Carlos

“Hey man, what are you doing up this early?”

I shook my head and shrugged. I didn’t know why I was up with the sun. I hadn’t even slept but a couple of hours. Something loud coming from underneath me was what woke me up and as I took a drag off of the cigarette in my mouth, I went to the porch to see what it was. I wasn’t above cursing someone out first thing in the morning if I couldn’t get some peace and quiet while I woke up.

“Looks like someone is moving in downstairs.”

I wanted to tell Joel that he was being Captain Obvious, but I didn’t. Instead I just kind of looked at him and then to the moving truck that was parked downstairs. I wasn’t too thrilled to have new neighbors because it took me so long to get rid of the last ones that had called the police on me several times before. Every time I had a party, I was sure to get the cops called and I didn’t want to go through that again. I didn’t want to be quiet, I wasn’t a quiet person, but I knew that I didn’t have a choice. I was too stubborn to rent out the apartment below. Why would I when I could just make the people leave?

“So who do you think it is going to be?”

Again it was a moronic thing to ask. I didn’t know and there was no point in imagining who it would be. It was better to wait and as I flicked the cigarette, watching the ashes float down to the pavement below, I stopped when I saw the tiny blonde that reemerged from the inside and went back to the moving truck to get another box. I could tell she was struggling with it. It looked like it was as big as she was, but I didn’t feel moved to help. I felt moved to watch her and her jiggling breasts as she tried to get it in without dropping it.

“I think I’m going to go help her. You know, be neighborly and all of that.”

I sighed at Joel and reminded him that he didn’t even live in the building. “She isn’t even your neighbor, Joel.”

“Yeah, but you are my cousin and you live here, so that technically means that I live here too.”

“I don’t think it works that way.”

He disagreed and really wasn’t listening to me anymore. To him, he was already downstairs with the blonde lovely and I could tell just by looking at him what he had in mind. I didn’t blame him. She was beautiful, but I learned not to mess with anyone that I was going to have to see every day. She may have been pretty now, but after a few times with her and after I get bored with her, she wouldn’t be quite so attractive. Not when she would no doubt hate me for whatever it is I would be blamed for doing. No doubt I would break her heart.

The idea made me smile and then I saw Joel talking to her. I couldn’t hear what he was saying, but whatever it was, she must have thought it was funny because I could hear the melodic sound of her laugh from where I was. For a moment I regretted not going down there with Joel, but part of me knew that it was for the best. I didn’t need to get involved, especially with a neighbor, no matter how cute she may be.

Going back inside, I didn’t want to hear the two of them any longer and I crawled back into bed. I shouldn’t be up before noon and I didn’t plan to be. Ignoring the sounds of the moving going on downstairs, I went back to sleep without worrying about a thing. Joel would tell me all about her later when he got back upstairs. I could wait to get the low down on the new neighbor. I was hoping that she would at least be okay with me and my life style. The last thing I needed was some uptight woman that was going to give me a hard time.

***

“So, what is she like?”

Joel just smiled and then poured himself a drink. It was almost one when he came back upstairs and I had been up for a while, wondering what in the world he was down there doing. I didn’t hear any noises like he was getting it in, so I had to guess.

“Her name is Eve and I have to say, I don’t think I have ever met anyone like her before.”

It was his tone and the way he said it that made me look at him a little sideways. Why was he acting like he was in love with this chick or something? It didn’t make sense. He had only been down there a few hours and I didn’t see how anyone could feel anything for someone else when no time had passed. I slept with the same girl for a week and I was bored, so I didn’t get what it was that he was smiling like an idiot for.

“What is wrong with you Joel?”

My cousin shrugged his shoulders and took a drink of his glass, looking off in the distance a bit too much for comfort. What was wrong with him?

“Nothing man, she is just perfect. I can’t believe you didn’t go down there. I told her that you lived up here and Eve thought it would be good to meet. I told her that you would go down there later for an introduction.”

“Why the hell would you tell her that?”

“Because you should. You are going to regret it if you don’t. I’m telling you Carlos, there is something about her that you are going to want to see.”

I thought he was talking about her physical attributes. I had seen a bit of them from my place on the porch earlier, but then he started talking about her personality and her likes. What had gotten into my cousin? It was like he wasn’t himself all of a sudden and I knew that it had to have something to do with the new neighbor.

“I didn’t see anything that special about her Joel. I think it has just been too long for you.”

He tried to look like he was offended, but he wasn’t. Joel was a one-woman man and after his divorce, he was even more so now. I kept trying to get him involved and looking for other women, but he was still in love with his ex-girlfriend Lisa. For him to actually like a girl in that way had me sitting up and taking notice. It also made her off limits in a way. If there was someone that was going to make him forget Lisa, I wasn’t going to mess with that.

“You just have to meet her.”

“I think I’m good. You can chase after her if you want to.”

Carlos didn’t say anything, but I knew that was what he was thinking about. It didn’t take a genius to really get it. “I don’t think we have much in common. If you went down there with me, then it would be less pressure.”

“Are you actually nervous around her?”

He wouldn’t admit it, but it was pretty clear that he was. I didn’t know what to think about his reaction, but it did make me want to see what all of the fuss was about. What was it about the woman that had acting so strange?

“Well, all I know is that I hope she isn’t like the last ones, always banging on the door when it gets too loud.”

“I don’t think she is much of a partier. I think she is some kind of journalist or something.”

I sighed and blew out a breath. If she was one of those types, I was sure that it was going to be hard to keep it quiet for her. Not that I cared, but I had a feeling that I was going to hear from her whether I wanted to or not.