything impressive, but it should at least get you to where you need to go and back safely."
"Okay," Hutch replied, "we can talk about whatever you want after I find out more about this opportunity."
He felt better, having seen his mother's reaction, even if what he had told her turned out to be nothing but a lie. When it came down to it, he knew he could just tell her that there were no positions available, or that his application was rejected. But at the same time, he had bought himself some freedom if he needed it, using the co-op as a plausible cover story, if required. He still believed that the less she knew, the better off they would both be.
When Cherry finished her food, she put her plate in the dishwasher, and fixed up her makeup before heading out the door.
As the quiet set in, the sun having finished setting around 5pm, Hutch knew the time had come. He had put off the inevitable for too long. It was now or never.
Picking up the receiver, he carefully pressed in the phone number and lifted it to his ear. His chest began to tighten to the sound of every ring as it came and went, and his heart felt as if it had ceased its beating with every second that passed, when the line picked up.
"Hello?"
A familiar man's voice came through the receiver. It was a voice Hutch knew as well as his own, unmistakable in its depth and confidence of its tone, causing the bottom of his stomach to drop out, and his throat to tighten.
"Ah, hello," he managed to ebb out a reply, finding it near impossible to speak.
"I'm sorry, who is this?"
Swallowing back, he responded, "Hutch."
He had thought he was prepared for the moment, and yet it still felt as if he were stumbling in the dark, and the prolonged seconds of silence only made it worse.
"Oh, of course, Hutch! My wife told me to expect your call." There was a subtle off waiver to his voice, hidden beneath the exuberate nature of his tone. "I'd be happy to speak to you about the co-op program, but I'm right in the middle of something. Can I possibly call you back around, say, around eleven tomorrow morning?"
"Oh, ah, yeah," Hutch responded, his brain instantly short-circuiting.
"What's a number I can reach you at?"
Hutch relayed the number that was attached to the base of the phone.
"Thank you. I look forward to speaking with you tomorrow, when I can give this the time it requires, and deserves. Have a good evening, Hutch. Bye for now."
"Okay. Bye," he muttered, and the call was disconnected.
Dropping the receiver back onto the base, Hutch felt entirely deflated.
"What the hell just happened…" He sank back into the couch. "Did he… not know who I was?"
He felt as if he were drifting through a haze. His mind unable to form a coherent thought beyond, 'he didn't know me,' stuck on an endless loop.
He had been sitting in the same position for nearly an hour, staring off into space, when a series of rapid knocks striking the door, pulled him part way back into reality.
"Come on, Hutch! Open the door, it's freezing out here!" Ren shouted, as he violently jiggled at the doorknob.
Unlocking the deadbolt, Hutch pulled open the door.
"Ren?" he managed to accurately identify his friend, who pushed his way inside.
"Since when do you bolt your door?" Ren questioned as he pried off his shoes. "Not that it matters. Grandpa just left, and mom is at work, so I came over as quick as I could. Today, was IN-SANE!"
Hutch closed the door, still unable to fully process what was happening around him as he turned to find Ren looking curiously up at him.
"Dude, you don't look so good. Did something happen?"
"He didn't know me," Hutch replied, still dazed by the absurdity of it all as he wandered back to the couch and retook his seat.
"What do you mean? Who didn't know you?" Ren asked, setting next to him. "Hutch, come on! Snap out of it!" he shouted, sucker punching him in the shoulder, much to his own regret.
Hutch turned his head in Ren's direction, granting him a look of derision, before closing his eyes and taking in a breath. As pathetic as the punch was, it did help to snap him out of his daze, and he knew he had to refocus in order to explain what had happened.
"Casimir. I called the number on the card, and he answered. But it was like he had no idea who I was. I don't understand what's happening. Have I been wrong about all of this?"
"You aren't wrong about that amulet," Ren replied, still shaking out his hand. "And there was something definitely off at the tower today. Did he say anything that maybe sounded a bit odd to you?"
"No. He said his wife told him I would call, and then said he was in the middle of something. He asked for the number here and said he would call back tomorrow, around eleven. I mean, maybe, I guess it was a bit strange at the end, he said he wanted to give our conversation the time it requires and deserves."
"You're over thinking this, Hutch!" Ren exclaimed, setting his hand on Hutch's shoulder. "He said it himself; he was in the middle of something, and earlier, Celina said that he was away on a business trip. You probably just caught him at a bad time, and after everything you've told me, I doubt this is a conversation he wants to have in a hurry."
"Perhaps, but I think he may have been talking about the co-op program that Celina mentioned. He just sounded so…" Hutch stopped, leaned forward, and rested his head in his hands, doing his best to hold back his emotion.
"He sounded like what?"
Hutch huffed. Sitting up, he looked at Ren and smiled. "He sounded happy. Just like he did back when we were still friends. Back before I learned the truth of who and what he was."