Her Last Reassurance

Her Last Reassurance
Dan

I shifted in place, trying to release some of the tension that was locking my body up. I was completely exhausted and was looking forward to being able to take my break soon. I hadn’t expected for Mikey to call me at 5 AM and ask me to fill in for him this morning. The really good thing about it was that he would be covering half of my next two shifts to pay me back for saving his ass this morning. Working 16 hours straight was a harrowing ordeal for anyone, but I was pushing 70, and standing in one spot for so many hours was terrible on my aching joints. At least both my boss and the tenants were fairly nice. After my break I could get my chair, and sit beside the doors instead of standing. It would be late enough that the vast majority of the tenants would be getting ready to go to bed.

That was a big part of why I had switched to nights. At 11 PM I got to move inside and sit in a chair. I still had to keep an eye out for late night visitors and tenants leaving, but there weren’t many. As I stood there waiting for my break to start, a vehicle pulled up by the valet stand. It was too dark for me to be able to see who it might be, but I knew that it wasn’t a tenant. I straightened up as a dark figure got out of it, spoke to the valet for a moment before reaching back into the car for something that looked like fast food bags along with a drink holder, and started to walk up the stairs toward me. The closer she got, the bigger my smile got.

“Miss Laurel! How are you?” I greeted her warmly.

I much preferred her over her sister. Her sister, though she was very nice to me, was very standoffish and bristled at everything around her.

Laurel smiled brightly at me. “Good evening, Dan. How are you?”

“I’m very well. Are you going up tonight?” I asked.

She cast the door a longing look that I wasn’t sure that she realized that she had on her face before shaking her head sadly. “Not yet, but soon. I was wondering if you could answer a question or two for me,” she said.

“If I can, I will. How can I help you?” I inquired curiously, already knowing that she was about to ask about Mason.

It was the same thing. She asked me about him when she came, and he asked if she had stopped by at any point when he got home from work everyday.

“Is Mason home?” she questioned.

“He is, yes,” I answered, knowing that I was breaking the rules that had been given to me by my employer, but I knew that Mason would not care if I did.

In fact, he had given me permission to talk to her freely about him. I knew why he had given me that freedom. He didn’t want to keep any secrets and from the little I had observed about her, she had some major trust issues, which explained a lot about why she was always coming to ask about him, but not going up. Well, that and the way that bastard of an ex-husband had attacked her in the elevator. That whole day had been absolutely horrible. I felt so guilty. I blamed myself for not protecting her more. She was so innocent and sweet and always had a nice word for everyone around her, even when they didn’t deserve it. That was just the kind of person that she was. Actually knowing her left no doubt about why Mason had fallen so hard for her.

Over the last several weeks, I had seen the changes in him. He was happier, more outgoing, and overall just more approachable. He had lived in the building for five years, but it had taken him meeting her for him to speak to me with more than just ‘thank you’, ‘you’re welcome’, and ‘have a good rest of your day’. He was now one of my favorite tenants. Sometimes he brought me little treats home. I knew that he was thanking me for keeping an eye out for Laurel, but it didn’t matter. She really was one of the sweetest women that I had ever met. It had been my absolute pleasure to keep an eye out for her, even before Mason started bringing me little gifts and such.

“Dan?” she called softly as she put her hand on my arm, snapping me out of my thoughts. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, I do apologize, Miss Laurel. I was just thinking about something. Yes, he’s home,” I told her.

“Is anyone up there with him?” she inquired almost silently, and my heart went out to her.

“No, Miss Laurel. He hasn’t had anyone over, but your sister and her son, since you left,” I reassured her, knowing that she needed it.

I could feel the insecurity coming off of her, and I didn’t want to make it worse. I wanted to make it better for her. I wanted her to come back to Mason. It didn’t take a genius to see that they were as deeply in love as any two people could be. 

“Oh. Oh,” she said, perking up a little. “Does he go out a lot?”

“Not at all. He comes home everyday after work, and stays until he leaves for work the next morning. He really only goes out on Saturday and that’s only for a few hours,” I replied.

“I know I shouldn’t ask, but do you know where he goes?”

“Yes. He goes to meet with his sister about the shelter that he is setting up,” I responded.

“Are you sure?” she pressed.

“Yes.”
“How can you be sure?”
“He asked me if I wanted to work there when it was up and running. He asked me if I wanted to be the building manager, so he keeps me updated.”

Her face brightened. “He did? That’s amazing! Are you going to do it?”

“Yes. Mason is a good man that is doing something our community needs. I would be honored to assist him on his journey.”

“Is that the only place he goes?” she asked.

“Besides shopping, yes. He was never one to go out and party. The only day he went out was Friday, but he doesn’t do that anymore. He stays home on Fridays. And before you ask, I know he does. He always orders DoorDash and comes down to get it.” I looked around to make sure that no one was within ear shot of us. “May I speak freely, Miss Laurel?”
“Yes, of course.”

“Every day when Mason gets home, he asks if you had come by. When I tell him no, he immediately gets sad. When I’m able to tell him yes, he lights up. He really loves you, Miss Laurel. I really don’t think that he’s ever going to do anything to jeopardize his chances of being with you. To go a step further, we are both waiting for you to come home for good. Before you, Mason was very introverted when he was here. After he met you, he’s been very friendly. You have changed his life just by being in it.”

She sighed happily as she took in what I said before holding out the drink holder and two fast food bags. “Thank you for talking to me. Can you make sure that he gets this? The little bag is for you. I hope you like chocolate chip cookies.”

I smiled at her. “I do. I love chocolate chip cookies. They’re one of my favorites.”

She hugged me quickly, which surprised me. She had never hugged me before. “Thank you, Dan. I know people probably don’t really tell you, but I really appreciate everything you have done for me.”
“It’s no problem, Miss Laurel. Just try to come home soon, okay?”

She nodded. “I will.”

I waited for her to walk off toward her car before pulling my phone out to call Mason, who answered on the second ring.

“Dan? Is everything okay?” he asked worriedly.

“Yes. Laurel was just here, and she gave me something to give to you. Would you like for me to bring it up to you on my break, or–”

“I’m on my way down.”
“Okay. See you in a few minutes.”
We hung up and less than two minutes later, I saw him stroll off the elevator before heading in my direction. I opened the door for him and he stopped in front of me. I held out his bag and the drink holder to him.

“She asked me to make sure that you got this,” I told him. When he started to look around, I chuckled softly. “She’s already gone, Mason, but I don’t think she wanted to leave.”

His face lit up more. “Soon, she won’t.”