Destiny's End

It All Works Out

         Lanae had wanted to spend a few days visiting Sally and Steve before she started class, but it didn't work out. She called them and filled them in on everything that has happened, how she met a guy at the campground, how she had a fight with her mom and moved back out. She shared how she and Heather had gotten things going for her to return to school and how she eager she was to start classes.
         She had three days before she would start her classes, and she would have to work hard to catch up, since her classes had started a week before. They weren't regular college classes, one was an orientation class, and the other was a review of some high school curriculum the counselor thought would be good for her to take before jumping into the college classes. "A review of most of the stuff you had to study for your GED." The counselor had said.
         She worked Friday night at the caf getting acquainted with everything. She had the weekend off, then would train a few more days over the next week. By then she should have a schedule of her fall classes worked out and be able to set up her own work schedule.
         She got home kind of late after cleaning up and closing. She was tired, and didn't feel like changing into her pjs. She stripped down and crawled into bed, falling asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.
         The next morning she woke bright and early, but decided to lie in bed for a while. She couldn't sleep, though and got up, walking around the little apartment in the nude. She had the curtains pulled, and who would stop by and disturb her? She smiled, "Better enjoy it while you can, you'll have a roommate in a couple more weeks."
         For now, though the place was all hers. She didn't mind sharing an apartment, even though she was a bit nervous about who she would share it with. She had felt lonely for a long time now, but after her encounter out camping, she felt even more alone. She found herself often thinking of Sabastian. She thought it was kind of silly, since she hardly even knew him. "Seriously, you don't know him at all, you just had great sex." She would tell herself.
         But, she knew that wasn't true. Somehow she did know him and she could not get him out of her head. "Maybe you will meet some hot college stud and get over missing Sabastian." But, she knew that wasn't true. Somehow, the short time they had shared left an imprint on her heart forever.
         She began to feel even more depressed and lonesome, so she went and took a hot shower. After, she dressed and was trying to decide if she wanted to eat something first or after she strolled the campus. She decided to eat after she got back. It wasn't a huge campus, but she wanted to find her class rooms and familiarize herself a bit before Monday.
         It looked like a nice day, so she opened a window a little to let some air in, and seen a small group of people walking towards the apartment. She seen then turn and it looked like they were heading for her door. "Now, who would be coming here?" She answered her own question, "I suppose my new roommate and her friends are helping her move in."
         She went to the door and opened it, planning on being polite and introducing herself first thing. Only when she opened the door, she was looking into a pair of familiar green eyes. "Sally?"
         She hugged her friend, then looked at the others. Sure enough there was Steve, and behind him, Heather and Mike. "What are you doing here?" She exclaimed.
         "We come to give you a house warming and going off to college party." Sally informed her. They all packed into the little apartment and Lanae gave them the grand tour. Then, they all toured the campus, called and had a couple of pizzas delivered, and spent the day talking.
         It had been Heather's idea to get in touch with Sally and Steve. She had let Lanae use her home phone to call and talk, and she knew Lanae was bummed out because she couldn't go visit her friends. "So, I had this idea to call Sally and see if we couldn't come and give you a surprise visit. Mike was planning on coming over for the weekend since his caretaking at the campground was done, so it worked out great. I just looked up the number and called Sally, explained my idea, and the next thing you know - here we are."
         They had a wonderful weekend, even though it was very cramped in the little apartment. The next thing Lanae knew, Monday had arrived and she was going to her first class since eleventh grade. She was nervous, but soon relaxed. The teacher was great and she enjoyed herself. She had to work a little harder at her other class, and there was a lot of homework for both, but she liked it.
         Time flew by quickly and Lanae filled her time with school, homework, and waitressing. She kept busy, and that helped, but she felt her loneliness in the night, and even when she was busy it was never far away. She needed to get out of this rut before her regular classes started. She didn't know how, but she knew she needed to work it all out somehow.
         Sabastian spent the next few days in a kind of haze. He just sat around the apartment and slept, cried and paced. He was running out of food, he had used his dirty shirts for towels, and he needed to wash some cloths and get something going.
         He stuffed all his dirty clothes in a pillowcase. He didn't have much more, a few items he had brought with. Other than that, his camping gear, a little television, and his computer, the one he had gotten from Doug, were stored in the garage unit that came with the apartment. He had left most of his stuff back in his old apartment for the new guy moving in. He had some odd plates, glasses, and silverware he had collected at rummage sales. Most of the furniture belonged to Jenny, and the few blankets and stuff he had brought with.
         This was all he had now, too. Janie had taken most of the stuff with her, since it was hers. He supposed most of it was taken from her house when she moved out. She had left the bedding they had shared. He knew why she did, too. Her husband wouldn't want to sleep on the sheets his wife had shared with another lover.
         He didn't have any cookware, plates or anything in the apartment, but he was thinking about getting his camping gear and using that for the time being. At least till he could come up with a game plan. He pulled the Jeepster around back and put all his stuff in the vehicle. Then he went downtown to a Laundromat and washed up his cloths.
         He decided to unload the stuff before getting some food, so there would be a little more room. He also needed to plan his food list carefully, he didn't have much money. He had managed to save up a little from his job, but he'd been whittling it down a little at a time since he move in with Janie. He knew he had about seven hundred bucks left to his name.
         He parked in a visitor spot, the one for the apartment was taken. He got out and went to the door to open it, so he could bring his stuff in, and found the door already unlocked. He knew he had locked it, which meant someone else had unlocked it. He threw it wide and was just about to call her name, "Janie!" thinking she'd come back. Only the man looking at him wasn't Janie.
         Sabastian instinctively stepped back, as his mind filled in the answer to his question, "Who are you?"
         He knew it had to be Janie's husband, and he likely came to settle a score. Sabastian put his hand up and said, "Hold on, now. I know what you're thinking, but...."
         Before he could finish, the man replied, "So you know the lease is due then. I have it written up, but nobody showed up to sign and pay. Janie was supposed to stop by yesterday, do you know where she is?"
         "She moved out. I thought she had the lease done."
         "No, she never signed it or paid. Are you her husband?"
         "No, I'm her, um, I was her - boyfriend, I guess."
         "You guess? Oh well, it don't matter. I need someone to sign this and I need some money."
         "Um, how much is it, I mean for the lease? I'm going to need a place and since this is furnished and stuff, maybe I can lease it."
         "It's forty-eight hundred for the year, and you pay the utilities each month. In other words, each month I bring your utility bill by and you pay it by the end of that month. Any extras are yours to pay, too. Oh, and if you want a storage garage, that's extra, too. I had thrown one in for the lady, so I'll keep it the same for you. I need to have the name changed on this," He waved the papers he was holding, "and some money."
         "How soon? I mean, I don't have enough, how soon do I have to be out?"
         "I'll tell you what, I got half the damage deposit, and that don't even cover the first two weeks she was here. I need to get this empty and you have to be out now."
         "I don't have any place to go, isn't there like a three day notice or something?"
         "The guy looked at him, then shook his head. "You look like a nice kid and I got a feeling you got stiffed just like me. I don't want to go through the pain of getting an eviction notice and all the headaches that come with it. If I let you stay through the week and say you're out by Monday, will that work?"
         "Yeah, I can be out in a day or two, I mean, I understand you have to get this cleaned up and stuff."
         "Nope, you got to Monday. I will come by Monday afternoon and I want you out or ready to get out. But, since you aint paying nothing, you got to do something for me."
         "What?" Sabastian was uncertain, about this, but he was kind of in a bind.
         "Nothing bad, kid, relax. I just want you to get the place cleaned up for me. I'll get the cleaning stuff for you, and you wipe stuff down, vacuum and shampoo the carpets, just get it all cleaned up and let me know if there's any damage needs fixin. I hope not, but if there is, I can maybe pay you a little to get it fixed for me."
         "I can do that. Um, there isn't any damage, except one leg on the coffee table is kind of bent over some. I fell asleep on the couch and must have rolled off and hit the table. I think it will unbend just fine, though."
         "That's great kid, but the furniture doesn't stay. You got the stove and fridge, the rest belongs to someone else. I'd just prefer to have it all out, you know?"
"Um, yeah, but if it isn't yours, then it must be Janie's. I will call and tell her to come get it, I guess." He didn't want to call, he knew it would only make the pain worse for both.
         He didn't bother to unpack anything, he got some fruit, bread, and a pack of bologna. He used a pay phone to call Janie. He was afraid her husband would answer and felt a wave of relieve when he heard her soft voice. "Um, Janie? Yeah I'm sorry for bothering you, but I needed to talk to you."
         "Sabastian, I'm sorry, but there isn't anything for us to say anymore. You can't call me anymore, OK?"
         "Yeah, I know. Hey, look, I know I shouldn't bother you, but the guy for the apartment wants you to come get the furniture. I will leave so you can. Um when can you get it?"
         "It's not mine, it's rent to own from that place on the corner, I think Chucks Rent to Own is the name. I'm sorry to dump it all on you, but I had to go while I could. I hope you can forgive me?"
         "Oh, Janie, I already have. I know you did what you had to, and um, I. Um, Janie, it's fine, really, just be happy, alright. And Janie, I'm sorry, too. I will never forget you, and just want you to know everything will work out. Like you said, destiny. Um bye I guess." Sabastian could hear she was crying, and he didn't want to feel the pain start up again, so he hung up and drove back to the apartment.
         He went in and packed up the few things he still had inside, then drove down to the rent to own place and gave the cashier the keys to the apartment. "Um, Janie Hanson has some stuff and she left it in this apartment." He gave her the address. "She moved out and the stuff needs to be out by Monday, I guess. Sorry for the inconvenience."
         Sabastian drove down to the little park he had stopped at days before and parked his wagon. He couldn't stand going back to the apartment, and since he didn't have any place else to go, this would be fine. The next morning he was woke up by a police officer tapping on his window.
         He rubbed his eyes and rolled the window down, "Yeah, is there a problem?"
         The police officer smiled, "Good morning sleepyhead, yeah there is. There is no overnight parking on this street, and you been here all night."
         "I'm sorry, I didn't see any sign." Even as he explained, he seen there was a sign just up the road. "I must have been blind. I didn't mean to cause you any problems, officer. I just broke up with my girlfriend and didn't have any place to go. I suppose you have to give me a ticket?"
         "Let me see your license and registration, please?" Sabastian dug them out and handed them to the police officer. A minute later he had them back.
         "Look kid, I can see you have all your stuff packed in there, so I'm not even going to call this in. You look like a nice guy, but you need to pay attention to stuff, even if your heart got broke, you understand? There's a campground a couple miles out of town on this road. There's a big sign, you can't miss it. The rates are pretty fair, and I see you got some camping gear, so you should be set for a while."
         "Thanks, I'll look into it. And thanks for not giving me a ticket." Sabastian started the motor and drove off. He was starved, and thought about pulling in and making a sandwich, but wasn't sure where. He drove a little further and seen a little caf "Why not it may be the last time you get to eat out for a long time."
He pulled onto the side road and looked for a place to park. He ended up a block down before he found a place to park. He whipped the Jeep in and locked it up and started walking back down the street. The traffic was light, so he crossed over to the other side and found himself in front of a small theatre with a help wanted sign in the window.
         He read the ad, and decided to go in and apply. "What do you have to lose?" He asked as he pulled the door open.
         Inside he found himself alone. He looked around while he waited and seen it was an actual theatre, not movies, but live plays. He felt a little excitement as he looked around. The sign said they needed someone to set up and assist, he could do that, he had a degree in it.
         "Hello, can I help you?"
         Sabastian turned, startled by the voice, "Um yeah, I want to apply for the job posted in the window."
         "Here, fill this out, I'll be right back."
         A minute later another man, older came out. "You want a job, I hear."
         "Yeah, if I qualify. I have a degree in  this field and I know I can do it."
         "You don't even know for sure what we want, but I like your confidence. Come back here and let's talk."
         Sabastian followed him back to a little break room and they sat at the table and talked. An hour later he was bursting at the seams with excitement. He had the job, and if he did well, it was his. If not, he would be an assistant manager. He would have to get his diploma and stuff unpacked and bring it in, but he had a few days while they set up. He had learned they had just moved and were hoping to get things going but the group had lost the old manager when they moved.
         He went into the caf ordered a burger, some fries and a slice of pie for desert. Then it was off to the campground to get set up. He would have to live there for a while until things fell into place for him. Hopefully he could find a decent apartment for a price he could afford, but he wasn't going to worry about that now.
         He took a chunk of pie on his fork and was just about to close down on it when he heard a voice. He turned and looked, but he couldn't see, the door to the kitchen blocked his view. By the time they swung shut there was no one in sight. His heart yelled for him to go find her.
         He was certain he had heard Lanae, her sweet soft voice echoing in his mind. It couldn't be, he knew that. Then, he turned back and bit into the pie. "You have to get a grip on yourself, Sabastian. Just because you're excited over the job don't mean she's just going to stroll back into your life."
         He finished his pie, left enough to pay for everything and a nice tip to boot and strolled back down the street. Five minutes later he was at the campground, Maple Lane Park, the sign read. He went into the office and an older man came out of the back.
         "I want to rent a tent site for a while."
         "You want electric or not?"
         "No, I don't need electricity, thanks anyway."
         "You want to be close to the showers?"
         "Yeah, that would be great."
         "How long you planning on staying?"
         "I don't know, I need to find an apartment in town, but I just started working and it's going to be a while before I can afford something. Is there a time limit?"
         "Nope, no time limit. Stay as long as you pay, that's all. But, it's going to be getting cold and a tent ain't none to warm. We got cabins, too."
         "A tent will have to do, I can't afford much right now, and I have camping gear and a tent, so a tent site, by the showers would be great."
         "You want work?"
         "I just got a job, I start next week, why"
         "The summer caretaker just quit. Only wanted to work for the summer, you know, college kid. We stay open year round and need a caretaker. It don't pay much, couple hundred bucks a month is 'bout it. But you get a heated cabin with lights to stay in. Aint nothing fancy, a little kitchen, a living room, a bedroom and a bathroom. No tub, just a shower, but like I said, you get heat and lights, oh and water, too."
         "When would I start?"
         "We ain't too busy this time of year, so there aint much to do most of the time. Come on, I'll show ya around and get you settled in. Tomorrow come by and we'll get the paperwork done and get you started."
         Sabastian followed the old guy out, smiling. Once again he heard Lanae's voice, "Things will work out, they always do."
         "Yes, they always do." He didn't turn and look this time, he knew she was only in his mind.

***