Zenon's Game Chapter 249

My phone hadn't returned any of my calls or my texts last night. I re-read them:

10.08 PM: someone broke into our house. The cops are here

11.17 PM: it's scary here. Will you please come back?

00.05 AM: cops left. Our door is broken.

Still no response. Our chat was a stream of blue texts from me.

But I did receive a message from Zenon almost an hour ago. I opened it:

Morning e

He must've known I'd wake up wondering where he is. I replied: Hallooo Babe. Where are you?

I smiled hysterically as I typed out the word babe. I never in a million years thought I'd be writing that to Zenon Albert. Am I his babe? And why are we saying babe? There is nothing baby about him.

I made the bed and opened the blindfolds. And, surprisingly, that's when I saw him – my babe – across the street with Jake.

I didn't expect that.

I leaned over Zenon's desk to better see what they were up to. It looked like they were hammering something into my front door.

I walked quietly down the steps of the Albert home, trying to run at the same time. My hand movements made it look like I was auditioning for the role of Captain Jack Sparrow. I hope no one saw me.

I passed by the kitchen and heard a clang.

"Candace?" Mrs Albert's voice sounded surprised.

The door to the kitchen was ajar and she had seen me walk by. I popped my head into the kitchen and greeted her as if this was perfectly normal, "Good morning Mrs Albert."

She was drying a frying pan with a dish cloth. The kitchen was even more spotless than I had seen it last night - if that's even possible. A green smoothie was in a glass of ice by the counter. Maybe that's her breakfast? Or some kind of cleaning liquid...

"I didn't realize you were here," she said, "Did you sleep over?"

Do I lie?

"Yes," I replied, choosing the honesty option. I may embarrass them, but at least I wanted to be known for my honesty. "My front door had issues last night."

"Your door had... issues?" she repeated, questioning my choice of language. "Zenon didn't mention you were coming over."

I felt like I was making all the wrong girlfriend moves here. I tensed up and said the first thing that came to mind.

"It was unplanned," I said, almost immediately gasping at my choice of words, "Not that we do unplanned things. We plan everything- well except for the things that we don't do at all."

Does she think I'm pregnant?

"No reason to panic, Candace, it was a simple question," Mrs Albert said calmly, lowering her dish cloth onto the counter. "Would you like any breakfast on your way out?"

I couldn't smell coffee so I declined, thanked her and ran out of the door. I'm not going to have cleaning liquid for breakfast. Even if it has nutrients and is in the shape of a green smoothie.

Dupont Avenue was so much friendlier in the daylight. I hated to think of all the fear I felt on this street, just hours before. I ran towards my house, where the boys were working on the lock. They were actually working together on something for once.

"Candace," Jake caught sight of me first.

Zenon was hammering the lock when he stopped and turned around. He smiled, lowered the hammer and kissed me. "Hey."

Jake turned away to pick at the lock.

"Did you sleep OK?" Zenon asked.

"I don't want to know," Jake called out, reminding the two of us that he was still here.

I squeezed Zenon's hand warmly and said to Jake, "Thank you for sleeping at my house. It means a lot that you kept watch over it."

"No problem," Jake replied, still avoiding eye contact with us.

There was a tense silence and I sighed, staring up at the building I called my home. It felt so not mine anymore.

"I wish we caught them last night," I sighed again, "Maybe we could've caught them? It was two against one."

"Two against one?" Zenon asked.

"You're counting yourself as one of the two?" Jake echoed that view.

I stared at the two brothers in disbelief. Did neither of them recognize that I was the one who wounded the invader with my vinyl record?

"Oh look," I said, "Finally something you both agree on."

~Axel's POV~

Gloria made muffins for Candace and Zenon and it took all my will power not to eat them on the ride over.

They smelt so good though.

I turned the corner on Dupont Avenue and parked outside Zenon's house. I left my gym bag in the car and stared at the house across the street, wondering how Candace was coping. Zenon said it'd been hard on her.

I rang the doorbell and Charlotte opened the door, "Axel, hey, we're in matching workout clothes. You looking for... they're all in the kitchen."

"Thanks. Muffin?" I offered and opened the box for her to pick one out.

Gloria promised she was making a second batch at home.

I walked into the kitchen and found Zenon sitting on a bar stool by the counter, facing his mom. Jake was standing on the other side and Mrs Albert didn't have a happy expression on her face.

"Hey!" I greeted everyone, trying to act oblivious to the tension in the room, "Mrs Albert, it smells like your famous spinach smoothies."

It smelled so bad. I am not a fan of spinach.

"Axel! It's lovely to see you," Mrs Albert exclaimed with a warm smile.

I set the box on the counter.

Zenon looked up and asked, "You brought muffins?"

The judgement.

"Gloria made them and who pis-" I stopped myself before I cursed in front of Mrs Albert.