by Jenni Linn
"Really?" I ask, surprised.
"Yeah, really. You're fun to be around. I haven't laughed like that in a long time," he says casually, and I remind myself, that's all it really can be.
"You need to get out more," I tell him joking as we walk toward the front.
"What are your plans for tomorrow?" he asks, and it surprises me again.
"Um. I work. I need to find out what exactly is wrong with my car and get it fixed. I need it to get to school, otherwise, I gotta bum a ride with Tay." Beverly clocks us. "Oh sweet thangs, you headin' out?"
"Yep." I turn to her. She moves to the swinging door, opening it a bit, and yells for Chrissy. A couple of seconds later Chrissy comes out of the back, heading to us as soon as she sees us standing there. She gives each of us a big hug. "I sure hope to see you both again soon!"
"Of course!" I tell her.
"Tell both your mamas I said hello!"
"Will do!" I tell her.
We both move to the door, but Chase opens it for me, letting me walk through and opening the next door for me as well. Such a gentleman. We get into his car, and he drives to my house.
"Oh hey, did Vance tell you about this weekend?" he asks.
I look at him. "Ermmm. No."
"Figured as much. I'll talk to him tomorrow. I invited you all out on the boat."
"Oh, nice!" I've only been on Chase's boat a couple of times. I was rarely invited; I guess having the little sister tag along wasn't always fun for them. I'm not sure I wanted to be on the boat with them anyways, especially if they brought their girlfriends. Chase's parents are wealthy, and their house is enormous. My thoughts wander to his parents because it's obviously not his boat we're going to be using.
"Your parents don't mind you just taking it out?" I ask
"No, but it's not like they're home to say anything about it. My father taught me everything about boating and driving a boat when I was twelve. I got my boating license when I was sixteen."
"Oh wow. Twelve?"
"Yeah. It's not that hard. It was a good bonding time with my father. He was actually a good teacher."
"Have you heard from them?" I ask hesitantly.
He sighs. "No."
I'm not quite sure what to say. I feel bad because...that's horrible. My parents have always been actively into our lives, all five of us, and Chase is an only child.
"I'm sorry," I say.
"It's fine."
"It's really not. I'm sorry, I can't make up for them, but I'm glad you're home!" I tell him. "Believe me, that means more than anything they'd say." I smile because his response brings me warm fuzzies. But I know I need to change the subject to something lighter.
"Can I drive the boat?" I ask, expecting him to tell me ‘no way’.
"Sure"
"Really?" I turn towards him, totally excited at the thought of learning to drive a boat.
"Yeah." He shrugs like driving a boat that costs--I don't even know how much boats cost, but I'm sure they're more than your average car--is no big deal.
"So cool!" I do a little dance in my seat, excited. I'm going to learn to drive a boat! He laughs, and his beautiful smile is on display. I like that I'm the reason behind it. He turns into my driveway, putting his car in neutral, and lets the car coast to the front of my house. It's completely dark and none of my brothers’ cars are in the driveway, so I know I'm good. I pull my keys out of my bag and without really thinking much about it, I lean over the console to hug Chase. It's something I would do with any of my friends. I know I surprised him; it was more of me hugging his side until he turns...and then our chests are pressed together. I squeeze him, and he returns the squeeze. "Thank you. I had fun!"
"Anytime. I did too."
I loosen my hold, but his arm remains tight around me, then he moves back. I like it.
"See you tomorrow?" I ask.
"Yeah. I'll be around." I smile at him before getting out of the car and bounce to my front door. Chase remains out front until I’m safely inside, closing the door behind me. I rush to the front window and watch as his car maneuvers quietly down the driveway. I’m high on happiness, my smile remaining plastered to my face as I get ready for bed. I crawl under the covers and stare at the ceiling, the night replaying in my head until sleep overcomes me.
Flying Stapler
I wake up in a really good mood but, then again, I went to bed that way. Veronica is the first thing that comes into my mind, and I can’t wait to see her again. Hanging out with her was so refreshing; it was fun, and it seemed so natural. All I know is I want to try and spend as much time with her as I can. I want to get to know everything about her. I know without a doubt that I want another night out with her. I just have to figure out how to make it happen. I throw my covers off and sit up, rubbing my eyes with the palm of my hands. I glance at the clock. Damn, I slept in. It felt amazing.
Excited to start my day, for once, I hurry in showering and getting ready. I want to drive right over to the garage, but I don't want to seem too eager. Grabbing my things off my dresser, I head downstairs to make some breakfast. Eight minutes later, I’m carrying my plate of three eggs and toast in one hand, and a glass of orange juice in the other to the dining room. The room is pretentious, to say the least. The walls are a deep red and the massive cherry wood table is placed directly under a huge crystal chandelier hanging above. It's so quiet I can hear the grandfather clock ticking from my father's study two rooms over. I devour my breakfast, knowing I need to get out of the house. The silence getting under my skin. I leave the room and place my plate in the sink before I beeline for the door.
I stop to fill up my car before going to the garage, so by the time I arrive, it’s almost noon. The garage closes in two hours. I have no plans for tonight, and Vance hasn't mentioned anything else. All the bay doors are open, a car in each, but I notice V's car is still parked off to the side. I wonder if they were able to look at it yet. I park my car closest to the office door and stroll inside. The bell above the door announces my arrival, but there's no one in the room. I can vaguely hear that the radio is on; it’s low. It’s then that V comes bouncing from around the corner. She's wearing a Victor's Auto T-shirt, some tight black leggings, and her hair pulled up into a ponytail. She looks...perfect. Her eyes widen in surprise but quickly masks it, her lips breaking into a smile. "‘McSwoony!’" she yells.
"Seriously?" I deadpan.
"Oh yeah. Sorry, it's not going away."
I laugh. I don't care.
"I looked the reference up this morning."
"And..."
She sits in the chair and pulls herself towards the desk. I grab a chair from the makeshift waiting area and pull it so it's right across from her, and lean forward, resting my arms on my knees. "There's a bunch of stuff on twitter, which leads to a guy named Derek, who happens to be on a TV show," she says this in one breath. "But they call him McDreamy. So I don't understand where ‘McSwoony’ comes in. I was curious, so I typed in McDreamy and google delivered! There's apparently a McSteamy too, he's a hot older guy. Total DILF."
"Alright, then."
She laughs, "Chrissy and Beverly are obviously fans of the show. I may have to check it out. Hot doctors..." she trails off, looking up and nodding. "Oh yeahhh."
"Guess it hasn't been too busy this morning, huh?"
"Not too bad." She shrugs.
"Did Vin look at your car?" She rolls her eyes and sighs, "No, he promised he'd look after our last appointment. I wanted to be able to order any parts I needed this morning so they could be here Wednesday. His stupid ass didn't get here until five after eight."
I shake my head, a small laugh comes out. "Are you surprised?"
"I texted him last night. He knew I wanted to get a jump start on it…asshole. Where's Vance?" Huh. I didn't even bother to text him. "I actually don't know," I pull my phone from my pocket, "Did he come home last night?" I ask while shooting him a text.
I look up and catch an odd look upon V's face, but she looks
towards her computer screen and starts typing. "Yeah, his car was in the driveway. I didn't hear him come home though, so I have no idea what time."
"So wait, how did you get here?"
"Borrowed Mom's car."
The door opens to the garage, and Mark waltzes through. He looks at me then at Veronica. "Hey sweetheart, you wanna call Mrs. Schultz and let her know her car is ready?"
"Sure." V turns and picks up the phone that's located on the other side of the computer, her back now facing Mark. Mark calling Veronica sweetheart bothers me, I know it shouldn't because it's coming from Mark. He gives pet names to every woman. But that's his boss' daughter, and he's much older than her. He's staring at me, trying to place me, I don't think he realizes who I am. It's been a while since he's seen me, but I haven't changed that much. I don't try to move or introduce myself.
"Who're you?" he barks. Veronica has the phone to her ear and looks over her shoulder at him. It's obvious he doesn't like me being here. I'm about to stand up and introduce myself; well, reintroduce myself, when Vin comes through and hits Mark with the door, pushing him forward.
"What the hell dude?" Mark turns to Vin.
"You're standing in front of the door asshole," Vin responds, then notices me sitting here.
"Chase! What's up!" Mark leaves the office, not caring who I am. He became an even bigger dick since I left.
"Nothing man, I told V I'd help out with her car." I see her chair turn my way in my peripheral vision because I never said it.
Vin cringes, and whispers, "Yeah, she's pretty pissed at me."
"Yeah, she is." Veronica's voice pipes up. We both look her way, she's off the phone now, her arms are crossed above the desk, and a cocky grin on her face.
"I'm almost done with this car, and I'll pull in your car right after."
She nods, the cocky grin still upon her face.
Vin looks at me. "Women."
It makes me chuckle, and V's eyes narrow at us.
"Where's Vance, is he coming to help?" Vin asks.
"I just texted him," I pull out my phone, with all the commotion I forgot to see if he responded. “He says he’ll be here in an hour."
Veronica throws her hands up. "This is awesome. You guys are so helpful!" her tone drips with sarcasm.
"Shut it, we'll figure it out," Vin retorts.
"I wanted to have parts ordered already!" she complains.
"We'll go to the junkyard tomorrow morning," he compromises.
"And what if they don't have any RSX’s?"
"Jeez V, call em."
She huffs and starts tapping on the computer before picking up the phone. "I'm gonna go finish this car, so I can get started on hers," Vin says pointing his thumb at Veronica. "Soon her head will be spinning, and she'll be spewing green shit out of her mouth like the Exorcist girl."
V throws her middle finger up making me laugh.
"You gonna wait around?" Vin asks me.
"Yeah, might as well." I shrug.
"Okay," He nods and then leans in. "Be careful, maybe you should go get a cross." he says low and moves back. Something black whizzes by our faces then clatter loudly to the floor.
"What the fuck?" Vin whispers, eyes wide. A stapler lays in pieces near the front door.
Holy shit! She threw a fucking stapler at our heads! "See!? She's fucking crazy." Vin backs up and runs out the door connecting to the garage. Veronica hangs up the phone. "I'm sorry. I wasn't aiming for you," she tells me.
"Well, I fucking hope not but that was inches from my face!"
"You would've survived. I'd nurse you to health out of pure guilt."
I liked that. It brought thoughts of Veronica, of the dirty genre, in a short nurse's outfit. "Would you wear the naughty nurse's outfit too?"
She laughs, and it's beautiful. "Would that help?" She purses her lips, and a black eyebrow arches upward. I nod, "Definitely." I walk to the door and pick up the stapler, snapping it back together easily. So, it’s not technically broken. Impressive stapler. I walk back to the desk, stretch my arm out to her, putting the stapler in her face.
"Here, let's try it."
She smiles wide, grabbing the stapler from my hand. She shakes her head and puts the stapler down on the desk. She sighs before telling me, "They have a couple."
My thoughts are still on her in the nurse’s uniform, "What?"
"At Harry's, they have a couple RSX's, but there's not much left of them."
She's pretty bummed, and this upsets me. "No worries. It'll work out, you'll see." I give her a reassuring half-smile.
"I hope so." She sighs. The front door opens, and Vance bursts through. I glance at the clock thinking ‘shit an hour went by that fast?’, but it was only about forty minutes. He pulls his sunglasses up and places them on top of his head. We can all see he just woke up.
"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty," Veronica says to her brother. He grunts. Then looks at me, "What the fuck you doing here so early?"
I shrug. "I thought you'd be here already."
"Why didn't you just stop by the house?" he questions. It didn't even occur to me. Veronica was the only thing on my mind, and I knew where she was.
"Did you not just hear what I said? You sure you're awake?"
"Shut up." He walks past us and into the little lunchroom behind V's desk. I look at her, and she's laughing. "He's never been a morning person."
"It's almost one," I point out, and she shrugs. I get up and walk into the break room. Vance is making himself a cup of coffee. I lean against the doorframe and cross my arms.
"What's your deal?" I ask him. He's pouring cream into his cup, and grunts. "Nothing." I watch him as he stirs his coffee--he's tense. He looks at me, and I'm afraid he knows I’m catching feelings for his sister. I've already decided this, but I'm not ready to confront her brothers about it yet. I have to approach her about it first. Vin pops up behind me. I didn't even hear him come in.
"Oh good, you're here. I'm gonna start on V's car," he tells Vance and taps my arm. "You comin?" he asks.
"Yeah." I move away from the door and follow Vin out into the garage.
"Alright. I'm done, Vin." Mark comes up to us, wiping his hands on a rag. He looks at me, "I didn't realize that was you, Chase. Sorry, I didn't shake your hand, I would now but..." He lifts his grease-covered hands.
"No worries," I tell him. I don't care if he wants to shake my hand or not.
"Welcome Home."
"Thanks."
"Sounds good, Mark," Vin says. "I'll move this out." Mark nods and walks over to the sink. "Here," Vin throws me some keys, "open V's doors. When Vance comes out we'll push it in." Vin jumps into the sedan, starting it up and backing it out of the bay. I walk out to V's car parked off to the side of the garage, and open up the doors, letting the hot stale air out. I sit in the driver’s seat and turn the ignition, so I can roll the windows down. Vance strolls over, he doesn't look as moody anymore.
"You better now?" I ask, glancing at him and leaving the keys in the ignition.
"Yeah." He doesn't say anything else, and I don't press it. We’ve been friends long enough to know that if he wanted to tell me what's bugging him, he would. I get out of the car and close the door, leaning against it until Vin jogs over. "I'll get them back." Vance goes to the passenger side, and I turn to help steer and push. "Push on three...one...two...three!"
We all push, and it gives until it gets some momentum. I turn the wheel, and we line it up to the bay, pushing forward until we have it inside. I open the door and pull on the e-brake, then pull the lever to release the hood latch. Vin opens the hood, pulling on the rod to keep the hood up. "Alright, let's see what we got."
We’ve been at it for forty-five minutes now. I’m drenched in sweat. Vance lost his shirt about a half-hour ago, and I decide I need to do the same. I pull off my shirt and wipe my forehead with it then toss it on a nearby table. Everyone has left, except us and V, who’s still in the office finishing up...whatever it is that she does here. W
e’ve got the radiator out which revealed a nice gash from a bolt. It must have flown off the chassis of a belt and completely snapped off. It could have been a whole lot worse. If it had been her timing belt, her engine could’ve been destroyed and this would cost her so much more. Vin has it all pulled out and set up on his workstation.
Footsteps approach us, “So what’s the damage?” V comes into view but falters when she sees me. I catch her eying my naked chest then quickly dart her eyes towards her brother. A faint pink appears upon her cheeks, and it makes me smile. V is blushing!
Vin pops out from underneath the car and sits upon the creeper. He stands up and grabs the rag from his back pocket and wipes his hands on it. “Well, your radiator is shot, the serpentine belt toast, and you need new pulleys. You’re lucky it was only that. I don’t know how, but a bolt lodged into your radiator. We have the belt, but you need specific pulleys. Hopefully, the junk yard will have what we need. It’ll have to get you by. I suggest getting a new set up though.”
V nods, “Okay, I called Harry’s earlier, and they have a couple at the yard. Tomorrow right?”
“Yeah, we can go tomorrow,” Vin confirms. I grab my shirt and wrap it around my neck, “Mind if I tag along?”
“Nah, the more the merrier,” Vin slaps my back, “Let’s get the fuck outta here. I need a shower.”
“Alright, I’ll ride home with you,” V tells Vin then heads back into the office. Vin starts to gather his tools and cleans up. I glance at Vance, “What are your plans for tonight?”
“Not sure, maybe hit up Sliders.” Honestly, I rather hang out with V but I know that won’t be happening, so Slider’s it is. “Sounds good, I’ll head home, clean up and meet up with you at your house.”
“Alright,” He holds out his hand and I connect mine with his, “I’ll see you later.” He heads out of the garage and hops into his car, then drives off.