THE BOLAN CHRONICLES: Reading #14

14. Approximate Minutes Reading (AMR): 8

Introduction to Characters:

THE BOLAN CHRONICLES

Chapter 3

A House

**The First Abode**

The next morning, the newlywed packed the truck and paid one last visit to the hotel lobby. Val and Fawn hugged the young couple and wished them a good life. They begged them to return and suggested that they stay longer the next time. As they turned to walk to the car, Fawn suggested that they all get a picture together in the garden area adjacent to the lobby. So the four of them sat down on a rustic bench under the oak Breakwater Inn sign, while a passerby guest was more than happy to snap the shot. 

The weather was cold, and a light rain fell as Jake and Donna pulled out of the parking lot.  

Jake had asked Donna not to enquire about where they would be living. He only promised her that it would be the best that he could find, given their financial situation. Donna had kept her word. She hadn't asked or said a thing. After ten minutes of travel, Jake began describing their first abode.  

"It’s plenty big enough for a starter. The way my mom describes their first place, you'd think they lived in a closet. This has got to be bigger."

"That's good." Donna replied.

"And it's an actual house, Donna."

Donna gasped and exclaimed, "A house? How did you manage that, Jake?"

Jake informed her that when he had been searching for a place, Twila had overheard him saying something to one of the cooks about it. As fate would have it, Twila's parents owned a small rental home in Trumbull, a tiny community six miles inland from Bridgeport. They had rented the home to the same couple for over thirty years, and the husband had passed away. The wife had moved to one of their daughter’s homes. Twila's parents had renovated the house and had shown it to several people, but, according to Twila, had considered all of them to be 'too wild looking' for their standards.  

Donna asked, "How much, Jake?"

"How much what?"

Donna giggled, "How much is the rent?"

"Okay, now that's the best part. Apparently, Twila's parents were so happy with these people that they only raised the rent twice in all the years.”

"Wow!  That's so nice!"

"Yeah," Jake said, "And at the time of the old guy's death, they were only paying $125 a month!"

"Oh! Wow!  Jake, that's unbelievable!"

"So, with all of the improvements they've made, including all new paint, carpets, and, according to Twila, lots of replacements, like faucets and such, they're only charging us $220 a month! And it’s got two bedrooms and two bathrooms!"

Donna would have been okay with anything Jake had found, but she grinned widely and leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. Then she talked about how things seemed to be working out so well and how excited she was to get there.

They talked about things like finding the nearest Laundromat and grocery store. Jake joked about buying a new television before they did anything, and Donna poked him and said that she, then, would have to be sure to find a nice washer and dryer pair at the local department store, and they laughed together.

When Donna asked Jake what he thought they should do about the baby's room, he said, "I suppose that's mostly up to you."

"Well," she replied, "I guess we could get a crib and maybe a play pen, but colors are tough to decide on when we don't know if its a boy or girl."

Jake looked at her and asked, "What do you want?"

"Oh, it really doesn't matter to me."

Jake snickered, "Yeah, almost everyone says that. You just need to add the 'As long as it’s healthy' part." Donna was a bit hurt by his comment. 

"So, what do you really want, Donna?" Jake paused, waiting for a reply. When Donna said nothing, Jake asked, "Don't you want to know what I think?"

"Sure."

"Well, I don't have any doubt that it will be a boy."

Donna looked at him, "Is that what you want?"

Jake stared at the road and sighed. Then he looked back at Donna and smiled.  It wasn't a smile that Donna quite recognized. She thought that somehow his eyes looked different. They seemed to look through rather than at her. Then he said, "That's what I want."

It was quiet for the next few minutes. When they passed the Trumbull sign just off of route 25, Jake pulled a small piece of paper from his coat pocket and handed it to Donna. "Read those directions for me."

"Take route 25 north to route 15. Go south on route 15 until..."

"Whoa. Whoa. Take route 25 north to route what?"

"Route 15."

They continued down route 25, and just before the junction, Donna spotted a small bookstore. 

“Look at that, Jake, it’s a bookstore. ‘World of Words.’  How cute.”

"Okay. There's 15. Then what?"

"Then turn right on Reservoir Avenue." Donna drew the paper close to her face and said, "Who wrote these?"

"Miss Twila did. Why?"

"She writes small."

Jake said, "Okay, then what?"

"Drive about one mile down Reservoir until you get to Sunset Avenue, then turn right. The house is the second one on the right at 11 Sunset Avenue."

Jake pulled into the short driveway and turned off the engine. They looked at the front of the house and then at one another. Donna tried not to look surprised. The front looked pitiful, at best. A long plywood ramp reached a small front porch slab, cracked and worn. The front door was new but unpainted.

Jake said, "Look, Donna. The front door is brand-spanking new!"

Donna laughed and said, "Yeah! A brand new front door!"

Then Jake said, "It stands out like high heals on a midget!" 

They walked up the ramp, and Jake pulled the key out of his pants pocket and unlocked and opened the door. Donna gasped and covered her mouth.  

Jake said, "Oh my god, Donna!  Look at this!"

The walls, the floor, the ceiling, everything was indeed, brand new, and it looked to Jake and Donna like a miniature mansion. The entryway opened up to a fairly large living area with a fireplace. A short wall that served also as a bar divided the living room from the kitchen. 

Donna rushed in and opened up all of the cupboards. "Jake, we'll fill maybe two of these!" And she laughed.

A small bathroom was located just at the hallway entry.

"This is so great!" Jake said. Then he walked down the short hall to the two adjacent bedrooms, the master on the right and the smaller bedroom on the left.  Donna sighed as she looked around the baby's future room. Jake announced from the master bedroom that he'd found another bathroom.  

At the end of the hall was another door. Jake opened it and found a set of steps. He pulled the small chain hanging from the ceiling. The light revealed a huge vacant basement.  He descended the concrete steps and found wooden shelves that lined the entirety of the walls of the room. Each wall had an exterior outlet. At the far end was a tall gas wall heater. Jake turned the nob and heard a few clicks then the sound of the igniting gas.  

"Donna!" He called. "Come down here!"

Donna made her way down and Jake showed her the heater and the shelves and he told her that this would be a great place for him to put a desk and maybe a small television someday. She hugged him and kissed him on the cheek then she ascended the steps and made her way back to the kitchen. 

After they'd spent more time admiring the house, they walked out to the backyard area and found nothing but weeds.  

"It's a god-damned castle in the wilderness!" Jake said.

 Donna laughed and asked, "Where do you come up with these things?" 

"Well," He replied, "Since my dad has the sense of humor of a frog, and my mom can't tell a joke from a choke, I have no idea, but maybe it was the mailman!" And Donna laughed again. 

They retrieved their suitcases from the back of the truck and piled them next to the fireplace. Jake asked if Donna was hungry, and with that they hopped back into the truck and found a Sambo's Restaurant several blocks away.  

After buying a few necessities at a nearby K-mart, they returned to their new little castle. Jake and Donna Bolan had begun the journey of a married couple, and they couldn't have been more pleased.