Change

14

ON MY WAY home from work Tuesday, I looked toward Devon's place as I crossed the courtyard and saw him sitting in a lawn chair on his small front porch. I turned in his direction and as I approached, I noticed he had a beer in one hand.

"Hey, how's it going?" I asked.

"No complaints."

"How's the new job going?"

"So far so good. I show up early and your mom feeds me, or I show up on time and I'm on my own for breakfast. Either way, I get up early and work hard.

"Your dad's easy to get along with. He tells me what needs to be done but doesn't micro-manage or tell me how to do it. He trusts I can figure out, and if I can't, I'll ask. I think it's gonna work out."

"I hope it does, it wears him out to train a new kid every year. He had to show them how to do the most basic things. They had to be shown over and over, and just as he got them trained, they'd quit. And he'd start again the next summer."

"I think he's hit an end to the cycle. So far, I like the work. It may be rough and dirty, but I don't mind that. It's flexible and I get to be out in the sunshine. I like my boss and I have no intentions of leaving."

"I wasn't thinking you would. It'll work out for the best all the way around. If you're done for the day, what are your plans for the evening?"

"Not much, I was planning on sitting here and relaxing, maybe seeing what's on the screen before I crash for the night. I get up early you know..."

"Have you eaten?" I asked.

"Not yet. I was trying to decide between fixing myself something, or using the push button stove."

"Nuke or call for delivery?"

"I was thinking delivery. I don't think I have anything in the house I could nuke."

"I have lasagna in the fridge, if you want to come up, we can nuke it."

"I don't know."

"I have plenty, it's no trouble."

"You sure?"

"Yep, you can't make lasagna in a small pan; when I get a craving for it, I end up eating it for a week so it doesn't go to waste. You'd be saving me from that."

"By letting you feed me, again, I'm doing you a favor?"

"You could say that."

"When you put it that way, how can I refuse? Especially for homemade lasagna."

"Come up whenever you're ready. I'm going to go up and get comfortable. I'll leave the door unlocked."

"I'll be up in a minute, I'm going to finish this and close up here." He lifted his nearly empty bottle.

"That's fine." I headed back across the courtyard to the stairs. Devon started moving behind me as I climbed the three flights of stairs. I marveled for a moment at how my hearing had improved.

I reached the top of the stairs and thumbed the lock on the door. Inside, I went into the bedroom and quickly changed into a loose pair of shorts and a tank top; I wanted something comfortable after being in a suit all day.

Deciding not to wait for Devon, I went to the kitchen and made two plates. I put them in the microwave one at a time and had just pulled the first plate out and traded it for the second when the front door opened. I caught Devon's scent on the air from the movement of the door.

"In the kitchen," I yelled. Pulling a fork out of the drawer, I set it on the plate and put it on the table. Devon walked into the kitchen. "What do you want to drink? Water, Tea, soda, or another beer?"

"Tea sounds great, if you don't mind."

"If I minded, I wouldn't have offered." I stuck my tongue out and grabbed a glass out of the cabinet and added ice before filling it with tea from a pitcher in the fridge. I set the glass on the table as the microwave beeped. I took my plate and the fork I had used earlier off the counter and joined Devon at the table. "What kind of screen do you watch?"

"Depends on my mood. I prefer films to series, nothing to miss if you get busy and miss a week or ten."

"I can see the advantage," I said. "I have a few series, but it's the off season, so there's nothing new on. I have a large movie library, you're welcome to pick something and we can watch it, or you can take it back to your place."

"Hmm... Let's see... I can watch a film all by myself, or watch it with a pretty girl? Seems like an obvious choice to me. What kind of films do you have?"

"Only chick flicks and sappy romances," I struggled to keep a straight face. I couldn't manage it and soon broke out giggling.

"Chick flicks and sappy romances, huh?"

"There might be a couple crime dramas, thrillers, or shoot-em-up actions. If you look really hard."

"How hard would I have to look?"

"Really hard. You'd have to go in there and look through the list of recordings." We finished our lasagna and when I picked up our plates, I shooed him into the other room. "You go ahead, I'll load these and be right there." I loaded the dishwasher and refilled our glasses before carrying them into the living room.

I set Devon's glass on the end table next to him, sat on the other end of the sofa, and set my glass near me. I had other furniture, but the sofa was across from my viewing screen and had the best view. Devon was scrolling through my list of recordings.

"Chick flicks and sappy romances, huh?" he asked.

"Maybe I lied." I grinned.

"Like, totally opposite. I might find a chick flick in here if I hunt. But you have classic action flicks in here, lots of thrillers, some comedy, and a few horrors." He sounded surprised. "You even have some John Wayne westerns. He died when my mom was a baby. This is a lot like what my list would look like if I had spent a few years collecting, instead of regularly paring it down so I have less to haul around."

"I'm glad you like it. Did you find something to watch?"

"There's some good stuff here I haven't seen in years." He chose a film almost as old as me. "You picked a classic at my place last time, let's go for another."

"Whatever you want; if it's there, I'll enjoy it."

As the film started and the screen went black and foggy, you could hear a young girl's voice singing as a ship moved slowly into the frame. I kicked my shoes off under the table and pulled my feet into the seat, curling into a comfortable position.

"Make yourself at home," I said, inviting him to kick off his shoes and put his feet up if he wanted.

We sat back and enjoyed the film until the final kiss, when I shut off the screen. Devon thanked me for dinner and a nice evening before he left, citing an early morning and a need to get some sleep.

After he left, I locked the door and then went through the small apartment turning things off before showering and heading to bed. Tomorrow was coming quickly.