Chapter Six: T-Bone's Crib

"Welcome home, baby. What's your name, anyway?" asked Tedford. Krystal looked around the living room of the dark, upstairs apartment for a second before answering. "Krystal. You?" "Tedford's the name my momma gave me, but my posse call me 'T-Bone'. You can call me..." "I," Krystal interrupted, "am gonna call you 'Teddy Bear' since you're so darn cute." "Oh, hail no, beyotch!" he yelled animatedly. Krystal just smirked.

The apartment was, well, in need of a lady's touch, quite frankly. The living room was a shambles, the couch old and tattered, slightly faded with worn fabric corners and a wobbly leg. The entertainment center was faux wood with an oversized TV, and all the electronic gear you'd expect. The Cerwin-Vega's were bigger than life, their black-ash enclosures and trademark circles of color looking very loud in the silence. Various bits of clothing were strewn across the floor, not all of them male. "So, you live alone?" asked Krystal. "Not anymore" was the response. "Yeah, whose is this, then?" she pressed, knowingly, picking up a thin, purple bra by the straps. "Aww, that's nothing - just a girl around the way. We just friends, that's all." "Right," she smirked, coyly, "then where do I sleep?"

Tedford showed her the bedroom. Rather large considering the size of the place, with an attached fullsize bathroom and closet. The king size bed was unmade, but the sheets were silk, burgundy, and the pillows looked comfortable. After the bus ride and the events of last night, Krystal's head ached for some quality rest, but now wasn't the time. She walked over and examined the selection of clothing hanging on display in the closet. "Mind if I smoke?" she asked. "Go ahead," he nodded.

They walked out into the small kitchen alcove, and Krystal looked into the fridge. Bare, except for a near empty 12-pack of some cheap, generic-brand beer. "Wow," she puffed, "and I thought I had it rough." Tedford looked at her disdainfully, saying, "So, I eat out." Krystal glanced at the garbage can and on the table top and, sure enough, small Chinese takeout containers with red pagodas on the side littered the place.

"Where you from?" Tedford asked, amused by the girl's persistent curiosity of her new surroundings. "Washington," she replied, looking in the cupboards for food. "D.C.?" he continued. "Nope, the state. A little town called Lacey, just outside of Olympia, the capital," she clarified. "What brought you to Reno, then?" he wondered out loud. "One of my friends was getting married yesterday, and I was one of her bridesmaids," she explained. "You hungry?" he asked. "Yeah, starving," she replied. "Let's go grab something," he said, "you can get cleaned up when we get back." As they headed out the door, Tedford asked if she liked his 'crib' or not, and Krystal replied, "It's alright, but honestly, that bathroom is way too small."