Page 3 of Don’t Get Too Close

Grandpa had restored furniture for most of his life, and I could easily see that all the wood pieces throughout the downstairs were definitely his work.

Which reminded me that his workshop was out back. So after dropping my suitcase in the big bedroom upstairs, I went outside to check it out. The windows were fogged over with years of dust grime, but that didn’t stop a wave of emotion from flooding me. Inside these dingy walls was where I could feel my grandpa’s presence the strongest. When I was a kid, I spent hours on the bench under the window, just watching him work. I wanted to be just like him when I grew up.

Instead, I spent all of my adult life in front of a computer, doing jobs that would’ve made Grandpa cringe. He’d never held a job in his life, creating his impressive fortune by building works of art with his calloused hands.

As a few tears dripped down my cheeks, I felt the fabric of my shirt soaking up the warm milk leaking from my chest. Fuck. I wasn’t usually the emotional type, but whenever I was, a letdown was quick to follow.

I went back inside and jumped in the shower to hand express the milk before changing into clean clothes. I was hungry and tired…and I needed to introduce myself to the tenants at some point before they called the police because they saw a trespasser in their landlord’s house. I assumed the lawyer had notified them about the change of ownership, but I wasn’t sure, and I needed them to each sign new leases with my name on them.

The lawyer had given me a quick rundown on each of the tenants, but he didn’t know much about them on a personal level. What he did know was that they were all current on their rent, they didn’t seem to cause any trouble, and they were all in leases that could easily be transferred to me.

Apparently, that was all I needed to know.

Grandpa wasn’t particularly chatty, so my guess was that he probably collected rent and made repairs when needed, but that was the extent of his relationship with his tenants.

But that wasn’t my style.

I was more of a people person, and I was actually excited to have a reason to meet my neighbors. Planning cookouts and yard sales sounded like the perfect way to spend an afternoon, and I was looking forward to becoming friends with each and every one of them.

3

TED

It didn’t take long to figure out that Bob was dead. Even though I tried not to get involved in the town gossip, he’d lived there his whole life, so word got around pretty quick. Nobody told me outright, but flowers started to show up on his porch rail, and his truck never moved after that night he left in an ambulance.

A couple weeks later, a different truck showed up that was newer and bigger, as was the guy who drove it.

I’d clocked him the second he started unloading boxes from his truck, and as predicted, he didn’t waste any time before he started making the rounds. The guy went door to door with a stack of papers, and I could only imagine what those papers said.

Probably eviction notices.

But I knew my rights. I didn’t have to open my door or accept any papers from some stranger.

From my window, I kept track of where he was, waiting for him to work his way to my door. As he got closer, I realized the guy was younger than I initially thought. Maybe a few years older than me, but he was built like he spent a lot of time in the gym. Or maybe he worked with his hands.

A rogue image of his hands working me over entered my mind, but I stepped away from the window and shook it out of my mind. I didn’t think of people that way. Hooking up wasn’t my thing. My only almost-experiences with sex were when I was much younger and much weaker. Now I knew better than to let people get close enough to hurt me.

When the attractive man eventually knocked on my door, I stayed perfectly quiet and didn’t make a move.

Of course, he knew I was home. There was no way for me to go in or out of the driveway without passing by every other house on the lot, but I was sending a message. A message that clearly said, “We don’t want none.”

“Hey there, anybody home?” His voice was kind and cheery, not at all grumpy like Bob always was. I could almost hear from his voice that he had all the patience in the world and nowhere else to be. That was just perfect. He moved to the window and knocked lightly on the glass. “Theodore, right? I’m Kacen, the new owner here. I just wanted to introduce myself and give you a new lease.”

Nothing moved on my body except my heart as it pounded under my chest. I didn’t even breathe more than absolutely necessary. And after a few more futile attempts to get my attention, he finally gave up.

Something slid under the door, and then his footsteps tapered away.

Once I was sure he wouldn’t catch me, I peeked out the corner of the bedroom window and saw him disappear into the main house.

It took another count to sixty before I let myself slump against the wall and deeply inhale. “That was close.”

I waited until it was dark out before grabbing the envelope that was poking out from under the door. There was a sticky note on top that didn’t make sense. Did the guy actually carry a little notepad with him? Weirdo.

Sorry I missed you. No rush on signing it but just leave it in my mailbox whenever.

Kacen

His handwriting was neat and reminded me of a professor or teacher or someone who wrote a lot. I hardly ever wrote anything and had terrible handwriting.