Hunted - 6

Logan left the building in a much better mood than he’d entered it and headed back to the house. As he walked he remembered he needed to find a length of pipe to use to hang up his clothes, which now resided in neat piles on his table. So he changed directions to walk the alleys instead of the sidewalks, amazed as he did at what people would throw away. If he had a bigger place he could have furnished it in style he thought with wry amusement. As it was he returned to the house not only with the perfect piece of pipe but also with two lengths of lumber that would work for shelves.

He entered the house through the back door and found Kief in the kitchen. The man looked at what Logan carried and chuckled. “All you need is some bricks if those are for bookshelves,” he said.

“That’s sort of what I was thinking actually.”

“He speaks.”

Logan frowned.

“Sorry,” Kief said. “But you're not exactly the most sociable person I’ve ever met, so hearing more than two words out of you...” he smiled.

“I… Yeah I guess I’m not. It takes me a while to get to know people and then…”

“Then we won’t be able to shut you up?”

“Well not that bad,” Logan replied as he juggled his finds to keep them balanced.

Kief immediately volunteered to help him get them upstairs. Logan hesitated for a moment before he asked if he’d take the pipe. Kief did and they made their way up to the attic apartment.

“Still pretty Spartan,” Kief commented, setting the pipe down on the floor by the door.

“I hope it’ll get better. I think I’ve got a job.”

“That always helps the bottom line. So, where are you putting the shelves?”

Logan looked around. With the table at the far end and the platform with the mattress taking up one wall there wasn’t much choice. He nodded at the last remaining wall. “There or between the mattress and the wall.”

“You’ll be bumping your head every time you go for something,” Kief pointed out. He tapped his lip while he studied the situation. “What if you used the shelves to separate the platform from the rest of the room? That way your sleeping area would seem more private and you’d still have an open space. If you got a small sofa it could go along the other wall. You’ve got about four feet of height there before the slope of the roof, so sitting wouldn’t be a problem as long as—"

“I watch me head when I stand up.” Logan chuckled

“Got it.” Kief smiled. “Yeah, that would work, and then put a small set of shelves next to the door and you should have enough storage space.”

“I’m putting the pipe there, hanging it for my clothes.”

“How much really needs to be hung up, other than shirts?”

“Well, not much I guess.”

“Then a couple of long hooks on the wall should work just fine and you’ll loose less space. God only knows you’ve got little enough as it is. Hang the pipe about…” Kief did a quick calculation in his head. “About a foot and a half out from the wall and get some nice fabric to throw over it for a curtain. You can put your jeans and stuff on the shelves behind it. Bingo, a closet of sorts.”

“You’re good at this.”

“My job, Logan. I’m an interior decorator, though I’ve never had to work with a place like this, thank God.”

Logan grinned. “Someday when I’m rich and famous I’ll hire you to do my mansion.”

“You’re on. Now, about the bricks you need. I think I saw some in the shed in the back yard that could work. Come on.”

“Why are you doing this?” Logan asked. He felt puzzled and just a bit overwhelmed.

“I’m after your hot body?” Kief laughed at the look of shock on Logan’s face. “I’m teasing. I have a hot body already and I’m not trading him in for anything. I guess I figure, since you’re living here we might as well be friends, if that’s okay with you.”

Logan nodded. “It is, I think.”

“Then come on, let’s go find us some bricks and build some shelves.”