The following day passed by quiet quickly. In the absence of Xavier, Raine couldn't help but feel that a part of her was missing. Each time the bell on the door rang, Raine's eyes would shoot up to the entry of the cafe, hoping to see the mystical blue eyes she had grown to befriend.
Unfortunately, no matter how many times she looked up to the door, Xavier did not appear in front of her.
These actions however, did not go unnoticed by her two friends who had taken the responsibility of teasing Raine at every instant. And even though Mike was reluctant of Raine being close to Xavier, he was also enjoying teasing the girl while he could.
"Looks like Prince Charming won't be dropping by to recuse out princess today." Daisy sang as she balanced to trays of freshly baked brownies through the cafe. Seeing Daisy with the trays, Mike rushed over to help her.
Raine rolled her eyes. This was probably the fifth time in the last hour that Daisy had said that. She was just waiting impatiently for Raine to respond but Raine played the game just well, by avoiding any such talks.
"I know you heard me Rainy!" Daisy shouted across the cafe while Mike laughed.
Today wasn't the busiest day and closing time was soon approaching. Taking off her apron, Raine made her way to one of the empty tables and sat down. "I'm not saying a word guys." Raine said as she pulled out a book from her bag and began to read, muting out all of the noises that Mike and Daisy were making to try and disturb her.
"You know, you can always text him."
Just as Raine heard Daisy's voice, she set the book down, a mix of emotions running through her mind. It was beyond obvious that Raine wanted to talk to him but she didn't know what to say. Afraid to be a disturbance, Raine had refrained from texting or calling him all day. But now the situation was different. It was the evening and by now Xavier had definitely finished whatever meetings he was meant to attend so one text wouldn't hurt. But then again, if Xavier was anything but busy, he would have texted her himself as he had been doing for the past couple of days.
The hurricane of thoughts finally settled down and Raine reached into her bag, pulling out her shiny phone. Opening up the Messages app, Raine typed up a quick greeting.
Raine Woods >> Hey Xavier. You busy?
Her foot tapped rapidly on the floor as she waiting for him to respond. Unfortunately, a reply didn't come, leaving Raine disheartened. She shut her phone off and pushed it back into her bag, resting her head on her hands which were propped up on the table.
She stared out at the city lights and the rampage of cars as people rushed to get back home. Just as she was sitting there, she felt a hand rest on her shoulder, causing her to turn around. She found a soft smile on Mike's face as he pulled up a chair next to her and sat down.
"He's probably busy."
Raine couldn't help but smile at Mike's gesture. She knew very well that he wasn't a fan of Xavier but the fact that he could set his differences aside to comfort her, melted her heart.
"Yeah probably." Raine said removing her hands from the table and sitting up straight. "He said that there was an important conference. He was quiet worried about it last night too."
"Last night?" Mike said with a frown on his face.
"Last night!!" Daisy pulled out a chair and jumped right in with a grin on her face.
"Umm....well I met him on the way back home. He dropped me off."
"Oh my gosh!! How cute!!" Daisy gushed while Mike just stared out the window.
"Do you trust him Raine?" Mike asked after a moment of silence.
The question caught Raine off guard. She was known to have trust issues and it had taken both Daisy and Mike a while to fully earn her trust. But the way everything was going with Xavier, Raine knew that things were going pretty fast.
"I don't think he's given me any reason not to trust him." Raine said after thinking for a bit. "And plus, it's not like we're dating or anything. We're just friends."
A sinister smile grew on Daisy's face as she stared at Raine. "Yeah, yeah. I'll see about that."
Raine rolled her eyes and looked back at the clock. "Guys, shall we close it up?"
"Yup!" Daisy chirped as she shot up from her seat. "Get out of here guys! I gotta go home."
* * *
It wasn't long before Raine's apartment came in sight. However, a frown formed on her face when she noticed an old man standing in front of a blue SUV at the base of the building. Quickly, she picked up her pace, walking up to the man.
"Mr. Hunnington?" Raine said rubbing her hands together to warm herself up. "I'm sorry I wasn't expecting you."
"Raine, where have you been? I've been waiting for the past hour." The man replied. Though he was old, his voice still held the same strengthen of a young man. He had been a part of the military for 10 years and was now retired.
"Sorry, I just got back from work." Raine said a frown forming on her face. Mr. Hunnington was the owner of the apartment that she had been renting for the past year. The same guy that had asked her to clear it out within a month. And seeing him waiting for her, clearly didn't scream good news. "Did you need anything?"
"Look Raine, I've already talk to you about the situation before."
"I know Mr. Hunnington but I haven't been able to find another place. I promise I've been looking. I just need more time." Raine said with desperation in her voice.
"I'm sorry Raine. But I can't help you out anymore. I gave you a month to find a another place and now I can't wait any long." The man paused before putting up a serious and stern face, discharging any emotions that were once in his eyes. "I'm going to need you out of here by tomorrow morning."
"WHAT?!" Raine said as she felt the ground slip underneath her. She knew that this day was coming soon but she hadn't thought that it would be this soon. "You told me I had a month to leave!"
"I meant by the end of this month Raine. I've given you enough time."
"You can't do that Mr. Hunnington! How can you ask me to leave tomorrow?!" She run her fingers through her hair in frustration. "I have no place to go."
"I gave you a notice in advance." Raine looked up to him in disbelief. "You should be thankful I'm letting you stay the night. I could have asked you to leave right now as well."
"But....." She wanted to fight, to argue, to rebel but what could she do? The truth was that Mr. Hunninton was the owner of the apartment and that he had given her a notice. Raine had failed to find a new living arrangement with the choas at the cafe and now she was going to be left on the streets.
Signing at her bad luck, Raine slowly nodded at the man. "I'll have it cleared out but tomorrow morning."  She mumbled heartlessly.
"Thank you." The man said, attempting to put up a smile but failing when he saw Raine's worried expression. "I'm sorry for having to do this Raine, but I gave you time. You're a great girl Raine, I know you'll find another place that's even better."
"You're right" This was the last thing she said before she turned around and walked towards the steps of the apartment with a blank vision. She sat down on the edge and rested her head in her hands as she heard the car turn on and leave.
Once she was sure Mr. Hunnington had left, she stood back up and paced in front of the building.
"What am I going to do?" She said to no one in particular. "I have nowhere to go!"
Within an instant Xavier's name popped up into her mind. She knew that without any hesitation Xavier would surely help her. Reaching into her pocket she was about to dial his number when she remembered his words from last night. "Xavier's in Toronto!" Raine muttered to herself. If he was there then how would he possibly be able to help her? "Damn it!" Raine said kicking the thrash can. "Now what?! I'm gunna be on the streets!" She said faking a cry.
Scrolling through her contacts, Mike's name popped up. Quickly she dialed his name, hoping he would pick up. After a couple of rings, relief passed through her body hearing Mike's voice.
"Hello?"
"Mike?" Raine said grasping her phone with both of her hands.
"Raine? Hey, are you alright? Is everything ok at the cafe? Please tell me you're home Raine!" Mike voice soon filled with panic.
"Relax Mike, I'm at my apartment." She could her him release a breath of relief.
"Thank god! Now tell me why you called?"
"Umm....well I...." Lost on what to say, Raine trailed off.
"What happened Raine? Is everything ok?" Mike said, concerned infusing his voice.
"Mr. Hunnington came by today. Apparently my deadline in finding a new place is over. He wants me out of here by tomorrow morning."
"What?!" Mike shouted through the phone, making Raine flinch a bit. "But I though he gave you a month!"
"Me too. But now he's saying that he gave me till the end of this month." Raine shook her head to herself. This was possibly one of the crappiest days of her life.
"But that's not even fair!"
"I know but what can I do? I haven't even found a new place yet." Raine sat back down on the steps outside her apartment. "I have nowhere to go! I don't even know how I'll get all of this stuff out of here!"
"Hey." Mike said in a gentle voice. "I told you that my apartment's always open to you. Just wait where you are, I'm coming right now and we can stift all of your stuff to my place. You'll have the apartment vacant before tomorrow morning."
'But----" Raine began. But Mike beat her to it.
"Raine, you clearly don't have any other options. Just come over for now. You can think about what you want to do next later on too."
"Ok I guess." Raine said after thinking about it for a few more seconds. Even if she hated being a burden on other people, it was her only option. "Thank you so much Mikey."
"Save it Rainy." Mike said in a playful voice. "I've been telling you for a while to move in with me but you never listen! I've never even liked where you live to begin with! Anyways, I'm not going to give you a lecture or tell you 'i told you so,' so don't worry." Mike said with a teasing voice. "I'll be over in 15, start packing."
"Ok." Raine said before hanging up.
Although she was grateful to have a friend like Mike by her side, she felt guilty. She had always hated getting help from friends or family because she detested seeing pity or sympathy in their eyes. Mike and Daisy were two exceptions though. They had accepted her for who she was and never tried to push her in changing herself. They had accepted her past and the sorrows that came with it, always trying hard to make she smile and forget.
The first time Mike had dropped Raine to her house, he had fought with her for even thinking about staying at a place like that. It wasn't safe and it wasn't decent but it was all Raine could afford at the time. However, when hearing Raine's story, Mike respected her decisions, but also convinced her that he would be there for her whenever she needed the help.
Raine walked up to her apartment, opening the door for perhaps that last time. Kicking her shoes off, she took one last good look at the way she had turned a run down room into a home for herself. The paint that she had applied with her own hand and the books she had filled her shelves with. It was all coming to an end now.
Much of the kitchen was packed up since Raine had been prepared for this day. The only thing that she didn't know was that it would come this soon. Rolling her sleeves up, she jumped right into work.
It wasn't long before Raine heard a loud knock on the door. Getting up from the floor, she rushed to the door, opening it to find Mike.
"Hey." Mike said as he walked inside and shrugged the thick jacket off his body, setting it on the sofa. "Sorry I'm late. There was an accident on 10th Avenue."
"It's ok." Raine said, approaching him with a glass of water. "I started packing some stuff."
"Cool." He said drinking the glass of water. "Show me what you've already packed so I can start loading the car."
"Ok, so those boxes over there are all of the kitchen supplies." Raine said pointing to three big boxes. "Be careful, they have glass inside."
"Gotcha." Mike said as he picked up on of the boxes with care. "I'll go drop these downstairs, you pack up your room."
Raine nodded and got straight to work. Grabbing an old microwave box, she began filling it up with her small items. Her clothing was piled into a handbag and the other things that she had decorated her house with were packed away in small boxes or old grocery bags.
It was about 2 AM and the apartment was finally emptied. After working like animals for the past couple of hours, both Mike and Raine were exhausted beyond limits.
"I think we got everything." Mike said as he walked around the apartment, double checking to make sure they hadn't left anything behind.
"I can't believe I'm leaving this place." Raine said as her eyes trailed along the walls of the adobe. When she had moved in a year ago, she had thought that her journey there would last way longer then this.
"Hey." Mike said, pulling Raine out of her thoughts. "Everything's for the better. On the bright side, you finally are out of this unsafe neighbor! You have no idea how much I hate this place!" Mike said squeezing out a laugh from Raine.
"I guess you're right." A smile forming on her once depressed face.
"Ready to go?" Mike said tossing his coat over his shoulders.
"Yeah, let me leave these spare keys along with the rent."
Raine set an envelop with  the last check along with the keys on the kitchen counter. After taking one last good look at the now empty room she once called home, she shut the down for the last time.
Mike put an arms around her shoulders, guiding her down the stairs and into his car. Once they were both buckled up they set off on the road with a car full of boxes and a mind full of emotions.
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