Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

Milo

The drive back to the cabin was quiet but pleasant. Milo soaked in the peace of Shane and Pumpkin's company and basked in the comfort that his new boots provided.

They really were a perfect fit.

He looked out the window to admire the snowy landscape and kept an eye on the skyline. A bit of blue poked through all the gray, but Milo wouldn't be so easily fooled again. They were due for another storm soon.

"I called the mechanic this morning and asked for help with my car. They said they'd get out there as soon as they could, but had a few emergency calls to take care of first."

"Leonard said that?" Shane grunted. Milo had never heard someone's name sound like a curse before.

"Well, Becky said it for both of them."

There was a long pause before Shane spoke next.

"Why ain't you upset about that?" Shane asked with an open frown as they crested the hill and the truck came to a stop. "Most city folks and tourists throw a fit over the inconveniences. You keep on keeping on."

Milo had Pumpkin in his lap, lavishing her with pats and scratches.

"Because I'm not a tourist. I'm going to live here for the rest of my life. They'll get my car back to me as soon as they can. That's the important thing. As for the rest of it…the slower pace out here is nice."

"Getting things fixed around here is never a fast job." Shane cleared his throat. "You'll have to put up with me for a while."

"I don't mind, Shane," he smiled. "Not when it's you. Not when it's Pumpkin. You're both too cute to be a bother."

Shane bailed out of the truck. Was that a blush on the older man's cheeks? By the time Milo and Pumpkin caught up with him, the chill of the weather had turned his face pale again but the warmth of the moment remained.

Milo knew he was testing his luck yet he couldn't stop teasing. Not when it felt so right and natural. Not when Shane's shyness seemed to bring him closer to Milo instead of chasing him away.

They worked together to empty the truck of Milo's goodies. It would have taken him several trips alone, but Shane did the lion's share of the carrying in two trips.

Pumpkin helped in her own doggie way. A curious shadow who earned a head pat for staying out from underneath their feet. She continued to lend her assistance as they put everything away.

The cabin was still bare, but when all was done it had started to look a little more like a home.

"I'm hungry," Milo announced, sure that Shane would protest if Milo asked if he was hungry. "Think I'll make pumpkin soup for dinner. A big bowl of it, plenty for both of us and leftovers for tomorrow."

Shane stood awkwardly in the kitchen, his hands curled like he wasn't sure what to do with them. "You don't gotta feed me."

"I'm feeding us," Milo pointed out with a smile, "but I don't have anything for Pumpkin."

"Don't worry about all that. I'm gonna drive back up to my place and do some work. I'll come back with some shit."

"Come back with a lot of shit?" Milo asked with a note of shyness. He'd like for Shane to come back with much more than dog food.

Shane's eyebrows furrowed. "How do you mean?"

"I saw the state of your roof," Milo cleared his throat and kept his hands busy unpacking the vegetables. He turned his back to Shane. "Move all your stuff here before the weather ruins it. Your clothes and your tools. Family photos. Towels. Anything and everything, really. We'll make use of it. Also, we need cups and forks. And plates!"

Milo listened as Shane sucked his teeth. "Uh huh. Don't you got a moving van due here any day now?"

"Well, no. This is all I have." Milo turned around slowly to face Shane's taunt expression.

"That don't sound like you moved," Shane said with a squint, "sounds like you ran away."

Milo's smile grew wider from the accusation. He took a step forward and closed the distance between him and Shane, lifting up his chin so he could look Shane right in the eyes.

All that shyness was gone in a blink.

"Fine, I ran away, but it wasn't done out of fear. I abandoned my old life with joy. When it was time for me to leave…I just left. And I really meant what I said before. I'm here to live and if you're going to stay here, I need you to really live here with me."

Milo looked up at Shane and mustered up every little bit of hope he'd ever cradled in his heart.

"I have room for all your things," he said in a soft voice, "everything you need and - and anything you want. "

Need and want. There was a difference between the two. It had taken Milo a long time to accept it was okay to want things. Milo wanted lots of things though there was only one specific person he wanted. Shane. He wanted Shane and he knew Shane wanted him too.

Though Milo couldn't tell if Shane wanted him enough to take him.

"Okay?" he both prompted and reassured as he laid his hand on Shane's arm. "It's okay."

Shane's body stood like steel, but the expression on his face melted as softly as butter. "Yeah, okay," he swallowed, "okay."

Milo gave Shane's arm a squeeze before he switched his attention to the food and cooking essentials he'd bought: a knife, a spoon, a potato masher, a frying pan, a pot, and a mixing bowl. It was only the basics, but he'd make it work. "Can Pumpkin stay here with me? I need a sous chef."

Shane looked perplexed by the comment, but then an understanding crossed his bearded face. "You mean you don't wanna be alone here?"

"That too," Milo admitted.

"Yeah, all right," Shane nodded, "I'll leave her here, since it's you. Don't go adding my Pumpkin to your concoction."

"I would never. She's too cute to be an ingredient, aren't you?" Milo peered down to where Pumpkin plopped next to him. He reached down and gently booped her nose. She licked his fingertip in reply.

"I promise to take good care of her," Milo turned on the sink to wash his hands and begin washing and cutting the vegetables. "You'll be back soon?" he asked.

"I'll be back before dark," Shane promised.

Milo was missing him before Shane had even walked out the door.

* * *

The cabin was still a work in progress on the homey front, but with the soup simmering on the stove it sure felt cozy.

Milo's mouth watered as he puttered around the kitchen, cleaning up after all the busywork that went into making dinner. He kept glancing out the window to check the sky. Even with all the clouds, it took forever for late afternoon to dip into early evening and for the sun to begin fading away.

Pumpkin kept him company while they waited for Shane to return.

She followed Milo around the kitchen and the rest of the cabin, sitting where he sat and standing where he stood. Pumpkin even proved to be an avid audience. She'd listened the whole time as Milo narrated his own thoughts and recited the cooking steps by memory.

Pumpkin soup was a simple recipe, but there was a lot of chopping involved and without an immersion blender he had to puree by hand with the potato masher.

While the soup cooked, Milo saved the seeds from the messy guts of the pumpkin.

"We're gonna toast these for you," Milo explained as Pumpkin tilted her head. "Only a few at a time though. A little treat!"

Pumpkin let out a small huff.

A huff that grew into a series of boisterous yaps.

"You need to potty?" Milo asked, already rinsing his hands of gory squash.

Pumpkin let out a long whine while pawing at the door.

"Let me get my boots on." Milo turned the stove down as low as it would go. He gave the simmering soup one more stir before he licked the spoon clean and set it down. Milo pulled on his boots and shrugged on his own coat before helping Pumpkin into her doggie jacket.

"There we go. Look at you, even cuter," he cooed. Milo opened the kitchen door and — Pumpkin was out and running away before he could even blink.

"Wait!" Milo called out. "Pumpkin, come back. Pumpkin!"

Both the dog and Milo's desperate calls for her to return disappeared into the nightfall.

It was dark out there.

Shane should have been back already. Something might have happened to him. Maybe Pumpkin knew and that's why she'd taken off?

Shane had trusted Milo to look after Pumpkin, it was his responsibility to follow her. Shane had already lost so much...he couldn"t lose Pumpkin too.

Out of habit, Milo locked the doors before he left. His phone was his only light source as he trudged through the dark and silent woods.