Caroline’s thoughts were turning to pure gibberish as she tried to piece together everything that Thomas attempting to help her understand. The red wine had a calming effect over her physicality of her nervous energy and helped the trembling come to a pause, but it almost felt as if her brain would short-circuit if any more information was to be given to her. The man in front of her seemed to know enough to fight the mysterious entities that had introduced themselves into her life. As if they were a white flag, Caroline raised her arms up in defeat momentarily before wrapping them back around her legs. “I’ll take you up on your offer, Thomas. I’ve gotta get some of my shit together. Make yourself at home.”

Without making eye contact with the investigator, she scooted her bar stool in, went to pick up her bra and dress that had been tossed on the floor earlier, and went back inside the room that had just been her prison. She decided to pack lightly for now; she did not know how long she would be away from home. A few tee shirts, a pair of jeans, a pair of shorts, and her favorite hoodie were thrown messily into a large tote bag, along with some make up and toiletries. The whole process took about ten minutes, and soon enough, she returned to the island in the kitchen and plopped the bag on the counter top. Her eyes scanned her apartment for a few seconds, visualizing all that had happened since she moved in, but she forced herself to stop before she got upset. Whatever this menace was, it was hitting her where it hurt. 

She turned to meet Thomas’s gaze after finishing the contents in her wine glass. “Well,” she seemingly blurted in the quiet room, “I’m ready when you are. I guess I’ll take you in the truck, since you, uh, didn’t drive here.” She forced a smile as she looked over the countertops to make sure she was not leaving anything important behind. The fact that she was running away from her problems instead of trying to face them head on was making her feel more defeated than ever. That wasn’t how she was raised; her father always made sure that she stayed strong in situations in times of trouble. She prided herself on being independent, and now on top of losing Keith, she was starting to lose that too. She audibly sighed at the realization as she grabbed a baggy of weed out of the counter and stuffed it into her purse. “Let’s go, huh?”

Once she got a good night sleep in her, her plan was to get to know the man better. It wasn't every day that she met someone magical, and it was [i]definitely[/i] a rarity to meet someone this accommodating in New York City. She was sure that his past must have been some sort of inclination as to how he became the way he was - serious, brooding, looking as if he was on the edge of falling asleep at any moment. Caroline had trouble believing that someone could become a person like Thomas without something dark and fascinating happening to them first, and hearing the story of his life seemed like it would be as mysterious as what was happening to her.