The Stranger Next to Me
Four
A pounding on my front door startled me from my slumber, making me flop around like a fish. I gave a soft growl and looked to the spot that I found Max in this morning. It was empty, just like I left it. I got up and trotted down the stair and to my door. I opened it and gave my head a scratch. Attractive, right? My brother, Chris, was on the receiving end of the door, so it really didn’t matter. I moved out of the way and let him in. I noticed that he had a blue leash in his hand. My eyes traveled down and saw my Hugo prancing into the loft with a harness on that was attached to the leash.
“Why is my cat hooked to that contraption?”
“Surprisingly, your cat likes to go on walks,” He said with a shrug. My brother isn’t a normal sized human being. He was a football, hockey, baseball and basketball player in high school, therefore he was bulky-large. He was around Marc’s height and had a healthy, muscular build, so when I picture him walking my hairless cat on a leash, I couldn’t help but laugh. “But what? You‘ve been gone for so long and I don‘t even get a ‘Hi!’ or an ‘I missed you!’. You‘re just using me for my babysitting skills. That hurts, Jewels,” Ah, my real name. Not Jewels, but Julee. The name my mother and father gave to me at birth. I haven’t heard it in so long simply because I go by my stage name of Lola. We exchanged hugs.
Chris and I couldn't be anymore different when it came to our personalities and looks. While he was more of an athlete, I was obviously a musician. He was a little goofier than I was, though we both got that gene from our father. And although we were fully related to each other, we looked completely different. He had sandy blonde hair and bright blue eyes, while my natural hair color was dark brown and I had hazel eyes. People would look at us weirdly when we told them we were related, siblings no less. I loved my brother with my entire heart. He had seen me at my best and at my worst and he was there to pick me up when my mother couldn't. I honestly don't know what I would do without him.
“You understand that he can’t be out in the sun, right? He’ll dry up like a raisin! I hope you rubbed him down with lotion before and after your little escapades. The last thing I need is for my cat to get Melanoma,” Chris noticeably shuddered.
“As daunting of a task as that was, it was done. Don’t worry,” He said smoothly as he plopped himself down on one of the sofas.
“You made Andrea do it, didn’t you?” Referring to Chris’ wife and my sister-in-law.
“Absolutely. It’s one thing to put lotion on yourself or even your kid, but a cat is where I draw the line. Also, he needs more. He ran out of it yesterday. I swear to God that cat is part sponge.” I pulled Hugo’s food dish out of the drainer and poured some of his cat food into it. He knowingly jumped onto the counter and began eating in his usual spot. I rubbed his smooth back for the first time in two and a half months. He gave me a small purr, then returned to his food.
“It’s not his fault that he’s naked.”
+
Chris had left about an hour after he dropped Hugo off, leaving me alone with my cat. With the way that my life was going, it would probably be Hugo and I until the end. I shook the thought out of my thick skull. I hoisted myself off of the sofa and decided to get dressed so I could go grocery shopping, because let’s face it, I needed to eat and Stiglitz needed his lotion so he doesn‘t crumble away. I’m probably grossing you out, aren’t I?
+
Cocoa Krispies or Frosted Flakes? Cocoa Krispies or Frosted Flakes? Cocoa Krisp- Oh, to hell with it.
I threw the brown box of Cocoa Krispies in the cart before continuing with my shopping trip. The cart was filled with things that I wouldn’t normally get to eat on tour or while recording, like ice-cream, milk, cheese, anything remotely good, you get the picture. Dairy products put a strain on the vocal cords, therefore I can’t have any of it, but now that I have some time off, I was going to indulge.
“Fancy seeing you ‘ere,” I heard an accented voice behind me as I reached out to grab a carton of eggs. The voice startled me, causing me to drop the eggs and the splatter of yolk all over the tiled floor. I closed my eyes, put my head down and took deep breaths. How does he just pop up everywhere?
“Yeah, fancy that, Max.” I got a new carton and turned back to my cart and started pushing it away.
“‘ey, since you’re ‘ere, I thought I would ask you something,” His footsteps fell in time with mine as I tried to hightail it out of there.
“What could you possibly want from me?” I turned my head to look at him. A smirk found its way onto his face.
“Well, I would really like it if we could-” I held my hand up to stop him. I knew where this was going.
“Never mind, don’t answer that. I thought that you would get it through your thick skull that I’m not a casual fuck. My answer is no. My answer will always be no.” I sped up my walk until I got to the register with the least amount of people in it. Max followed right behind me.
“Alright that was a bad joke, but what I was going to really ask is if you would like to go out to dinner with me?” I started throwing my items on the conveyer belt, not even separating the produce from the meats. I just wanted to get out without having to answer him. Once I finished, I pushed my basket through to the other end while the girl rang up my items. Max put his small hand basket up behind mine after using one of the dividers to separate our groceries. The fact that he actually had things to buy made me feel more at ease. At least he wasn’t just following me around. I kept my eyes on the screen that showed the price of everything, willing myself not to look at Max. The girl behind the register kept glancing back and forth between us, obviously amused with what was happening.
“Come on, chéri, don’t make me beg.”
“Your total is $109.88.” The girl said with a chuckle in her voice. I swiped my card through the pin machine and paid for everything. After everything was placed into my cart, I flew out of the store and to my car. I threw everything sloppily into the small trunk of my BMW Z4.
“You know, you are the only single girl that I know that would buy over a ‘undred dollars worth of groceries.” Max’s unmistakable voice came closer to me as I threw the last of my groceries into the car. I slammed the trunk down and took the cart to the cart return. “You cannot run away from me forever chéri.” He said with a chuckle. I found absolutely nothing funny about this.
“Oh, you bet I can.” I opened my door and threw myself inside. I tried shutting the door, but Max’s large hand stopped it. My forehead came into contact with the steering wheel as I let out a huge sigh. “Seriously, what do I have to do to make you stop this?”
“Just say yes.” He replied with a quirky smile on his face. I licked my lips in thought. His big, alluring eyes were just waiting for me to give the affirmative.
“Why is my cat hooked to that contraption?”
“Surprisingly, your cat likes to go on walks,” He said with a shrug. My brother isn’t a normal sized human being. He was a football, hockey, baseball and basketball player in high school, therefore he was bulky-large. He was around Marc’s height and had a healthy, muscular build, so when I picture him walking my hairless cat on a leash, I couldn’t help but laugh. “But what? You‘ve been gone for so long and I don‘t even get a ‘Hi!’ or an ‘I missed you!’. You‘re just using me for my babysitting skills. That hurts, Jewels,” Ah, my real name. Not Jewels, but Julee. The name my mother and father gave to me at birth. I haven’t heard it in so long simply because I go by my stage name of Lola. We exchanged hugs.
Chris and I couldn't be anymore different when it came to our personalities and looks. While he was more of an athlete, I was obviously a musician. He was a little goofier than I was, though we both got that gene from our father. And although we were fully related to each other, we looked completely different. He had sandy blonde hair and bright blue eyes, while my natural hair color was dark brown and I had hazel eyes. People would look at us weirdly when we told them we were related, siblings no less. I loved my brother with my entire heart. He had seen me at my best and at my worst and he was there to pick me up when my mother couldn't. I honestly don't know what I would do without him.
“You understand that he can’t be out in the sun, right? He’ll dry up like a raisin! I hope you rubbed him down with lotion before and after your little escapades. The last thing I need is for my cat to get Melanoma,” Chris noticeably shuddered.
“As daunting of a task as that was, it was done. Don’t worry,” He said smoothly as he plopped himself down on one of the sofas.
“You made Andrea do it, didn’t you?” Referring to Chris’ wife and my sister-in-law.
“Absolutely. It’s one thing to put lotion on yourself or even your kid, but a cat is where I draw the line. Also, he needs more. He ran out of it yesterday. I swear to God that cat is part sponge.” I pulled Hugo’s food dish out of the drainer and poured some of his cat food into it. He knowingly jumped onto the counter and began eating in his usual spot. I rubbed his smooth back for the first time in two and a half months. He gave me a small purr, then returned to his food.
“It’s not his fault that he’s naked.”
+
Chris had left about an hour after he dropped Hugo off, leaving me alone with my cat. With the way that my life was going, it would probably be Hugo and I until the end. I shook the thought out of my thick skull. I hoisted myself off of the sofa and decided to get dressed so I could go grocery shopping, because let’s face it, I needed to eat and Stiglitz needed his lotion so he doesn‘t crumble away. I’m probably grossing you out, aren’t I?
+
Cocoa Krispies or Frosted Flakes? Cocoa Krispies or Frosted Flakes? Cocoa Krisp- Oh, to hell with it.
I threw the brown box of Cocoa Krispies in the cart before continuing with my shopping trip. The cart was filled with things that I wouldn’t normally get to eat on tour or while recording, like ice-cream, milk, cheese, anything remotely good, you get the picture. Dairy products put a strain on the vocal cords, therefore I can’t have any of it, but now that I have some time off, I was going to indulge.
“Fancy seeing you ‘ere,” I heard an accented voice behind me as I reached out to grab a carton of eggs. The voice startled me, causing me to drop the eggs and the splatter of yolk all over the tiled floor. I closed my eyes, put my head down and took deep breaths. How does he just pop up everywhere?
“Yeah, fancy that, Max.” I got a new carton and turned back to my cart and started pushing it away.
“‘ey, since you’re ‘ere, I thought I would ask you something,” His footsteps fell in time with mine as I tried to hightail it out of there.
“What could you possibly want from me?” I turned my head to look at him. A smirk found its way onto his face.
“Well, I would really like it if we could-” I held my hand up to stop him. I knew where this was going.
“Never mind, don’t answer that. I thought that you would get it through your thick skull that I’m not a casual fuck. My answer is no. My answer will always be no.” I sped up my walk until I got to the register with the least amount of people in it. Max followed right behind me.
“Alright that was a bad joke, but what I was going to really ask is if you would like to go out to dinner with me?” I started throwing my items on the conveyer belt, not even separating the produce from the meats. I just wanted to get out without having to answer him. Once I finished, I pushed my basket through to the other end while the girl rang up my items. Max put his small hand basket up behind mine after using one of the dividers to separate our groceries. The fact that he actually had things to buy made me feel more at ease. At least he wasn’t just following me around. I kept my eyes on the screen that showed the price of everything, willing myself not to look at Max. The girl behind the register kept glancing back and forth between us, obviously amused with what was happening.
“Come on, chéri, don’t make me beg.”
“Your total is $109.88.” The girl said with a chuckle in her voice. I swiped my card through the pin machine and paid for everything. After everything was placed into my cart, I flew out of the store and to my car. I threw everything sloppily into the small trunk of my BMW Z4.
“You know, you are the only single girl that I know that would buy over a ‘undred dollars worth of groceries.” Max’s unmistakable voice came closer to me as I threw the last of my groceries into the car. I slammed the trunk down and took the cart to the cart return. “You cannot run away from me forever chéri.” He said with a chuckle. I found absolutely nothing funny about this.
“Oh, you bet I can.” I opened my door and threw myself inside. I tried shutting the door, but Max’s large hand stopped it. My forehead came into contact with the steering wheel as I let out a huge sigh. “Seriously, what do I have to do to make you stop this?”
“Just say yes.” He replied with a quirky smile on his face. I licked my lips in thought. His big, alluring eyes were just waiting for me to give the affirmative.