Chapter 22

Hours later James and I were back at his house after getting me a new phone with my insurance money, along with everything that was taken from my apartment. I had collected a new Mac laptop, a new thirty two inch plasma screen tv, a new Tiffany's necklace James picked out for me that replaced my old jewelry that was taken. Since the police were unable to find any of what the thief had taken, I had received money for everything and plus some. James and I stared at the mess in his sitting area when we got back and then looked at one another.

"This is going to take hours." I told him. He shrugged.

"Might as well tackle it now." He said. We nodded and dug in. Some of the things James bought me for my new house, but other than that, James had gotten emails for me from promotional advertisers. James had bought me white and yellow striped sheets, pillow cases, and a comforter matching with black flowers as well, new dish-ware, new kitchen island, and a matching style of desk for our office.

He was all over me all night. His lips were always on my hand or on my cheek as if I would forget he loved me. What people and companies had sent me was all mainly for our foundation or for public speaking events. I had gotten personalized 'Be Perfection' letter headed paper and envelopes, personalized 'B P' lettered office chairs with my name on the back then for Alexa, then a custom music player that James insisted on installing soon to try it out and to see how it sounded through out the house, also a complete set of matching yellow curtains and white sheers for the windows through the house. James had admitted to telling everyone I was getting a new home/office and I assumed they took that as their cue to buy new things for a house. Then the bigger items James had bought me, he tried hiding.

"James, you can't hide them." I told him as I could hear him behind my back pushing some boxes around. I was still amazed by the sign with our logo on it and was currently staring at it from my new custom office chair which was delightful.

"I can try. You don't need these yet." He said huffing and puffing.

"Why is that?" I asked standing up and crossing my arms over my chest. He smirked.

"They aren't really for you." He said. I glared at him trying to get him to talk, and he did.

"It's for Oliver." James said. I giggled.

"Really now?" I asked. He nodded smiling.

"It's a really cool kitty tree thing I found, it has like six different level branches that are beds for him." He said excitedly opening the box. I laughed as he started putting it together right away.

"You're a dork." I said giggling. Almost instantly, Oliver ran down the stairwell wobbly with his little paws clicking as he walked. He then ran over to James and got in the way. "Baby, you gotta wait for James to put it together." I told him picking him up and waiting for James to finish. Oliver however laid still in my arms and looked as if he was breathing heavy.

"James?" I asked worried now picking up Oliver to look him in the face. His eyes were very watery and I could see a little bit of cloudiness in one eye.

"Yeah?" He asked popping a limb into the cat tree trunk without looking at me.

"I think Oliver may have a cold or something." I told James. James looked up.

"Why do you think that?" James asked. I shrugged and stood up walking Oliver over to James while Oliver breathed heavily still. "Ah, his eyes don't look too good. Maybe he's going blind." James said on his knees and about even with Oliver in my arms.

"But his breathing, it's rough and doesn't sound too good." I told James. James looked worried now.

"Maybe, call his vet and make an appointment to go see him soon." James said scratching Oliver's ear. I sighed and held Oliver for about four hours that night which was really weird because he never sits with me that long in a row, usually he'll go walk around, eat, or move at least once, but he only laid on my lap in bed that night. James brought in the cat tree as I picked up Oliver and walked him over to his new bed. I set him down and watched as his breathing sounded like a wheezing. I had called the vets an hour after James had told me to, and he was set to be seen on Thursday, which was two days from now.

"James he looks really bad." I said walking in the bathroom to see James barely slipping on his pajama bottoms with no shirt on. He nodded.

"I know. He doesn't look healthy whatsoever." James said then picking up his tooth brush and starting to brush. I walked over to the sink and hoped up on it. I grabbed my own toothbrush and started as well. James finished and wiped his mouth. I then finished and did the same.

"I mean, he's old for a cat, I've had him since middle school, he's fourteen." I told James. He stood at my knees and leaned on his hands on the counter. He sighed.

"He is old, I mean cats usually are independent, but that being said some owners miss signs of problems with their kitties. I googled it while I was answering emails this morning." James said.

"This morning? You didn't tell me anything was wrong with Oliver, I had to find out on my own?" I asked James annoyed. James shook his head.

"I just thought he had a weird way of breathing and googled things. I got distracted." James defended himself. I sighed leaning my head on James's bare chest.

"I'm worried." I mumbled. James hugged me.

"It'll be fine." James said pulling away and then walking out of the bathroom leaving me to change and get ready to settle down for the night.

The next day James and I took all of the stuff I had gotten delivered to me to my new house. We decided it was best to move in slowly rather than all at once. Besides I had a month until the commercial shoot so I didn't really need an office just quite. We chilled the remainder of the day and hung out with Oliver as he seemed to get worse. Then on Thursday, the day of Oliver's appointment, I needed to get his cat carrier from my apartment, so James came with me. We pulled up in my Soul and climbed the stairs.

"Weird coming back here." I told James unlocking the door and walking in. He groaned.

"I don't like the negative energy here." James said closing the door behind him and holding a few bags to grab all my clothes. I sighed and walked into the living room, there was still a pretty visible stain of where my head had bled. "Nice job cleaning up LAPD." James mumbled. I shivered and turned around to see James looking at how empty my living room looked.

"Weird being here huh?" I asked him. He nodded. "Maybe we should move most of my stuff today?" I asked him not wanting to have to come back more and more. He shrugged.

"You sure you want to?" He asked. I nodded.

"I'm ready to move on. Oliver's appointment is at three so we have until one thirty for me to get back and pick him up and get there in time, to move stuff if you're up to it." I told James. James smiled and nodded.

"Let's do it." James smiled taking the bags and heading towards the bedroom. I followed him and immediately grabbed hangers worth of clothes and shoes shoving them in the bags. We had my wardrobe emptied in four bags. James took them down to my car as I continued. I put my hair and makeup tools and accessories in another bag along with whatever was in my nightstand. I took the pictures and paintings off the walls and James and I stuffed them in the back of my Soul as well as the contents of my bathroom. I emptied the fridge either into the trash if it was spoiled or into a box, then I emptied the cabinets. Some of the furniture came with the apartment so I only had to come back again for the mattress and box spring and for that we'd need Carlos's help for going down the stairs. My apartment was no longer mine aside from my bed, it echoed as I walked in it.

"Wow, one car full, you don't own a whole lot do ya?" James asked. I shook my head.

"Nope, when you don't have that great a job, and no family around and many friends, you don't need to decorate and you can't afford to. But I'm doing better now so my house will be different." I told James sitting on the bare mattress. James joined me taking off his hoodie as he sweated a little warm from climbing those stairs and carrying fifty pounds of clothing in those bags. I leaned on him sweaty or not.

"Everything's changing." I told James. He put an arm around me.

"For the better?" He asked. I smiled honestly happy.

"For the greater." I told him. We left my apartment at noon. We stopped for lunch and then headed to my house. We unloaded everything into the house aside from a bag of clothes and Oliver's car carrier. We then headed home to James's and grabbed the sleeping Oliver and put him in the carrier. He didn't even seem to care which was unusual for him, usually he would howl from his crate, but now he laid still and just sad looking.

"I think everything's changing and Oliver's too old for that." I told James as we drove him to his appointment. James sighed.

"I think so too." James agreed reluctantly. I breathed deep and told myself, Oliver was old, he was a good cat. He doesn't need to be suffering just to be with me anymore. He was my best friend in my darkest moments and he was okay to leave me. I looked at James who looked conflicted ahead of my car and I smiled sadly knowing I would be left in good hands. I was a crazy cat lady, but I didn't care what anyone said about me.