Page 88 of Pure Silence

Just a quick nap, that’s all, and then he’d be ready to finish doing whatever the hell else he was supposed to be doing today. He’d already helped Day drop off the criminal’s dirty money to several charitable locations, picked up Day’s stuff from his dilapidated wreck of a home, and hey, they’d gotten a kitten.

Not only had he actually completed the list, but he’d done stuff that wasn’t even on it.

Goldie had earned this nap.

He drifted in and out, and he could still occasionally hear Day and Twinkle moving around the apartment. The jingly ball jingled, there was a small ruckus in the kitchen, and Day tried very hard not to laugh and then attempted to laugh as quietly as possible. It was peaceful, and Goldie’s lips twitched in another smile when he felt Day draping a blanket over him.

Goldie was distantly aware that he needed to wake up for lunch, or maybe it was getting closer to dinner by now, but he was so damn comfortable…

There was a knock at the door.

“Shit.” Goldie mumbled a few more cuss words as he lurched into a sitting position, rubbing at his eyes. He didn’t see Day or Twinkle anywhere, and he groaned as the knocking came again, louder and more impatient this time. “For fuck’s sake. Hang on!”

Day emerged from the bathroom just as Goldie was heading to the door. Twinkle was in his arms, and Day frowned, visibly tense. “Who is it?”

“Dunno.”

“Do I need the shower liner?”

“Do you need…? No!” Goldie scoffed. “Hold your horses there, murder muffin.”

Day pouted.

Goldie looked through the peephole.

It was Florence!

Florence was billed at 6’6”, but he was really only about 6’2”. He’d stayed in good shape since retiring, though his face was fuller and he’d gone bald on top of his head. Despite his hair loss, he refused to cut his hair and wore what was left in a thin ponytail. He was wearing a neon green-and-black insulated tracksuit that made his fair skin look a touch sallow, and he knocked again, calling through the door, “Hey, you dead in there or what?”

“Hold on!” Goldie shouted back. He looked at Day. “It’s Florence, my old tag team partner that I told you about. Can you…?”

He didn’t want to explain what was going on with Day to Florence right now, and Day would probably hear the usual filth or whatever it was he did from Florence. Not that Goldie thought his friend had any weird hidden sins that would justify being murdered, but he didn’t want to risk upsetting Day either.

Day nodded in understanding. “I’ll go lie down. With my headphones.” He kissed the top of Twinkle’s head. “And my Twinkle.”

“Thank you. He shouldn’t be here too long.” Goldie kissed Day sweetly.

Day smiled. “Good. I’ll make us eggs for dinner.”

“Yeah? Breakfast for dinner? Sounds great, baby.” Goldie watched Day disappear into the bedroom, and then he finally opened the door. “Hey!”

“Hey!” Florence came lumbering in and wrapped Goldie up in a big hug, slapping his back. “How the hell are ya’?”

“Good, good!” Goldie shut the door. “Uh, what the fuck are you doing here?”

“Didn’t you get my texts?”

Goldie honestly had no idea where his phone was. “Thought you said you weren’t coming by until next weekend?”

“Plans changed.” Florence grinned. “Did you know you’re still trending? Everybody is dying to know what’s going on with the Great Goldilocks.”

“What?”

“I’m surprised Pryor hasn’t called you yet! You know everybody is screaming that you need to be inducted in the Global Wrestling Hall of Fame now too.” Florence glanced around the apartment. “You really haven’t seen any of it online?”

“No,” Goldie replied. “You know I don’t do any of that social media stuff.”

“Well, you should.” Florence clapped his hand on Goldie’s shoulder. “Luckily, I’m here to help.”