If there's no one beside you

 

Carmen knew something like this would happen with Tristan and Dale. Oh, she knew how Tristan used all that energy of his about how this apartment would be his home for life. When his parents mentioned how they'd love to rent their house to them for just the right price, it was a different story. Just when she was getting used to how comfortable it was this summer and now what? Her Freshman year at the university would be starting.

"It'll be fine, we'll find a roommate," Justin told her. 

After the flood, he seemed different, like maybe he was twenty-something after all. He was calm about it like it wasn't a big deal. He seemed to be enjoying his job. She liked working there. She liked everyone.

"Maybe I should just live there," she said out of the blue one night over dinner when it was just the two of them.

"What?" He winced hard, "You want to live there?" He pointed out how it was so overcrowded. The place used to be an old grocery store in a strip mall. "I feel bad that Randy has to be there."

"You're worried about him?" Carmen practically smiled as she forked some mac and cheese into her mouth. After all, Tristan and Dale were spending the night at his parents' house even though most of their stuff was still there. 

Justin was quiet as he ate his broccoli without her having to tell him to. "When they get cleared out, I want you to have their room." After all, it was the master suite with a bathroom.

"What?" She cracked up as if he was too funny. She didn't expect that. She went back to the no-meat meal while he munched on a carrot. 

"Actually, I found out the group home will help me be Randy's guardian," he told her. "I didn't think I would be somebody who could do that, but our supervisor tells me a lot of people who come to this country are getting incentives from the government to do it, but that's not why I'm doing it."

"So, it would be just you, me, and Randy?" Carmen looked at him with big eyes. She'd never heard anything like it.

"I don't think I could do it for anyone else," Justin admitted. "I think it'll be OK if it's just us. I want him to feel he's got a home." Justin said Randy could still do a lot of activities during the day from the group home, but he would be living with them. 

Carmen smiled brightly and picked up her glass of milk, "I'm so proud of you, Justin." They made a toast with their cold glasses of milk.

"I'm pretty sure he's going to like eating here, too," Justin said he didn't like eating with all those people at the group home.