“Kelsey asleep yet?” I ask Zach as he enters the attic.

“Nope. On her laptop.”

Christian fists his hands on his hips and does a turn in the center of the room. “What needs done?”

“Sean and I hauled everyone’s stuff to your rooms. He cleaned the kitchen and is now working on the bath.” I toss him a paint brush. “Help me finish in here.”

The paint had been sitting up here for three months. It was supposed to go on the hall walls, but Sean hadn’t gotten to it yet. Since the attic is so dark, we decided to use what Sean calls Antique White up here.

“Think she’ll like it?” Ryan asks.

“I hope so.” The attic is more than just an attic. It’s the first space the owner started to convert to an apartment before we moved in. It’s the width and length of the brownstone, has a kitchen, though no appliances, a full bath, bedroom, walk-in closet, and living room. The very back room was designed to be another bedroom. It just has a smaller closet, but what didn’t fit in our rooms was shoved in there, like the Christmas decorations and other stuff that we don’t have room for in other places in the house. There’s also a small room next to it. A storage closet, basically, but that’s what Ryan uses as his darkroom because there are no windows. Hopefully Kelsey won’t mind him coming and going.

“Why does she need a place to live? I didn’t get it all between sets,” Christian asks.

I quickly explain and Christian just shakes his head. “That pisses me off on so many levels.”

“Hey, we’ve all faced the prejudice before,” I remind him.

“Not since before Baxter,” he retorts.

They don’t know about the student teaching yet, so I fill them in.

“What the fuck is wrong with people?” Sean demands. “Things are supposed to get better, but since that show, she’s been hit left and right with shit.”

“Kelsey still has us,” I remind them.

“Yep, and she sure as hell isn’t going to end up on the streets again.”

Sean comes out of the bedroom carrying a paint can, roller and brush. “Bedroom’s done. Does she have furniture?”

“I don’t know if what’s in her apartment is hers, or if it came furnished.”

“We’ll find out tomorrow.” I hand my paint brush off to Ryan and head out. “I better go check on her.”

When I get downstairs, Kelsey is asleep so I just grab a blanket and cover her and turn off the lights. I kind of hoped she’d be in my bed, but she needs rest and not me waking her to get her upstairs.

After we finish up the attic, we all head off to bed, knowing tomorrow is going to be another busy day. I’m torn between wanting to wake Kelsey and show her, and letting her sleep. The guys convince me to let her sleep.

By the time I come back downstairs again, it’s about nine in the morning and she’s gone. On the coffee table is a note. “Thanks for letting me crash on your couch.”

That’s it? Nothing else? Where the hell did she go?

Why the hell did she leave?