Opening Story - 014
The next Saturday.
A week later.
I'm mowing my neighbour, Massimo Giovanna's lawn.
I finished the fence last weekend on the Sunday. The day after I went on my date with Tayla. Massimo still hasn't payed me for the fence, but he asked me to mow his lawn as well. He seems like a kind man, and I feel like I can trust him, so I don't mind, but if he asks for something else before paying up for this and the previous time, I don't think I'll say yes. In fact, if it had been something that would take as long as the fence, I probably would've said no.
Massimo's lawn is small, and his mower isn't too bad, though it stutters from time to time. It's only been about ten minutes. There's the back lawn as well, but I had a look earlier, and it isn't much larger. All in all, I'll be finished in well under half an hour.
I turn the mower's engine off, and pull the earmuffs down so that it rests around my neck. It's a really warm day, and I can feel that I'm sweating. My brow is soaked.
I sigh, and reach up to wipe my brow with my forearm.
"Alexander!"
I turn in the direction of Massimo's voice. Although I have no way of knowing, for some reason I have the feeling he'd been trying to call to me for a while.
Massimo has a smile on his face, although it isn't his usual smile. It's more like a smirk. The reason for that smirk, however, quickly becomes apparent to me.
Standing beside him, is someone I hadn't expected to see again.
No, not someone I knew from Wellington. To be honest, I would've found that less surprising.
Instead, standing on the path that leads up to Massimo's front door is Tayla Faust.
Tayla, the only person I feel like I've made any real connection to since I came to this city.
Tayla, the cute girl I went on a date with.
Tayla, who's trust I betrayed.
I hadn't expected to see her again.
I can't tell what it is, but she has something with her. In a basket of some kind, it seems.
"There's someone here to see you."
That much I can tell.
I make my way over towards the two of them.
Tayla doesn't say anything even as I'm within a couple of metres of her.
"Hey," is all I have to say. I can't think of anything clever.
"Hey."
"Do you want to talk?"
All she does is nod.
I can't tell what her mood is at all. What reason she's here for at all.
I scratch my head.
"Okay then…" I reach into my pocket, and hand the contents over to Tayla.
"If you go wait next door, I'll be done here in no time."
With that, I turn around and head back toward the mower. I'm probably being a bit rude and brusque towards Tayla at the moment, but I need time. Time to think this through. I need to understand why she's here. To internalise it.
Though, apparently, I'm not going to get a chance to do that.
"Alexander!"
Massimo calls me again. He's walking toward me this time. I can see Tayla behind him, heading back out. She turns in the direction of my house.
"What is it?"
"What are you doing?"
"Huh?"
Massimo walked right up to me, right into my face.
"Are you really going to make such a cute girl, wait for you like that?"
"I get that it's rude, but…"
But I need time to process this all.
To try and work out in my head why she's here.
"Huh? Isn't that obvious?"
I look at Massimo, confused. No, it isn't obvious, not to me.
"And even if your too thick to work it out for yourself, all you need to do…" at that moment, Massimo moved with surprising speed for his age, raising his arm up and bringing it down against my back, "… is go ask her yourself."
The force of Massimo's palm on my back, makes me stumble forward.
"You can come back and finish the lawn another time. It isn't going to go anywhere."
What's his deal?
Massimo's really frustrating to deal with some of the time. He's difficult to get along with. Or at least, I think so anyway.
I'm not going to say anything like that though.
I know he means well, or at least I think so.
And besides, the extra money I'll get from doing these odd jobs from him, is more than welcome.
I sigh.
What a pain.
It's so much easier when I can just do things my way.
"I get it. I'll head over there right now."