Poor thing.
I’d never been a fan of the little creatures, but his giant ears and terrified shivering tore at my heartstrings.
“It’s okay. He won’t hurt you,” I said, turning back smiling. “We should get him back home though. What do you say? Will you help?”
I watched as his concerned expression melted into a sliver of a smile tugging at his lips.
“Will he bite me?”
“That depends,” I smiled standing back up. “Will you bite him?”
He giggled shaking his head. “No!”
“Well then, I think we’re pretty safe.” I laughed. “Can you hand me that box over there?”
He picked up the small wooden crate, I once used to hoist up treats my mother would place inside for me to enjoy without having to climb down, and handed it to me.
Scrunching down on all fours, the boy returned to his spot in the far corner.
I reached under the table, staring at the terrified creature, willing it to stay still. Please don’t bite me.
Surprisingly, I was calmer than I thought possible. This was very much out of my comfort zone, but considering I had no one else to help us, it left me in charge of stepping up.
My body tensed as I carefully reached the box out—sympathizing with the horrified mouse, whose eyes were bulged out, frozen in fear—and dropped it over him.
“You got him!”
“We still need to get him outside though.” I glanced around, searching for something to slide under the box so I could lift it up, and found a square tin sign that had hung on the wall for years before it rusted across the top. My mother had it made for me; it read ‘Cassie’s Castle.’
“Can you hand me that?” I pointed.
The boy stepped forward and handed me the sign. This time however, he remained at my side and even squatted down for a better view.
He began clapping; a giant grin spread over his tiny face when I slid the sign under the box and pressed it to the bottom as I slowly crawled back.
“Will he fall out?” he asked, his eyes wide with excitement.
“Not if I keep this pressed under here,” I explained. “Let’s go down and put him in the forest.”
The climb down the ladder was not one I’d forget anytime soon. It was a struggle to maneuver holding tightly to the box while attempting to hide my terrified anxiety at the thought of the mouse running up my arm if I made a wrong move. Within minutes, we climbed down the ladder and stood at the edge of the tree line in my backyard.
“Ready?” I asked, watching him bounce up and down nodding his head.
Adorable.
Leaning down I placed everything on the ground and stepped back.
“You can do the honors,” I said, smiling down at him.
“Really?” His eyes grew wide with surprise.
“Yeah, all you have to do is lift the box,” I said, noticing his apprehension.
He stepped forward, stood over the box, and glanced back at me. I gave him a reassuring smile and his body noticeably relaxed.
When he pulled off the box, the mouse shot straight at him. His mouth flew open in a giant circle, spilling out a laughable shriek.
The mouse continued past him and out into the sanctuary of the trees, leaving the boy jumping around giggling hysterically.
“You okay?” I snorted. His laughter was contagious.
He nodded his head again, “I’ve never seen a real mouse before.” He grinned. “He was kinda cute.”
“Yeah, he was.” I agreed but before I could say more or properly introduce myself a woman’s voice began yelling.
“Answer me, Oliver!”
“Uh-oh,” he said, looking down at his feet.
I turned to see the stick-thin supermodel responsible for ruining my fantasies of Logan as well as my pool. She was even more beautiful up close. Exactly the type of woman Logan belonged with.
“There you are,” she said, stopping abruptly a few feet away and staring between the boy I assumed was Oliver, and me.
“We caught a mouse with giant ears and then I got to set him free!” Oliver grinned, looking back the way the mouse ran off. “You should have seen him!”
“Eww.” Her face dripped with repulsion and I couldn’t help laughing.
She shot me a nasty look and I bit my lip giving a tight smile.
“Hi, I’m Cassandra. I live here,” I said, tilting my head back toward my house. “Oliver was just playing in my tree house and—”
“What?” she interrupted, her expression stern. “I told you to stay in your yard.”
The look of despair in Oliver’s eyes was one I recognized all too well. He was too young and innocent to have that amount of sadness written over his face. My chest tightened and the sudden need to defend his actions pulled at my heart.
“He was only here because I asked for his help. I’m not crazy about mice.” I gave my most convincing ‘sorry’ face and hoped for the best. For the first time in my life I lied without guilt. The smile on his face was worth it.
The young woman sighed. “Well, if you don’t mind, Oliver needs to stay in his own yard. His father has enough trouble keeping his eye on him. The last thing he needs is Oliver wandering away.”
“I really am sorry.” It was all I could muster because her expression shifted so radically from bitchy to protective and worried, I shuddered.
Maybe my new neighbors weren’t as perfect as I made them out to be.
Her expression softened and she smiled down at Oliver. “It’s fine. I just worry about him out here. He’s only four and living this far out from the town—with no friends around to play with—it’s not fair for him.”
I nodded along, it was true, there were no other small children living around the area. It was one of the few things I disliked when I stayed with my grandparents any longer than a night.
“I’m sure your son will find a lot of fun things to do out here. I always did when I was younger.” I stopped talking when she began to laugh. Her face was soft and friendly.
I pulled my brows together; unsure what I said that was supposed to be funny. Was there something on my face? My body stiffened and I self-consciously ran my hand down my hair.
“Oliver’s not my son.” She was smiling but this time it was focused on Oliver who was snickering as well. “I’ve gotten that a lot this weekend. I’m his aunt—Julia.”
I sucked in my lips giving a tight, embarrassed smile and nodded. “Logan’s your brother?”
The rate in which her smile dropped off her face nearly caused me whiplash. Instantly her casual friendly demeanor was wiped away and the bitchy girl was back, glaring at me.
“You already met Logan?” She asked through gritted teeth. Her voice dripped with disdain.
Not good.
I unconsciously took a step back. What the hell just happened?
“Um, yeah,” I muttered, confusion undoubtedly written all over my face. “He seems…nice.”
She puffed a breath of air and crossed her arms over her chest. “Oliver why don’t you go inside and get cleaned up for dinner,” she said, her eyes never straying from mine.
I stiffened, waiting like a child to be reprimanded for something I was innocent of, my subconscious began screaming ‘uh-oh.’