I pulled the bowl out after ten minutes and poured in the flavor from the sachet, turning it into a strange mustard colour.
Was I doing this right?
It smelled amazing, on the other hand. I took two bowls out and filled them up, me getting the bigger portion, obviously, and placed them on the table.
Where was this man? Did he drown?
Can someone drown in a shower? Was that even possible? I saved this question to the back of my head, so I could Google it next time I used the computer. I looked at the time and sighed. Too late. I tried waiting for a minute, but he was late. I grabbed my bowl and walked to the sofa, switching the TV on. What was Melbourne up to?
It was just past eight at night and there was nothing interesting. I settled for some kids’ movie and huddled up on the sofa eating.
Was this meant to taste slightly watery? I shrugged. It was edible anyway.
It wasn't till ten minutes later that Darius came down, and surprisingly without his folder, and looked at me.
"What are you watching?"
"The Hedge."
It was boring, maybe good to watch once but definitely not twice. Why couldn't they play Bolt or something? He sat on the couch and took out his phone. Ahhh, there it was, as usual.
"Which one is that?" I asked, shoving a forkful into my mouth. They all looked the same to me. "You should stick stickers on them."
"I know which one is which. This is family."
Well, I don't. "What's that?" I said, pointing to the list of names that just said, oh Mum.
"Missed calls."
I grimaced. If I got that many missed calls from mum, I'd be dead or buried alive in a coffin sixty feet under the ground. "Good luck," I said as I leaned back in my cushion. He'll need it.
"I'll call her later," he said, putting his phone back in his pocket. I raised an eyebrow questioningly. Was he really going to risk calling her later?
"I have to go in to drop something in the morning. Marge should be back by afternoon. You'll be fine, right?"
I nodded. "I think I can manage not to burn the house down."
"I mean it's big. Do you want me to call Adrian?"
"No, he'll eat all the food – Hey!"
Darius took my bowl and I glared as he took a bite. Adrian wasn't the only who stole food. It seemed to run in the family.
"Yours is on the kitchen table," I said.
"Too far to walk."
I raised an eyebrow, quietly asking myself, since when did he become lazy? Was I finally rubbing off on him?
I focused my attention on the TV. I was feeling slightly bit full and I was meant to eat slowly anyway. I flipped through the channels. God, I was so bored.
"It's boring," I told him.
"We can get foxtel."
"Watching TV all day?" I asked. Surely that wasn't good for you and it was going to make me sick. Stuck at home with Marge while he was at work brought back boredom.
"Why don't you take a part-time job? If you want, of course."
My jaw fell open and I tried not to gawk. Did he just say what I was trying to ask? And here I thought, how can I approach the subject subtly? Thanks, Adrian, for a whole heap of nothing.
"Anything I want to do?"
"It's your job."
"What if I want to work in a cafe?"
"Bring back some cake. They make good cakes."
"A dog walker?"
"Just have a shower afterwards."
"A stripper?"
Darius looked at me, raising an eyebrow. "I think there are some limits."
"Damn. I always wanted to be a stripper," I joked, but there was no way I was freezing my ass off in the cold. I was sure they got huge tips though.
Darius shook his head beside me and lifted up the fork. "Want the last bite?"
I was full, but it was food and he was practically holding the fork in my face. Not my fault if I eat it, and that's what I did. I leaned over and took the bite and stopped. Did he just feed me? The last time someone fed me was when I was five when I refused to eat. I was a strange child, never eating.
So I made up for it now.
Darius placed the bowl on the table and took the remote out of my hands, flicking through the channels.
"There's nothing on," I said, leaning back with a sigh.
"Want to play monopoly?"
"I give up," I said, lying on the floor. We ended up playing monopoly in one of the drawing rooms beside the fireplace. I never even knew we have a drawing room.
The carpet felt softer than foam.
"But you have more cash than me."
I leaned up on my elbows and raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?" I looked at my cash pile and his, then my eyes turned to the properties. "You own three-quarters of the damn board, Dairy. Soon you'll be taking all my cash."
It was a bit funny to see him on the floor lying on his stomach and playing with the dice, not something one would see very often. Darius the night away, live your life and stay young on the floor.
"Fine. Here, I'll give you one of my properties," he said, holding out a pink card. I raised an eyebrow, as though to say, like that was going to do anything. Unless I rolled a twenty from two dice I was never going to land safely.
Maybe I should go to jail.