Chapter 4.
“A little white porch”
Lunchtime passed by and, a couple of hours later, my shift was over. The sky above looked clear and sunny as every warm afternoon of late July in Toronto; summer shinning in its full splendour.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXumELfSffx
It was around four thirty when I left from work, and I headed immediately to the address signaled on the paper Gary the bartender had given to me. There was traffic on the streets, indeed, but it did not take me long to arrive to my destiny. Fortunately, it wasn't that far from my job – which would be a great advantage if I planned on living there.
The neighbourhood was quiet enough, there didn't seem to be much movement, and I liked that. I drove down the street, passing by in front of each of the houses in search for the number written on the address. It wasn't long before I found the house.
It was, indeed, a pretty house, of a conservative style, with a little porch in front – where a superb navy blue Harley Davidson was parked –; the walls were painted in a simple white; it was a one-story house, but it seemed to have just enough space. A narrow lateral corridor, bordered by low shrubbery, leaded to a backyard. Some shrubs adorned the front of the house as well. Frankly, the property looked quite nice.
I hesitated when parking my humble Honda in front of the porch, but I tried not to hinder the motorbike's way, in case he needed to go out or whatever. I turned down the engine and sighed, staying inside of the car for a moment, admiring the exterior of the house through the driver's window. I breathed in deeply and finally decided to get out of the vehicle. I was terrified, to say truth; I wasn't completely sure of what was awaiting in there, nor if it was the best option for me after all, but I could not back down just like that. I knew that.
I stood there for a couple of minutes, just staring at the house not daring to move a step closer to the door; but finally my brain sent the order and I walked towards the entrance. I rang the bell once and waited outside of the door, twisting my fingers nervously at my back. If only it were as easy as it seems…
The door was open just enough for a curious little furry head to lean out, emitting excited barks that startled me.
- Move aside, Mabel! – Adam’s voice caught the Golden Retriever puppy’s attention, which was pushed out of the way with a gentle kick.
The black-haired guy appeared before me, opening the door a tad more so that I could see him with no obstacles in between. His eyes, a captivating greyish blue, found mine, and a smile was drawn on his face, taking my breath away for a second.
- Ben, hi! You're quite on time. – He greeted, with that jolly attitude and carefreeness that I began to like. – Come on in.
- Hi, thank you. – I smiled back at him, and did as I was told.
The little Golden Retriever was sitting aside so that she wasn't on the way, panting with her tongue out, waiting until the door was closed again to get up and jump around our feet enthusiastically. She sniffed at my shoes, barking frantically, and I suspected she had to have caught Lewey's scent.
- Mabel, go to your bed. – Adam ordered, without having to raise his voice to show authority. The puppy wagged its tail and quickly disappeared through the corridor. – Sorry. She’s a bit naughty at first, but I’m training her. – He excused himself.
- You seem to be doing a good job. – I noted, with a small lopsided smile.
- Well, thanks. – He smiled as well. – Where shall we begin? Do you want me to show you the house first, or do you want to see the room at once?
I shrugged, looking around – which, even if I refused to admit it, was a mere excuse for not having to keep eye contact for too long. Adam’s gaze was intense, but not in a disagreeable way; it simply made me nervous.
- I think we could start with the house, if that’s okay. – I said.
- Seems great to me. – Adam nodded. – Let’s get started, shall we?
We moved through the narrow entrance corridor, to find almost immediately the living room. A couch and an armchair, separated by a coffee table, stood one beside the other before a modest plasma screen assembled on the wall over a cozy chimney – notably in disuse due to the good weather of summer. A can of beer – that seemed to be already empty – laid on the table. An only picture of silver frame looked solitaire over the mantelpiece; to the naked eye, one could suppose it was a family photograph – for what I could appreciate from where I was standing, four people, two males and two females, smiled to the camera, embracing in an intimate pose. I deduced the jet-black haired male in the picture was Adam, and the rest would be his family – for the reliability of it.
- Well, this is the living room, of course. – Adam noted, rolling eyes at himself due to his own obvious words. – It’s small, but I don’t spent much time in here, unless I have guests. You can receive as many visitors as you want, I have no trouble with that. – He smiled, and then continued. – Right here is the kitchen, come.
I followed him without saying much, observing the house as he showed me each of the rooms. The kitchen wasn't much bigger than the previous one. While it was a fitted kitchen, it had just enough room for no more than four people. No door; the entrance was located right in front of the living room, with a convenient view to the TV. Oven and stove, sink, fridge and all the basic electrodomestics – such as blender, micro-wave oven and coffee maker – were all found there. In the other side, there was a simple wooden table with only four chairs, which was more than enough for two people. A window over the stove showed off a nice view of the backyard, and in the adjacent end there was a door that lead there outside. Looking through the kitchen window – whose curtain was collected to the side to clear the view – one could appreciate some old swings that ornamented the green garden, bordered by short bushes without flower.
- The kitchen. – Introduced Adam with a subtle gesture. – There aren’t many rules here. We can have our utensils and food separately, if it's more comfortable for you that way, and take care of our own stuff. You can use the stove or the oven whenever you need them. - He said. – You cook?
- A little. – I admitted, shrugging.
- Good. – He nodded, a smile on his lips. – I'm not the best cook, but I can fend for myself. I've managed to survive for all these years, so I mustn't be that bad. – He joked amusedly, to what I smiled.
With a small nod, Adam indicated me to go back to our touring, getting out of the kitchen and heading down through the corridor. I followed his steps closely, as I looked with curiosity at the quite discreet house's decoration. There wasn't many paintings hanging on the walls, a handful of them all around the first floor, as much. And there wasn't a single family picture at sight, other than the one that was exhibited in the living room. An occasional flowerpot laid at the corners, only where they would be needed to fill some space.
The floor was made of wood, and the walls were painted in a gray so light it seemed more like white. The air inside was warm and nice, besides Adam had assured that the heating worked fine, so it promised to be well acclimated to stand the grim temperatures of winter without becoming an ice cube. And that was more than perfect for me.
- This door here is my bedroom. – Adam noted, as we passed by through the narrow corridor. – And this one over here is the bathroom. – He said, as he reached to open said door to demonstrate his point.
He moved aside to allow me to look into the bathroom, and I leaned out through the door to sneak a glance. Well, the bathroom of my room at my aunt's house used to be smaller, so I couldn't really complain. It had enough space for the toilet, sink and the shower. The walls were covered in light blue tiles, there was an oval mirror over the lavabo, and in front of this - settled on the opposite wall – was a pair of metallic shelves for the towels and other products – besides the ones that were surely kept in the drawers under the sink. The positive thing about all this was that the shower was tall enough for me, so I wouldn't have to worry about hitting me on the head each time I showered; that was already a win. A small window shown on one of the lateral walls of the shower, at an adequate distance from the floor.
- It looks good. – I commented, glancing all around. – I suppose sharing it won't be a great deal, since we're only two and we're both males.
- Yeah, I guess. – Adam nodded. – Anyways, we could always reach agreement about it. We're grown-ups, aren't we? – He smiled amusedly, and I gave back the gesture. – Well, it's time to see the room. It's over here, come. Right this door.
We left the bathroom behind to go to the door that was right at the other side of the corridor – I had to admit, it was convenient to have the bathroom so close, in all case. Adam turned on the switch that was beside the door, on the adjacent wall; the bulb illuminated a staircase that went down to the basement, the walls were of reddish bricks on the inside. My host was the first one to descend, leading me to my future bedroom – if the contract was signed, which was the most likely to happen given the circumstances and how good the house looked.
It was impossible for me to deny it, I was terribly nervous; it wasn't easy for a fearful person like me to imagine themselves living in a dark and lonely basement, but I reminded myself that I wouldn't be alone in that house and that there was nothing to fear. Besides, the house was really nice and cozy to refuse such convenient offer just because of my ridiculous fears – which for anyone would seem incongruent according to my age.
The basement was not like the one I had seen at Aaron’s place the previous day; this was a bit more spacious, and the light was distributed equally to every single corner, clearing the room in order to have a better look of it. There wasn’t any furniture there yet but, as Adam had said, the room was completely empty. There was no sign of humidity on the walls either, which was wonderful. A window at the left let the daylight in – so it was somewhat unnecessary the artificial light of the bulb.
There was enough space for a double bed, with its night table, a wardrobe and a base where to put the TV, and even then there would be some spare space. It was awesome! Definitely, now that I had a better look at it from my place, I could get used to a life like that one; I would adapt, I’d do it without a problem.
I noticed then that there was a small door to the right at the back of the room, at the corner under the staircase. I tilted my head with curiosity, and Adam followed my gaze – until then, he had just stood there a few steps away from me, only waiting for any comment or observation – and he hurried to explain:
- That’s the washroom. I think I forgot to mention that as well. – He excused himself, scratching his nape vaguely. – As I said, the house wasn’t built in the most brilliant way.
He walked towards the metallic door, painted in white, and opened it to reveal the inside of the service room he had aforementioned. Inside the space was reduced; there was a washing machine and its corresponding dryer, and a couple of empty baskets piled up on the side.
- I hope it won’t be an inconvenient or something like that; it’s something we could also be talked, of course. I only do the laundry on weekends, a little before midday, so I don’t think I would bother you much with that. – Adam said.
- Sounds reasonable. I don’t think there would be any problem with that. – I nodded, shrugging.
- Great. – He smiled. – So, what do you think? Are you sure you want to rent the room? It’s not much, you see, but it’s what I can offer. I think the price is fair. What do you say?
I looked around once more, appreciating the whole basement and weighing my options. In fact, the place was not bad; it looked very promising, and the offer itself was attractive. What was there to lose? It’s not like if there was much to consider, anyways. Adam seemed to be a nice guy, the place was agreeable, the price of the rent was more than reasonable, and I could not really complain about the space… What else could I ask for?
- I like it. – I admitted with a smile. – I think I do, yeah. I’m renting the room.
- Awesome! – Adam grinned, patting my shoulder in a friendly way. – Welcome home then, mate. You can bring your stuff whenever you think it’s convenient for you.
- Sure, thanks.
- Good. Now we only have to clarify some terms and all of that. Do you mind if we go upstairs to sign the papers? I want the thing to be more or less official, so that we could spare us some conflicts and misunderstandings, shall we?
- Okay. – I replied likewise.
We then went back upstairs to the main floor through the narrow staircase. Adam let me go first as a courtesy gesture, to which I mumbled a coy “thank you” accompanied with a small smile. I headed towards the living room, as I supposed it would be a prudent place to talk about terms and make the last agreements before finally signing the contract, with Adam coming right behind me.
Once there, I turned to wait for my future landlord. The raven haired opened his mouth to say something –possibly to invite me to have a seat– but before he could even articulate a word, the tune of ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ interrupted him right away. The ringtone came from Adam’s pocket, and he swiftly took out his cellphone. He gave a quick glance at the gadget’s screen before answering, and I nearly missed the subtle grimace he drew after reading the name on display.
- Hi, honey. What’s up? – Adam talked through the phone, with less excitement than the one he simulated.
He gesticulated in my direction, excusing himself to attend the phone call privately. I simply nodded, and he motioned at me to sit down while he held the receiver against his ear. I watched him walk off down the hall to the kitchen, and a second later I heard the backdoor being opened.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmInHoYyvZt
I sighed, at the same time that the murmur of his baritone voice diminished as he walked outside. From what I managed to get from his tone –without the littlest intention to meddle in the conversation he had by telephone with whom I assumed would be his girlfriend–, he didn’t sound quite zestful.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vGEpjQbSM
I chose to do as I had been indicated and sat on the armchair, clasping my hands on my lap, waiting patiently –or relatively calmed– for Adam to come back.
I seized the time to observe the room, meanwhile. Adam’s house was, in fact, pretty. I stared at the chimney for a while, undecided; but, in the end, the curiosity took over me. It hadn’t passed even a minute, and I was standing up once again. I walked to it and watched with interest the frame laying on the mantelpiece. As I had guessed before, the dark-haired male that shared the center of the picture with a notably younger girl was Adam, some years ago. He didn’t look older than twenty-five in the picture, and he smiled with a joy that reached his clear eyes. He looked even better when he smiled that way, and I wished I could be able to see it in person (however, I’d later learn that it was something he didn’t do since a long while, but there will be time to explain that).
Before I had the chance to thoroughly contemplate the other people that appeared in the photo as well, the sound of the door being opened startled me. It took me a split second to recover and notice it had not been the backdoor in the kitchen but the front door to the house. This realization occurred just by the moment a voice, rather feminine and melodious, irrupted in the house from the corridor.
- Where’s the most handsome man of Toronto? – She called in a sort of singsong.
As soon as I turned towards the corridor, I saw her appear in my view, leaning out as if she was looking for someone –who evidently should be the owner of the house. She stopped dry on her tracks once she entered the living room; her eyes met mine, large and expressive, of a fascinating hue close to turquoise –although it would probably be because of the lights, for when she approached me with a cautious pace, I could distinguish small gray and greenish streaks on them.
- Apparently, he’s here. – She said, drawing a charming smirk on her pink mouth.
She was… pink. Well, not all of her, but… her hair. She had it short, below her chin, layered –in a way the tips of her hair pointed at all directions, tousled– and dyed a striking fuchsia. The color shone against her spotlessly white skin –except for few minuscule freckles that loomed under her makeup. The black eyeliner and smokey eyeshadows highlighted the clarity of her irises.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTVsdn6Arei
She was young –she’d be twenty-four years old, as much–, of short height; she’d hardly reach my shoulder –considering she wore black strap boots with high heels–, and she was really pretty. Her silhouette was slim and shaped, with smooth curves in the right places where women usually have them.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG5mQwZ8Gam
She was dressed in a very singular way: her clothes had a punk/gothic style, prevailing the black color, with matching accessories, combining a variety of different garments and makings as if a clothes avalanche had fallen upon her and had created a fashion masterpiece. A black tank top with a pink pattern on the side, black net fingerless mittens, a pink and black punk tutu over some black torn leggings and a pin that resembled a black rose that adorned her hair. Being honest, everything on her looked dazzling.
- Wait a second… – She squinted her eyes slightly, staring at me with sheer interest and a hint of recognition in her gaze. – I have seen you somewhere, but I’m not sure where… Oh my God! You’re the guy who plays at the bar in Maple Avenue! – She said, smiling excitedly and rising her voice a couple of decibels.
I blinked, somewhat inhibited by her beaming enthusiasm. The words came from her mouth so rapidly I was barely capable of catching them all. However, I smiled shyly at her.
- Uh, yeah… That’s me.
- Benjamin, isn’t it? – I nodded in response, and she held out her hand kindly towards me. – I’m Ariel, Ariel Bloomer. It’s a real pleasure to meet you in the flesh, Ben. Wow, who would have said I'd find you here? – She smiled to herself, shaking her head in amusement.
I shook her hand briefly, not being able to prevent the –hopefully– subtle creep of blood to my cheeks. It was awkward for me to be recognized out of work, and I still didn’t quite get who that girl was and what was she doing in Adam’s house anyways. I had managed to spot certain accent on her voice different to that characteristic one of the Canadians.
Ariel looked around, as if expecting the black haired man she searched for would suddenly appear somewhere around. Then, she turned her large clear eyes to me, with curiosity.
- Where’s Adam?
- He’s outside getting a phone call. – I replied, to which she nodded in understanding.
- I see. – She said; thereupon, she smiled at me once again. – And… what brings you around?
- I… I’m here to rent the room. – I managed to say, forcing my social anxiety to stay out.
- You’re moving here? That’s awesome!
Ariel seemed truly enthusiastic about the idea. For some reason, that made me feel a tad more comfortable with that, as if someway she was welcoming me. And I liked it. I noticed that her eyes acquired that spark of interest again and something else I could not label, but it surely had to do with the little smirk she appeared to try and hold back on her lips, without much success.
- Since when do you know Adam? He hasn’t told you about me, has he? – She said.
- No, not actually. Sorry. – I smiled apologetically. – The truth is that I met him just yesterday afternoon.
- Really? Wow! And you’re moving with him so fast? Now that's courage! – She joked, chuckling.
- You seem to know him well. – I commented, not knowing how to ask her about her relationship with Adam.
Ariel seemed to get my message, for she smiled widely and quickly explained herself.
- He is my brother.
My face should have been the very picture of surprise, either of revelation, because Ariel burst into a lilting laughter.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXzsfqbVANi
Oh! Well, now it all made a lot of sense, to have there enough confidence for Ariel to come in and out of the house without a problem or any kind of restriction. Nevertheless, her foreign accent and the null resemblance between them –unless the grayish hue in their eyes meant any kind of relationship between the two of them– still left some loose ends in my head.
- You don’t look very alike. – I noted, tilting my head a bit.
- Oh, no, it’s because he’s adopted. – She said lightly. – That’s why our surnames are different.
I arched both brows at her words, which honestly had taken me off guard. Ariel looked amused by my reaction, for some reason; but before I could question whether it was actually a joke, Adam appeared again through the corridor, finding us both standing in the middle of the living room and stopping dry, disconcerted.
- Ariel? What are you doing here? I didn’t hear you arrive. – The raven haired spoke, stepping forward to greet his so-called sister.
- Hello, big brother! – Ariel greeted cheerfully, ignoring the questions of the aforenamed. – Why didn’t you tell me you were going to rent the room to this celebrity?
- You know Ben? – Adam raised an eyebrow, darting his gaze from the pink haired girl to me.
- I’ve listened to him playing at the bar, if that counts. – She shrugged, offering him a radiant smile.
- Well, I guess I won’t need to introduce you. Seems like you already did that while I was absent. – Said the black haired, with a hint of suspiciousness in his voice. Ariel chuckled, shaking her head, amusedly. – Anyway, why did you come?
- Oh, I just came here to pick up the films you borrowed a while ago, so that I could watch them on ‘Movies Saturday’.
- Ariel – Adam said, staring at her unbelieving. –, it’s freaking Monday.
- So? Can’t I visit my brother on Mondays? – She replied, to which Adam rolled his eyes.
- You win, Bloomer. They’re in my bedroom, on the shelf. – He indicated, nodding towards the corridor in spite of being obvious she already knew the way. – Oh! And, now that you’re here, could you feed Mabel? Ben and I have to discuss about the rental agreement and such stuff.
Ariel nodded, turning to me once again with that beautiful smile of hers, which would surely brighten up anyone’s day.
- It will take me just a second, I promise. I don’t want to say goodbye to Ben yet. – She said, at the same time she winked at me in a confident and somewhat flirty way. – Meanwhile, you two have fun talking about your terms or whatever. Try not to miss me that much.
- Woah, now that’d be a challenge. – Adam noted sarcastically.
Ariel laughed at that and disappeared through the corridor, heading toward where I remembered was Adam’s bedroom. There was a long second of silence settled in the living room once the girl had left; Adam stared at me cautiously, as if he suspected something had happened between me and Ariel while he was gone. And of course I couldn’t blame him for having his doubts, for his sister was positively eye-catching and charming. However, it was a shame she was not really my type.
- So… shall we discuss the contract?
- Sure. – I nodded, awkwardly.
Ben and I were in the kitchen, talking about the rental agreement. Of course I had expected things to be at least demi-formal, setting terms and some limits and rules from the beginning; that would save us much trouble and make the cohabiting easier. And it was important for us to know about each other’s habits and life styles, especially considering how hard it could be to live with me –so much my own best friend refused to share a house with me in a permanent way.
- So, you have no trouble with untidiness? – I had asked at some point of the conversation, both sitting at the kitchen table.
- Not really. – He said, shrugging. – As long as it doesn’t interfere with my personal space or my stuff.
- Sounds quite fair to me. I don’t mind if you do whatever you want with your space, either, so I think that’s quite alright. – I noted, lightly. – About the bathroom, well… we’ll only have to agree on terms of hours and turns and stuff like that, I hope it won’t be a big challenge. We just have to keep it clean and each one would take care of whatever we do in there.
Ben nodded at my words, being just as expressive as ever. Would he ever move on his timidity once we became housemates? That was something I didn’t know, but I really hoped it happened that way. I let that pass and focused on the clauses instead.
- Now, about visitors: you can bring home anyone you want, as long as you let me know at least a few minutes earlier. If you want to bring your girl home and hang out or anything, that’s totally fine. – I said, and for some reason the guy found my comment hilarious, for he chuckled.
- I don’t think there’d be any problem with that. – He replied with humor.
His smile was lovely, so honest on his thin lips, and I smirked back at him.
- I say it because, in fact, my friends or my little sister use to come visit me at any time of the day. – I admitted. – And also, I use to bring my dates home. I hope that doesn’t bother you.
- No, not at all. – He responded immediately. – It’s alright, it’s your private life.
- Anyways, I recommend you to have some good headphones or ear plugs at hand. – I added in a teasing tone, smiling impishly. – You know…, in case things get kind of awkward for you.
Ben’s reaction to my comment was a bright blush that spread quickly through his cheeks, getting rid of his paleness for a moment. I couldn’t help but laugh. Although, being honest, what I said was nothing but true.
- No, seriously, it’s alright if you want to invite someone to the house. – I said. – But if you want to throw a party here, I’m afraid that I’d be automatically invited and would’ve the right to bring my friends as well.
- Fair enough. – He conceded, a slight smile. – Although I doubt that would be the case, honestly. And I wouldn’t mind if you wanted to throw a party here either.
Well, I could not argue that; Ben did look more the type of quiet and private guys who stayed home on weekends than the one who goes partying with their friends –which, I must admit, I did very often. I knew we wouldn’t have any problem about that matter.
I nodded, offering him a friendly smile.
- Great. You’re not allergic to dogs or anything in particular, are you?
- Uh, no, not really. At least, I have no acknowledged allergies by the moment. – He replied, shrugging.
- Good. That’s good, I guess. Will you bring your cat with you, then?
- Yeah, as soon as I’m moving here. It won’t be a problem, right? Because, well… I’m not sure about how will my cat react to Mabel. He’s kind of bearish.
- Oh, no worries. I don’t think it’d be a big deal. I mean, Mabel has never been in contact with cats, but… she’s only a pup, she wouldn’t do any harm. – I said lightly, even though my words didn’t seem to soothe the guy. Truth is that I had my own doubts about whether this pet’s thing would actually work, but I wanted to keep hopes up as long as I could.
We agreed a couple of things more about the rent payment and topics of that nature before we set out to finally sign the contract. I was barely able to ponder that, one day to another, I had already found a housemate –who was, at the same time, a perfect stranger, but who frankly seemed to be a nice guy. Events had occurred in such a hasty and ridiculously convenient way that I could not argue anything against it even if I wanted to.
- Give me a minute, I’ll get the contract. – I announced before standing up and exiting the kitchen quickly.
When passing by the living room, I saw that Ariel was sitting on the couch, with Mabel laying on her lap while she stroked her and scratched her ears playfully. I smiled at the scene and approached her.
- Hey, can you tend Ben while I look for the papers? He’s in the kitchen.
And, of course, I didn’t have to ask her twice. She practically jumped out of the couch –startling my poor doggie and making her jump off the couch just as quickly and rush towards her bed in my room– and looked at me with such a wide and gleeful smile that could be easily compared with that of the Cheshire Cat of the tales.
- Count on me, brother. – She chanted, and then she walked toward the kitchen with no hesitation.
I rolled my eyes and chose to put the issue aside and go back to what I was doing moments ago. I would talk to her about it later, and I wasn't completely sure about what was what we needed to talk anyways. So that's why I decided to ignore the matter temporarily –or rather say, postpone it.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlWgHWXXqtG
Thus, I went up to my room and searched for the papers I needed for all that business into one of the drawers by my bedside. Once I found the documents that would make the renting process more official and formal, I took a pen from the drawer as well and went back to the kitchen, where they were waiting for me.
I was pretty sure it hadn't taken me five minutes, and Ariel was already sitting on my place, nicely chatting and laughing at some joke with Ben. It's not that I usually acted like a jealous or overprotective older brother with her, but I did prefer not to know whenever she was flirting with some dude. And it was so obvious the interest she felt toward the black haired guy before her; after all, I could not blame her, Benjamin was totally her type: tall, dark haired, rocker, sweet on the inside.
I held back the urge to hawk the moment I stepped into the kitchen once again, with the clear intention of being noticed by the both of them, when I recognized that kittenish smirk and the spark in Ariel's eyes, who was leaning forward over the table as if she wasn't aware of her own actions. However, Ben actually didn't seem to notice it.
- Here are the papers. – I informed, successfully catching the attention of the two of them. Ariel straightened up a bit, as if getting my hidden warning stare, while Ben simply turned his bright hazel eyes to me and nodded, smiling softly.
I left them on the table in front of Ben for him to read them calmly and thoroughly, and so he did, taking them as soon as I had laid them on the wooden surface and put his whole attention on those sheets. Ariel, meanwhile, dedicated me a cynical smile.
- Guess which is his favourite Nirvana album? – She told me, with the same enthusiasm with which a teenage girl talks about the boy she fancies or her favourite band.
I shrugged.
- No idea. Which one? – I asked, feigning interest.
- Nevermind.
- Really? – I quirked an eyebrow, suddenly curious about this fact. I looked at the black haired guy, who was staring at us with a coy smile barely curving his fine lips. He nodded in response. – That’s cool! It’s my favourite album, too. – I said honestly.
Well, I could not deny this guy had a strange ability to get my liking, in spite of everything. And it was interesting to know that we had certain things in common, which would only allow us a more bearable cohabitation at best. To give Ben an opportunity was the best and more sensible thing I could do then.
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