Run, Girl (If You Can)

Keeley got a cart and started piling things into it, explaining as she went.

She chose a self-cleaning litter box because a) Aaron could afford it and b) she knew he hated being inconvenienced. The poor cat would be better off not facing his wrath at the indignity of scooping poop personally.

She also chucked a variety of toys such as lasers, balls, little tunnels, feathers attached to a stick, and electronic toys that could be turned on and left alone for a while into the cart. The fanciest silver food and water bowl set inlaid in a black metal rack ended up there too.

In the food aisle Keeley ran into a bit of a dilemma. "Um…do you want the same kind of food I get or something fancier? I don't know anything about the expensive brands."

"It's a cat; it won't know the difference," Aaron said dismissively.

Her brand it was.

When they got to the cat trees, Keeley chose a nice big one that offered a lot of variety. It had rope scratchers, a little hammock, a hidey hole, and flat perches. It's the one she would have picked for Molly if she had enough room in her apartment.

Aaron had to hold it steady as she pushed the cart when they made their way to the cashier because it stuck out too much. Everything else fit into the trunk easily but the tree…

"I didn't quite think this through," she admitted as they stood in front of the car.

"Don't you have one of these things?"

"Yes, but it's a lot smaller."

He opened the doors and circled the car a few times. "I think I've got it but it might require a bit of finagling."

"Aye aye, captain!"

The first thing Aaron did was push the passenger seat as far up as he could. Then he shut all the doors but the back driver side one and front passenger one, telling Keeley to pick up the smaller end of the tree.

They wedged it partially inside before Keeley went around to the other door and pulled it closer to the squished passenger seat. She pulled a bit too hard and lost her grip, falling backwards onto her butt. Ouch.

Aaron immediately ran around to her side of the car and offered his hand to help her up. "Are you okay?"

She refused it and stood, brushing herself off. "I'm fine. Did you get it in the other side completely? Can you shut the door?"

He went back to check. "Not quite. Twist your end a little more."

It took another three minutes of twisting and pushing to get both doors to shut but then there was the problem of there not technically being anywhere for Keeley to sit. What she did was climb into the rear passenger seat and stick her legs on top of part of the cat tree. It was super uncomfortable but at least she was able to get her seat belt on.

As they started driving away, she looked at the position of her legs. One was bent normally and squeezed between two parts of the tree but the other was splayed out at a wonky angle.

Any time they hit a tiny bump or made a turn it felt weird and wrong. After about five minutes she couldn't take it anymore. She burst out laughing and doubled over so her nose hit her oddly tangled legs.

"Keeley?" Aaron asked in a strange tone. "Are you alright back there?"

She barely managed to wheeze a reply because she was laughing too hard. "It's just—my—legs! Hahahahaha!"

At the next stop light he turned around to see what was so funny. It certainly was a sight.

He pulled his phone out and snapped a picture when her eyes were squeezed shut with mirth so she didn't notice. He acted like nothing happened and continued driving when the light turned green.

Keeley was so happy when she got out of the car that she could have done a cartwheel out of joy—that is if her legs weren't so sore.

"Is there someone we can ask for help with this stuff or are we on our own? It'll take at least three trips even with both of us."

Aaron frowned. "I've never had this kind of situation before. Maybe the doorman?"

"What, you don't have any servants on standby?"

He looked at her like she was stupid. "I use a housekeeping service a few times a week and a driver when I have to work in the backseat but that's it."

She was astonished. That didn't line up with how they lived after he came back to New York in her first life at all.

"You don't even have a cook?"

"No, I use a meal delivery service. I like my privacy."

He liked his privacy and yet this was her second time coming to his place in just a few days? Exactly how much had he changed when he was in college this time around? He must have met people that influenced him since she wasn't there.

It shouldn't have surprised her. Goodness knows Keeley was different because of the new experiences during her second chance at college.

"By any chance is someone from the housekeeping service up there right now that we can call?" she asked hopefully.

"I think we're going to have to make multiple trips."

She sighed. "Alright, let's do the tree first. I'll take the small end again, you take the base."

They got a lot of funny looks in the lobby but pressed on to the elevator. Because Aaron owned the top three floors he had to turn a key in the elevator to access them. That way nobody could get up there unless he specifically called for them and the doorman, also with a key, let them up.

He certainly wanted to keep people out. Did something happen that made him paranoid about security or something? It seemed more likely that his hatred of humanity in general was going strong.

As it was, she still had no idea why he accepted her originally, however short term that may have been.

They carefully set the cat tree down and rode the elevator to the top, panting slightly from the exertion. Once the doors opened they moved it to the guest room on the first floor, where he planned to keep all of the cat's things since it was easier that way than having them scattered about.

Several tiring and mostly silent trips later, the room was set up and they trudged back downstairs to make the drive to Brooklyn. Keeley sighed. It was only 10:30.