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STITCH

T wo days later Stitch was getting ready for a run after work. Stepping out of his duplex his neighbor met him. “Nani,” he paused. “What’s going on?”

“There’s something wrong with the gas.”

“Do you need me to take a look?” Stitch stepped toward her door.

“No, boy. I got someone coming over. I’ll wait for them.”

“How about I turn off the gas while you wait,” Stitch pointed around the corner of the building where the meters sat. His elderly neighbor smiled and nodded at him. “I’m gonna do that and then go for a run. I’ll check on you when I get back.” Stitch disappeared around the corner.

A truck pulled up behind Stitch as he was turning off the gas flow to Nani’s meter. “Hey!” a female voice said from behind him. “What are you doing?”

Stitch put his hands in the air and slowly turned around, “I was shutting off my neighbor’s gas.” His face shifted as he recognized the woman from the restaurant. “You hit me!”

Kailani raised a skeptical eyebrow at him, “I don’t think so.”

“At Uncle’s?—”

Remembering that night with embarrassment, Kailani cut him off, “No, Howlie.”

At the slight, Stitch’s eyebrow rose. His hands still up. “You seemed pretty upset; I think you left a bruise.”

Kailani looked him up and down, her eyes stopping on his chest, where he’d lowered one hand. He was dressed for a workout, of course he had a great body. She was mad at herself for noticing. She snapped out of her reverie, “I’m here to fix it. The gas.”

Stitch’s other eyebrow rose, and he pointed with his still raised hand toward the corner of the building, “Nani is waiting.”

Kailani stormed off. Stitch watched her walk around the corner, righted himself, and then turned to head off for his run.

Stitch ducked his head into Nani’s door when he got back from his run. The kitchen was just inside so he immediately made eye contact with both Nani and Kailani. “Just checking that no one died yet.”

Nani laughed, “Tyler, you’re so ridiculous!”

Kailani turned and started putting a couple of tools she’d pulled out of her tool bag back in. Tyler! Of course,‘Tyler’, could he be whiter? What happened to his shirt?

“Nani, were you making dinner tonight, or was I?” Stitch kept at his neighbor as he stepped fully in.

“You need to take a girl out your own age, boy.” Nani snapped back at him.

Kailani stood to go, dusting her hands off on her pants as she turned to face the two of them so she could leave. “Auntie, I left a card on the counter. If you have any more problems let me know.” She turned on Stitch backing him against the open door, “Excuse me.”

He pushed open the screen for her as she stepped out and headed back for her truck.

“She’s a peach,” Nani said.

Stitch looked down at Nani, “Yeah, a real charmer.”

“Hush boy,” Nani responded smacking Stitch on the chest. “You’ll see.”

“Nani, she does not like me.”

“Hush boy.” Nani looked him up and down realizing for the first time he was standing in his shorts and shoes only. “You need to shower, go.”