Next Door Neighbors (10 page)

              “I know,” Jill said.

              Brian called for Buddy to come over, and the good listener that he was, it didn’t take long for him to join the two in the kitchen. “Hey, Buddy. Look what Jill got for you!”

              Buddy danced around excitedly. When Jill took one bone from the package, he sat obediently, anxiously waiting for Jill to let him have it. As soon as she let down her arm to offer the bone, Buddy sniffed it and then grabbed it gently with his teeth, running off to enjoy his treat. Both Brian and Jill smiled as they watched him trot off, tail wagging in delight.

              “So was your mom happy to see him like you thought she’d be?” Jill asked.

              “She was. You should have seen the look on her face! I think she may have been more excited that Buddy was here than me,” he joked.

              “That’s not true.”

              Brian quickly got a drink of water and offered Jill one.

              “No thanks.” As he took a sip, Jill asked, “So what are you doing? Painting?”

              “Mm-hmm. Here, let me show you.”

              He led her over to his mom’s bedroom where everything had been pushed to the center of the room. One wall had been finished already, and from what Jill could tell, it looked very professionally done. She couldn’t believe there could be someone as talented as him out there.

              “You can do just about everything, can’t you?” she asked, looking around at everything else that needed to be completed.

              “Well, I wouldn’t say everything, but I sure try.”

              At his words, Jill turned to him. There he stood, arms crossed in front of him, leaning against a wall. He had a huge smile on his face and twinkle in his eye. Jill could tell that he was proud of his accomplishments.

             
And do I sense a bit of cockiness?
             

              Jill offered him an unsure smile in return.

              Brian started moving towards his supplies so he could get back to work.

              “How much more do you have left?” Jill asked.

              Dipping the paint brush into the gallon of paint, he answered, “The last three walls and then a second coat on all four.”

              Jill watched Brian gracefully stroke the walls with his brush. Each section completed offered an even layer with no dripping streaks from excess paint or blotches from being too thinly applied.

              “Could you use some help?” Jill asked shyly, afraid she might be rejected when she really badly wanted to be with him to help.

              Brian turned toward her and, with eyebrows raised, he questioned, “You wanna help?” Ever since Jill showed up he was hoping she’d stay a while. And not just to be with his mom.

              “I do, if you’ll let me. Although I may not be as good.”

              Brian chuckled. “I’m sure you’ll do fine. I’d love for you to help!”

              Jill walked over to some supplies so she could get started, but Brian’s cough interrupted her.

              “What?”

              Looking up and down her whole figure, his finger waving along with the eyes, he said, “You may want to go change your clothes first. Unless, of course, you don’t mind those getting dirty.”

              Jill looked down and realized that would indeed be a good idea. “Oh, right. I’ll be right back then.”

              She hurried off, slightly blushing at the way Brian had just looked at her.

---------------

              Not more than five minutes passed before Jill reappeared. This time she didn’t even knock to be let in. She helped herself and made her way to Elena’s bedroom where Brian was finishing up the second wall.

              “That’s much better,” Brian stated, acknowledging her return.

              “What is?”

              “Your outfit!”

              “Oh,” she giggled, as she looked down on her attire: an old shirt from high school and sweats that had grass stains on the knees.

              Brian got Jill’s supplies ready for her and directed her where to go. Each of them took one of the last two remaining walls, and while they worked they made casual small talk. It wasn’t more than ten minutes, at least that’s what it seemed like to Jill, when Brian claimed he had finished. She viewed her own wall and still had more than half to go.

              “Here, let me help you finish your side,” Brian offered.

              “I’m clearly not as quick as you are,” Jill remarked as she dipped her brush back into the paint.

              “Eh, I just think you’re a perfectionist,” Brian began before realizing that may not sound the best. He clarified, “Which is not a bad thing.”

              The two of them continued to work together. Brian was beginning to notice that everything they’ve done together had been effortless, as if it was natural for them to work in unison. He enjoyed her company, her willingness to help no matter in what way and conversations were never hard to start or continue with her.

              Feeling playful, Brian was going to try to have a little fun with Jill. Having just finished edging the corner of the room, he looked in her direction. There wasn’t a spot of paint on her yet, something he knew he had to fix.

              Brian walked casually next to Jill’s side. He then quickly dipped his brush into the paint and wiped a streak unto Jill’s shirt sleeve, a bit of it marking the skin of her arm as well.

              “Ah!” she shrieked, jumping aside. “What was that for?” Jill stared at her side to see the huge strip Brian just placed on her.

              “I thought you could use a little something to make you fit in a bit more,” he laughed.

              “What do you mean?”

              “Look at you all neat and clean! Then look at me with paint all over!”

              Jill did not need an excuse to look at him. So look she did, and she couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

              “Don’t make me give you another,” he teased, getting his brush ready to strike again.

              “I can’t help it,” she laughed harder. “Maybe you shouldn’t go so fast. Maybe you should be a perfectionist like me.” Jill flashed a dainty smile, all the while thinking now she was being the cocky one.

              The two of them were then startlingly interrupted by Elena. “What are you two lovebirds doing?”

              Brian’s eyes grew wide with shock, and with a glare, he exclaimed, “Mom!”

              Jill just stood frozen. Though she knew Elena was only kidding, she couldn’t help but feel funny about how she phrased those words.

              Is that what the two of us look like together? Is that what she thinks we are?

              Jill definitely didn’t want to give the impression that she was trying to be that way. She began to contemplate if she should even be there at all now.

              “Oh, I’m only kidding. I’m glad you two are getting along so well though.”

              Pushing past the uneasiness, Jill asked, “We didn’t disturb you, did we, Elena?”

              “No, no, not at all! I’m just going to get a glass of water.” Elena took a glance at her newly painted bedroom and praised the work they did. “Thanks for helping Brian, Jill. I hope he’s behaving himself.” Then as quickly as she had appeared, quickly she left, continuing her journey to the kitchen for some water.

              Brian turned to Jill and apologized.

              “Yeah, I, uh, need to go now actually.”

              Jill put her things down and started heading towards the exit. However, Brian grabbed her arm as she walked past. “Are you okay?” he asked, concern written on his face.

              She didn’t want to lie, but she also didn’t want to be in the same room as Brian anymore. “Yeah, I just remembered I needed to do something.”

             
I hope that sounds believable,
Jill silently wished.

              “Oookaaay.”

              Jill was grateful that Brian didn’t fight her. He freed her arm and off she went.

              Brian watched her go, sighing.

             
Just when I thought I was getting somewhere.

             
Seeing as the first coat was done and he would now need to take a small break, he cleaned himself up a little so that he could take Buddy outside. He needed some fresh air to clear his mind. As he walked through the kitchen, his mom was still there sipping her water.

              “Is Jill okay? She left awfully fast,” Elena mentioned.

              “Gee, mom. I wonder what could have happened,” he answered sarcastically.

              Upset, hurt and frustrated were just a few words to describe how he felt towards his mother for ruining a good moment with Jill.

              “It wasn’t something I said, was it?”

              “Bingo!” Brian said a bit on the harsh side.

              Brian called for Buddy and Buddy came running towards him in good spirits. “Come on, Buddy. Let’s go outside.”

              Both of them left, leaving Elena to herself.

9

              The next day Jill found herself being rudely awakened by her alarm, having forgotten to turn it off the night before. Blindly reaching out for her clock, she pushed a button or two in hopes to turn it off.

              It was the third button that did the trick.

              Not wanting to get up, she turned over to her other side and tried falling back asleep. Sleep never came. Jill checked the clock to see what time it was after she had laid around for what felt like eternity.

              Only five fifteen?

              Letting out a groan, Jill again tried turning back over and falling asleep only to end up with the same results. Finally giving up and deciding to head downstairs to catch the morning news, Jill stretched as best she could and sat up. The clock in front of her was displaying a time just shy of six o’clock, too early to get up on a day she didn’t have to work. But with sleep escaping her, she figured she would take the morning slow, enjoy some hot tea and catch up on worldly events.

              After giving her cat, who was sleeping at the end of her bed, a quick pet, Jill slipped into her slippers and tied her robe around her pajamas. Slowly she made her way down stairs. Turning on the TV to her favorite news station, she shuffled into the kitchen, a yawn escaping her lips as she decided which flavor of tea to consume. Nothing stroked her fancy, but then she remembered she had bought some chai tea while at the store yesterday. The blend of spices in that tea sounded heavenly so she looked around her kitchen to try and figure out where she put it. She ended up spotting it behind her purse on the counter next to the refrigerator.

              As soon as Jill opened the canister, the smell of the chai tea heightened her senses. It was perfect for fall and winter weather; a tea that brought warmth on the inside while it was chilly on the outside. Jill quickly heated some water and added some of the tea mix. As she stirred the contents, she overheard one of the news anchors declaring the weather report was coming up next. Not wanting to miss it, she took a seat on her couch and slowly sipped on the tea. “Mmmm,” she let out with eyes closed and a smile, enjoying the first sip.

              This was just what Jill needed. The tea tasted wonderful and the feel of the warm cup between her hands was delightful.

              After the commercial break, one of the meteorologists appeared on screen. At first he talked about some of the nice weather they were having, but only used that as a segue into the type of weather that was coming. Jill listened carefully to the words and paid attention to the maps that were displayed. Sooner or later this type of weather was bound to come, but Jill had to admit that she preferred the unseasonably warm weather over the coming snow.

             
I guess I should get my annual furnace tune up done.

              Jill was not impressed with who she had come over last year to check out her furnace. The man lacked customer service skills, and it seemed like his prices were a bit on the steep end. Plus there were times she questioned if he really did anything at all because he wasn’t in her basement very long.

             
I wonder if Elena will know of anyone that can help
, she contemplated.

              It took Jill a few minutes to figure out if she wanted to get a hold of Elena or not. On the one hand, she might have a good recommendation, but on the other hand, it was a little too early in the morning for any human contact, at least for Jill when it was her scheduled day off. It was also possible that Elena wouldn’t have a recommendation anyway, and she didn’t know if she wanted to disturb her neighbor with a silly question as this either.

              Then of course there was Brian. She thought about how he might be the one to answer the phone and she still didn’t feel right about yesterday. Jill felt like she was going crazy because one moment she was fine, and then out of nowhere it seemed something would throw her off and she would go back to hiding.

              This is ridiculous. Just call and get it over with!

              Having waited another half hour, Jill set her cup down and went to look for her phone. Once it was in her hands she dialed Elena’s number. On the third ring, Elena’s voice greeted her.

              “Hi, Elena. I’m sorry to bother you so early,” Jill began.             

              “Oh, no, no, no. I’ve been up for a while. Is everything okay?”

              “Yeah, I just have a quick question.”

              “What is it, dear?” Elena asked.

              “You know how every year I get my furnace checked out? Well, the guy I had last year was not that great. I was just wondering if you could recommend someone. Perhaps let me know who you’ve used in the past?”

              “Saw that weather forecast, did you?”

              “Yep,” Jill chuckled. “That’s why I want to get this out of the way so I’m ready for all the cold weather.”

              “I don’t blame you.”

              She didn’t want to be rude, but she also didn’t feel like chit chatting so Jill again asked, “So do you know anyone?”

              “I’ve got to be honest with you, Jill. I was never really good at faithfully tuning the furnace. That was something Ricky always took care of. Off the top of my head I can’t think of anyone I’ve used before either. I could look through the phone book to see if anything looks familiar if you want.”

              “No, that won’t be necessary. Thanks anyway, Elena.”

              “Oh, you’re welcome. Thank you for helping out with the painting yesterday. It looks good!”

              Not wanting to talk about the subject, Jill said, “I’m glad to hear that! I’ll talk to you later, okay? I’m going to make some calls.”

              “All right. Bye, Jill.”

              “Bye.” Jill put the phone down and took her last sip of tea, enjoying the warmness it still provided.

             
Looks like I’ve got to do a little research today.

---------------

              Brian lay in bed, tossing and turning. Having not slept well the night before, he wasn’t quite ready to get up. His dog, Buddy, also lay on the bed beside him, one reason he didn’t sleep as well as he would have liked. Still drifting in and out, he thought he could hear something downstairs.

              Was that the phone?

              He glanced at the old clock radio that rested on the night stand beside his bed. It was just after seven so he didn’t think anyone would have called that early. The more awake he became, however, he could occasionally hear his mom’s voice. Brian sat up in bed and pet Buddy’s back. He listened carefully to see if he could figure out who it was and what was being said. Being upstairs, though, he could only hear a word here and there.

              But what he heard next came through clear as a bell. His mom distinctly said, “All right. Bye, Jill.”                           

              Suddenly Brian was wide awake.

              Quickly throwing on some pajama bottoms and a t-shirt, Brian hurried down the stairs to see if his ears had heard correctly. Elena was sitting by the phone with a book in one hand and fresh cup of coffee in the other.             

              “Good morning,” Brian said in a sleepy voice.

              Elena turned her head and smiled at her son. “You’re up earlier than normal,” she said after taking a sip of her drink.

              “I didn’t sleep that well.”

              “Me either. It’s been a while since I’ve slept decently.”

              Brian yawned, “Were you on the phone earlier?”

              “Oh, yes.”

              “Was it Jill?”

              Elena put down her book and looked at Brian. “Yeah, why?”

              “Well, what did she want?”

              “Oh, she just wanted to see who I’d recommend to do a tune up on her furnace. That’s all.”

              Brian perked up a little bit.

              That would be a great way for me to get to talk with her!

              “Well, what did you say? You told her I could do it, right?”

              “Sorry, dear. I didn’t really recommend anyone at all.”

             
Ugh!

              “Why not?” Brian loved his mom dearly but she was hurting any advances he felt he was making with Jill. He was starting to get frustrated, and it was showing.

              “I don’t know. I figured you had enough stuff on your plate. Plus you know how she is. She probably wouldn’t want to bother you with something so minuscule anyway.”

              Buddy finally made it down the stairs and laid down next to Elena’s feet. Of everyone in the room, he was the one in the best spirits.

              Elena resumed reading, but Brian didn’t quite feel done with the conversation. However, it was way too early to argue any further. Instead, he thought about what his mom said and decided he would put himself out there on his own. If he wanted to get anywhere with Jill, find out her past and win her heart, he had to constantly be in contact with her.

              Leaving the living room without saying another word, he got some coffee and started heading back to his room to get dressed.

              He had an agenda that needed to get done sooner than later.

---------------

              By mid-morning, Jill still found herself lounging around in her pajamas. The cloudy day it was turning out to be, paired with nowhere to go and nothing to do, made pajamas the perfect attire. She was now on her third cup of chai tea, and thought now was as good as any other time to begin looking through her phone book for a furnace expert.

              What are they called anyway?

              A knock at the door jolted her concentration.

             
Who could that be?

              She didn’t want to answer the door still in her pajamas, but there was obviously no time to change. The sudden guest was unexpected and so Jill had to make the best of the situation. She made sure the robe was closed, and quickly checked to make sure her face and hair didn’t look as if she just got out of bed. Getting to the door, she turned the knob and slowly opened it.

              She was definitely not prepared to see Brian.

              The man in front of her looked cheerful and as if he had been awake for hours, numerous tasks already completed. She felt a little embarrassed to look as sloppy as she did.

              “Brian, um, what are you doing here?” she asked, again checking her robe to make sure it was indeed closed.

              “Someone told me you needed a furnace tune up, and if you’ll let me, I’d be more than happy to do it for you.”

              “Oh, yeah, um, I was just going to call someone now actually.”

              “Well, now you don’t have to,” Brian smiled. He lifted up some of the tools he brought over to showcase his preparedness.

              Jill wasn’t sure, but didn’t want to be rude. Here he was, tools in hand, ready to go. It would definitely save her money and the time it would take to find someone. 

              “Here, come on in,” Jill welcomed a bit reluctantly. She moved out of the way so he could go inside.

              Right away Brian scented a mixture of cinnamon, sugar and other warm spices. “Something smells really good in here,” he commented.

              Jill wasn’t quite sure at first what he was referring to, but then remembered the tea. “Oh, it’s just chai tea. Have you had that before?”

              “No, but it smells awfully good.”
              The least she could do was offer him some seeing as he was going to take care of her furnace.

              “Sure! If you don’t mind.”

              Brian eyed her as she prepared his tea. Her walls were back up, something he had anticipated. But the look of her fresh out of bed was still pleasing to the eye. If that’s what he got to wake up to every morning, he’d count himself lucky.

              “Is there anything else I can get for you?” Jill asked, handing the tea to Brian.

              “No, this’ll be good.” He took a whiff of the spices the tea steamed into the air and knew his taste buds were going to enjoy it. “Mmm, that is so good. Thank you.”

              “You’re welcome.”

              Brian tried to think of something to say to clear the air between the two of them. He figured if he could strike up small talk that she might let her guard down a little bit. “Buddy really likes the bones by the way. I think we managed to save maybe one or two.”

              He chuckled a little bit as he pictured his dog begging for more treats. However, Jill didn’t respond much. Brian could tell he was going to have his work cut out for him. After taking a bigger gulp of the tea, he asked Jill about the weather, if she liked the cold or not.