At Odds

Marylin stepped out of the moving truck grinning from ear to ear. “Good morning, Baltimore!”

Frank ridiculed, “I think that’s been said before.” 

“Who cares, it’s a new beginning!” Marylin jumped for joy, throwing bags of clothes in the air. 

“Three hours from my family, five from any friends, and I hate this football team.”

“What do you mean? The best bars, scenery and..pet rats!”

Frank pushed a box off the truck, “You’re disgusting.” 

Marylin stood on her tippy toes, batted her eyes displaying her baby blue eyes, “Beautifully disgusting.”

One foot after the other Frank plopped into their townhome. “Stains on the carpets, smoke stained walls, and what is that smell?”

Standing at the front door, Marylin popped her head in. “I have dinner in the oven!” 

“Eck, what is that? When did you start cooking?”

“I went to the nearby grocery store and picked up some meat for dinner. I’m not sure what it is. I started cooking before you arrived with the moving truck. I wanted it to be ready when you got here.”

“You’re not sure what the meat is?! But you’ll feed it to me?”

“Yup! It’s a risk worth taking,” Marylin said while winking. 

They sat down at their table eating the ‘special meat’ dinner. They both looked out the picture window of their dining room. A man was dragging a rake through their yard while another one was running with a lawn gnome in the air. 

Marylin questioned, with a mouth full of her specialty meat and green beans,“Aren’t our neighbors cooky?”

Nearly choking, Frank responded, “You disgust me, I’m not buying this happy juice you drank to be happy with this place.” He stood up and put the plate and silverware in the sink and looked around the house. The corners of his mouth tightened and his brow wrinkled while pointing to the kitchen cabinets. “I can’t believe we bought all white, it’s junk” 

“You’re silly Frank, white is in!” 

“In where? Not in my world.” 

Marylin headed toward the back door and shouted “Ok Mister Grumpy I”m going outside to make a phone call, I”ll be back.” 

While walking into the kitchen, she reached above the door frame, slid her fingers across it, and nodded. She walked over their modern area rug and tapped her feet on the floor testing the durability of the wood, smiled, nodded, and then proceeded to go out the sliding glass doors. She kicked the ant hills off of the patio as she dialed her phone. “I got him where I want him.” Marylin spoke with a straight face into the phone. 

Out walked Frank chuckling,  “Where do you want me?”

Marylin joined Frank in laughing, “I’m talking to my boss.” 

Frank ignored her response and continued, “I can’t believe we bought this place.” He placed his hand on Marylin’s shoulder, “I am happy that the neighbors aren’t super close like in our last house.” He smirked and raised one brow. “We should go back in, the clouds are rolling in.” Marylin and Frank held hands and walked back inside. 

They both continued to unpack. Marylin squealed, “I”ll unpack the kitchen!”

Frank responded with a whining undertone, “But why you? I want to do the kitchen, the only decent room in the house?”

Marylin pushed Frank aside “You will love the bedroom, besides, I love organizing kitchens!” She pushed the boxes that were sloppily labeled ‘kitchen’  across the wood floor into the kitchen. Frank carried all of the boxes into their bedroom with heavy footprints. One by one, Marylin pulled each item out of the kitchen boxes. Knives..hmm, nah, too conventional. Spoons..haha. Forks, no. Meat tenderizer hammer..yes! This seems oddly familiar. 

Frank walked into the kitchen and Marylin quickly put each item in their designated location. She smiled as she put the meat tenderizer hammer in the drawer. “Do you LOVE the bedroom?”

“No Marylin, of course I don’t. It’s tiny, the closet is small, and it smells like mold.” 

“Psh, it’s quaint, we don’t have many clothes, and the smell will go away.”

Frank, wrinkling his brow again, replied, “You are so gross. I trusted you to pick this house without my consent. Never again.”

Don’t worry sweetheart, you won’t have to deal with this much longer. Marylin chuckled in her head, “I think I’m done unpacking for the night, let’s go to bed.” They both walked up the rickety staircase to their bedroom. It was much warmer upstairs and the ceiling fan in their bedroom made a loud noise if left on. 

Frank hopped in the shower and Marylin slid her flower printed nightgown over her head before getting comfortable in bed. Marylin could hear Frank jumping in and out of the shower and muttering various phrases. She laughed slowly, Oh Frank. Marylin pushed down on the stiff mattress and flipped the top of her cold crisp quilt and sheets in preparation to hop in.  She peeked her head into the bathroom to see that Frank was still in the shower and began to tiptoe barefoot down the hallway. One room- empty. Two rooms-empty. We have so much to unpack. No light shined from the rooms, not even the street lights. She tip-toed quicker back to her room as she heard Frank coming out of the shower.  

She jumped into bed and acted like she was sleeping.

Frank looked over at Marylin, “Hey, I love you, you know that?” There was no reply and she continued to act like she was sleeping. “You are the best, I’m sorry I’m acting like this place is terrible, even though it is. I know you worked hard finding it, we will make the best of it.”

Marylin began to open one eye, then decided to continue sleeping. 

Frank continued, “I do love you, you don’t need to respond.” He laid down in bed and quickly fell asleep and rested his arm on her side. “You are the best thing I’ve ever had.”

Marylin waited until Frank was asleep and slinked out of bed. She tip-toed downstairs and ran into the kitchen. She hid the meat tenderizing hammer. She hid the knives. She hid the net above the door frame. Marylin ran to the kitchen, tapped her foot on the rug and opened the hidden compartment, threw her phone, and turned a switch off. Quickly, she made it to the stairwell and tiptoed up the stairs to her bedroom and slinked back into bed. 

Marylin laid into bed and grabbed Frank’s arm and said “You know, I love you too.” Slowly, he wrapped his hands around her neck saying, “GOT YOU!”