Girl Next Door

by Erik Schubach

  I had looked at various houses in the neighborhood. I wanted to stay fairly close to my old stomping ground, which held a special place in my heart. Sandra's rundown brick apartment building felt more like home to me than I ever felt in California. We had a controlling father who did nothing but push us and mother away. But here, all we have had is love... it was so different.

  I watched as that rundown brick building slowly became a spectacular work of urban renewal. The three other unlivable apartments in the building became beautiful transition apartments for homeless families to help get them back into society. I count every single one of the families that have cycled through these past six years as my friends.

  I've lost more supposed friends and boyfriends that couldn't understand the time I dedicated to working with the homeless of Seattle with my new mom. Or the time I dedicated to the other facet of the Callahan Foundation, the children in the burn and cancer wards. But if they can't accept everything about me, then they were never real friends to begin with now were they?

  Our family friend and Mom's best friend, Leo... we call him Uncle Leo... tended to make them nervous just because he was homeless. But the true measure of a man is in his actions, you will never find another man of Leo's caliber. He is selfless to a fault and a true hero of the streets.

  Anyway, I picked this area for the proximity. And it was the one house, on this slight hill that had a view of the lake and the bridge. Lessa can't bear to look at the bridge. It's where out mother, Penny Franklin, had almost ended her own life after losing us to Victor and finding out she had breast cancer. Sis sees it as a terrible and ugly place. I see it as the exact opposite.

  I see it as the place our mother started living again. The miracle of Sandra Callahan came into mother's life on that bridge and into her heart. Sandra not only saved mother from the crushing despair but she brought our family back together. These were the happiest years of our lives. No... that bridge is the most beautiful thing in the world. It is where the hope lived.

  I did my morning jog, I cut it short to just two miles, I had a lot to do before guests arrived. When I got back I showered and dressed and headed back outside.

  I grabbed the volleyball set I had snagged at the local big box store this week and a little hammer I bought to hang some of my pictures and headed out the front door. I almost skipped down the two, broad, wooden steps of my porch, and sat down in the slightly damp grass and looked at the instructions. Hmm... the grass is a little long... oh crap... I need a lawn mower! I giggled at myself. At least I had one of those automatic sprinkler systems which I wouldn't have to run much in Seattle.

  I caught some motion out of the corner of my eye after I giggled. I looked over to the left to see my neighbor already outside painting on one of her ever present canvases on that spectacular porch of hers. She was looking my way with a smile on her face. Damn that smile was killer. Then I gave a tiny wave again and she just looked back to her canvas and started painting. Graaaaaahhhh! She was infuriating!

  I assembled the tubes and drove the bottom segments into the lawn that the tubes slid onto, strung the net, then set up the tension ropes with their small stakes. I kept glancing over at Goldilocks. I was really interested in what she might be painting. I simply loved art. Well, maybe I'll get to see hers one day if I can get the guts to walk over and introduce myself.

  It was my fault really, I haven't introduced myself to any of my neighbors yet, this last week has just been a flurry of activity and I haven't had a second to breathe yet. I noticed my housewarming invitation was still tucked into her screen door, between the screen and the cute wood panel with the carved reliefs. I walked around Wednesday morning and put invitations at everyone's doors. I got a couple RSVPs in my email.

  Plus my entire family and some of the people from Cornfed Potatoes and the Callahan Foundation were also coming. I started putting out all the extra lawn chairs and fold out tables I rented on the lawn. I looked at the BBQ, I had zero clue how to use it, but Devon already volunteered to do it with some chauvinistic “That's man's work.” remark.

  I grinned because I knew he was joking. He was a cute, tall and gangly guy with muscular arms that almost looked out of place on his thin frame. No doubt a result of his military conditioning in the National Guard. His chocolate skin was quite tempting, and his sparkling smile was to die for. I could easily see why Less is so smitten by him. Then he pounded his chest and grunted like a caveman and said, “Fire good!” Just to be nudged in the side by Lessa's elbow to everyone's laughing as she said, “Watch it soldier boy!”

  I hopped into my SUV and hit the garage door opener and drove into my empty garage so there was more room for people to park. My cell started buzzing as I started the bay door closing and ducked under it, hopping over the little infrared beam so it wouldn't stop the door. I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and looked at the screen. I couldn't stop my smile. Of course, it was Less, since I was just thinking about her and her beau.

  I answered, “Party central.” As I hopped up my steps and sat on my small wooden porch swing. It creaked a bit as I swung.

  I pulled my silver dollar out of the front pocket of my jeans and started fidgeting with it. Less has an identical one that we received from Leo on our mother's wedding day. Leo had explained that he kept one in his pocket at all times.

  When we inquired why he simply said, “The vagrancy law says that if you don't show that you have at least one dollar on your person, that the police can arrest you for vagrancy. It is an old law that is rarely enforced, but some overzealous officers will use it to teach people on the street a lesson if they feel they aren't being given the respect they think their badge deserves. Or when people complain about a 'dirty homeless guy hanging around.' Those officers sort of forget that they work for ALL the people of the city including the homeless.”

  That sort of stuck with me and my sis. We both religiously keep them on our person at all times. We know that the odds of that ever happening are slim to none, and hell would probably freeze over first, but hello... Leo gave them to us.

  I find myself mindlessly twiddling it between my fingers more often than not. It is sort of my good luck charm now and it focuses my thoughts and calms myself. I've gotten really good at walking it across my knuckles.

  Lessa chirped out, “On our way for operation Brandye is All Grown Up.”

  I giggled and raspberried her and replied, “Thanks twit. See you in a few.”

  She laughed and said, “Ok little sis. Love your sorry ass.”

  I snorted and said, “Love you too.” Then hung up. Less always pretends to be older and wiser since she came out first. She likes to act like the big sister, but I always tell her that she really wasn't supposed to go first, but she is always so impatient.

  I glanced up when I heard a lawnmower start up. There was a pimple faced, shaggy headed kid I have seen around the neighborhood, mowing Goldilocks' lawn. Ooooo I'd have to be sure to talk to him next time I saw him. Maybe I could put off buying a lawn mower if his rates were reasonable. I glanced at the blonde as she painted, then smiled to myself and hopped off the porch swing, I still had tons to do to prepare.

  A couple minutes later Less pulled up along the curb and it was like a clown car exploded from her smallish SUV. Devon and his sixteen year old brother Charlie and fourteen year old little sister Rose that he was the guardian of climbed out. Then Taylor, Tay, Devon's best friend and his girlfriend Raven. Then Thumper and Belle, Lessa's adorably goofy bulldogs.

  As the dogs spotted me and started to beeline toward me with their tongues lolling out and short stubby tails wagging. Everyone started unloading the back of the SUV. Devon and Tay were unstrapping a ladder and something in a tarp from the luggage racks on the top of the car.

  Rose was giggling at my pleas for help as I was mauled by the droopy jowls and exited tongues of the dogs as I laid on the grass so they could get at me. I saw Goldilocks raise her head from her are with a grin at that.

  I sa
t up on the grass when I heard a cordless drill that Devon was idly pulling the trigger on as he made his way to my garage with a small ladder under his other arm. Tay was carrying a basketball backboard and brackets with him.

  I tilted my head at Dev as he passed by with a Cheshire cat grin on his face. “My housewarming gift to you.”

  I grinned back. “But I don't play basketball.”

  He chuckled as he set the ladder up. “No, but I do. Since you and Less are seemingly inseparable, I'm sure we will be spending copious amounts of time here. This will keep me out of your hair while you two do your girl talk or whatever it is you do.”

  This time I chuckled. “Very thoughtful gift Dev. Thanks.” I hopped up and rose and I went to help Charlie and Less unload the rest.

  I looked over when I heard the lawnmower stop. The boy ran up to Goldilocks on the porch and she handed him an envelope. He hesitated then grabbed my invitation from her door and handed it to her then he was off, pushing his lawnmower down the sidewalk. She flipped the invitation around in her hand but didn't look down at it. She set it off to the side and went back to her art. I shook my head then went back to the party preparations.

  We had everything all set up by eleven. The party would start in a half hour. So Devon and Taylor made caveman grunting sounds, murmuring stuff about fire and such, and went out to warm up the grill. Tay wiggled his eyebrows at me and flexed his pectoral muscles as they passed by. I shook my head with a smile and gave him a shove to hurry him along.

  Those two were thick as thieves. They were in the same company in the Guard. Tay was a moderate height guy who's skin was so pale you'd swear he had never seen a day of sunlight in his life. Where that look looked awesome on Sandra, on him it seemed almost unhealthy. He always had his blonde hair in a buzz cut and he wore tight t-shirts to show off his muscles. I have to admit, for a boneheaded macho guy, he was funny and cute.

  Lessa had tried to set us up a couple times, but I know that like all relationships, it had to end sometime. Tay himself has been through three girlfriends since we've known each other. Less didn't know how lucky she was to find that one person who actually really did love her and was in it for the long haul. I've never had a relationship last longer than a few months.

  I wouldn't want any awkwardness between Devon and me if things didn't work out with Tay. He was going to be my sister's husband and we'd be around each other all the time. So it was better to never date anyone who was friends with my sister or my future brother in law.

  I watched them light the burners on the grill then start a game of one on one using the new backboard now proudly mounted above my garage door. I had to admit, it gave my bland little beige house a feel of family. Raven excused herself to go watch.

  I kept eyeballing a single wrapped package sitting on one of the fold out tables as the rest of us started bringing out the food and refreshments. Less had put it there. She caught me staring. “Hoping to spontaneously develop x-ray vision didn't work in school at the boy's locker room, what makes you think you can see what's inside that package? You'll just have to wait.”

  I scrunched up my face and shook my fist in a “Why I oughtta” gesture. We smiled at each other.

  Then she sat on the porch swing with me as we watched Rose and Charlie play with the dogs. Again I had a twinge, I needed to get a dog. Victor, our father, never let us have any pets. Which wasn't too bad until we were immersed into the world of pets when mother married Sandra. We seriously didn't know the joy we were missing out on as kids.

  Dogs give you nothing but unconditional love. They become your friends, your companions, your confidantes. They wouldn't tell anyone your secrets even if they could talk. And most importantly, they would never betray you.

  Sandra's dogs... our dogs, had become a huge part of my life these past few years and I seriously missed it.

  A couple, a few doors down, came walking over with a stroller. Oh Gawd, babies are so cute! They came up the walk and I hopped up off the swing and greeted them, jumping off my porch, not using the steps. He was a clean cut man around thirty, he wore cargo pants and a blue polo shirt. His wife was a small, pleasantly plump brunette with a short pageboy cut, and black librarian glasses. She was in a relaxed pair of jeans and super cute yellow blouse with bumblebees embroidered into the sleeves.

  I offered my hand to her first. “Hello, I'm Brandye Franklin-Callahan. I just moved in and am excited to meet you.”

  She smiled genuinely and responded as she shook my hand, “Hi Brandye, I'm Michelle, this is John. And this little sleeping bundle is Wendy. We're the Maxwells and live just there in a little blue rancher.” She pointed to where they came from. I smiled and then shook John's hand. They were fascinated for some reason that Less and I were twins as I introduced them around. John took a huge glass jar, that was lined with fabric on the inside so I couldn't see what was inside, from the stroller and placed it on the table next to Lessa's housewarming gift.

  Mom pulled up and I excused myself. The passenger door opened and a flood of puppies came pouring out. Followed by a slower moving Fang. I immediately sat in the grass with my arms wide as they all came to maul me with their tongues. I paused a moment. There were too many. My smile doubled when my eyes stopped at a tiny, tricolor, King Charles Caviler. She was adorable! She had a little pink bow on her right ear.

  Thumper and Belle came bounding over to play with the puppies as I snagged the little one and stood, rubbing her ears as Mom, Mother, and... Leo! ...got out of the car. I smiled and gave each a hug and kiss on the cheek. Leo shying away as he always did. He has a thing where he thinks he is too dirty for people to touch.

  I held up the little pup, I assumed was Mom's latest therapy dog since Fang was getting slower. “Who is this lovely little lady?”

  Mom grinned like she had the biggest secret in the universe then said, “I don't know. You haven't named her yet.”

  I cocked my head in confusion. Mother came to my rescue. “Happy housewarming baby.” Holding up a bag of kibble and two little bowls.

  My slow mind whirred and clicked then my eyes went wide. Oh my god! I couldn't stop my ear to ear grin. “Really?” They were both nodding. I hugged the puppy, thought for a second, then looked at mom and said softly, “How about... Daisy?” Mom had loved her little mutt Daisy more than any dog she had ever shared her home with.

  I saw mom fighting a tear as she just smiled and nodded wordlessly. I put a hand on her cheek then said, “Good. Daisy it is.” I nuzzled the puppy's belly then put her down and she darted off after the other dogs. It was as if my parents had read my mind. I watched as Rose and Charlie started playing with the hyperactive mass of tongues and wagging tails.

  More introductions were made then it was like a procession of people showing up. People from school and work. Most were shocked that “Penny friggin' Franklin is here!?” A delivery man dropped off a large package from grams and gramps.

  I squealed when Amber LaLaine and Kylee Nelson showed up. Which again shocked the neighbors. I stopped a moment to marvel at Amber's gorgeous brunette hair with its white splotches, and the white blotches on one side of her face that made her looks so fascinating to me.

  I couldn't stop my smile when a familiar red van came pulling up. I almost skipped over and stood on the sidewalk and waited as the side door slid open and the ramp folded out and Reese came rolling out in her sporty red chair. Sarah hopped out of the passenger seat and we all exchanged hugs as the ramp folded itself up and the door slid closed.

  I looked at the old van and said, “Bessie is still running?” In my running joke with Reese, since the van was made a year before I was even born. It was still in showroom shape.

  This got me a light slam to my leg by her chair. “Watch it Bran! She's in better shape than you.” We all shared a chuckle as we went to start another round of introductions.

  June Harris-West showed up, she is beyond a blast, she greeted me with her customary, “Hey Clyde!” Don't ask, it's some sort of Bonnie
and Clyde thing she has stuck in her head with Lessa and me, she is always giving people weird nicknames. She's... gack... you can't really explain June. She's just... June. She's one of the very few people who can tell Less and I apart. She moved up to Seattle from Vancouver a few months back so she could coordinate Harmony Trax music video promotions more closely with Cornfed Potatoes Productions.

  The group all chatted for a bit and I hosted seemingly endless tours of my humble abode. Reese had no problems navigating the broad steps on my porch, but I made a mental note to myself that I had to make my house more accessible. I didn't want to have anyone with less mobility to have to use a little side door inside the garage. That seemed... wrong? Insensitive?

  Then Devon bellowed out that lunch was served. He and Tay served everyone up burgers and hotdogs and ribs. There was plenty of salad and other offerings for those who chose not to indulge their carnivorous side. Me? Double cheese burger and like a pound of potato salad. Why?

  I snagged a cola and sat in the grass with a sleepy Daisy in my lap, Less beside me. We looked around as we munched. She said offhandedly, “You give good party sis.” I leaned and bumped shoulders with her as we ate. I just smiled as I watched people converse.

  Then Charlie grabbed the volleyball. “Who want's to play?”

  I laid a sleeping Daisy gently beside the sleeping Fang, then hopped up just as Lessa did, and she blurted, “We're team captains!” I snorted. She is always so competitive, heaven forbid if we were actually on the same team. I gathered my “Marauders." Tay, Charlie, June, mom, Reese, and Leo. Less had her “Dominators." Devon, Rose, Amber, Mike from school, Sarah, and mother. Oooo she's all about splitting the pairs.