But I also stopped at the hardware store and purchased several things that looked boring on a receipt and extremely useful in practice: heavy-duty locksets, a small keypad lock, and a few items for the Wi-Fi system that would let me control access without arguments.
Then I visited the local phone company and upgraded my service plan in a way Brandon would never think to check. After that, I went to my bank and had a “fascinating conversation” with the manager about account security features, vendor authorization, and what happens when someone tries to open credit in your name.
By the time I returned, the house looked even more colonized.
Kevin had moved my armchair to the corner “so it wouldn’t block the TV.” Rachel’s teenagers had discovered my closet full of linens and treated it like a costume shop. Melissa had started shifting my personal items—family photos, books, even my mother’s antique vase—into a closet because they “cluttered the aesthetic.”
“Oh good,” Melissa said, not helping with the bags. “We’re planning a big barbecue tonight. I texted you the details. You’ll need steaks, burgers, hot dogs, sides—everything.”
I set the groceries down carefully. “Thirty people, right?”