Far Beyond Repai - A.K.Evans Page 0,3
eyes off her.
I thought she was perfect. Stunning.
Barely taking enough time to swallow my food, I hurried to unload the mower and get back to work. I wanted to get Scarlet to notice me, so I came up with a plan. After bringing the mower closer to the edge of the pool deck, I pretended there was a problem with it and turned it off. Then I began faking an inspection of it.
Much to my surprise, relief, and sheer joy, I heard that angelic voice only a few moments later.
“Ryker?”
She remembered my name.
I looked up from the mower, saw her beautiful face and body up close, and did my best to seem surprised. “Scarlet?”
She bit her lip before she replied, “You remembered my name.”
“Of course. You remembered mine, too.”
“So, you work two jobs?” she asked.
I nodded.
Dipping her chin in acknowledgment, she wondered, “Is everything okay with the mower?”
“What?”
Pointing at the lawnmower, she repeated, “Is everything okay? Is it broken?”
Damn. I’d forgotten what I was doing.
“Oh, yeah. I think it’s fine. I heard something funny and just wanted to make sure there wasn’t anything caught in it,” I explained, hoping she couldn’t see right through my lie. “But it’s all clear.”
“That’s good.”
“Sorry if I disturbed you,” I lamented.
Shaking her head, she insisted, “No, it’s okay. It’s actually nice to talk to someone. Who would have thought I’d be spending my birthday alone?”
The minute the words were out of her mouth, two things happened. First, Scarlet slapped her hand over her mouth and said, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say that.”
But the second thing that happened was the most unexpected. I found the courage to respond in a way I would never have imagined. “There’s no need to apologize,” I insisted. “Besides, who would have thought I’d be spending my birthday working?”
Scarlet’s eyes widened.
“It’s your birthday today, too?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
“How old are you?”
“Sixteen.”
She smiled at me before she confirmed, “Me too.”
“Well, Happy Birthday, Scarlet,” I started. “I hope you have something fun planned for later.”
She shook her head. “Not really. What about you?”
“I’m working tonight,” I told her.
“At the theater?”
“Yeah.”
She nodded slowly and looked away. I could see the thoughts running through her mind. Despite knowing something was occupying her mind, I didn’t wait for her to share it.
Instead, I offered, “You know, if you don’t have plans and are up for it, there is an eight o’clock showing for a new romantic thriller movie that was released this week. And I know you can get free admission on your birthday as long as you mention it at the ticket booth.”
Her brows furrowed. “Really? I didn’t know that.”
“So, what do you say? Are you going to take advantage of it?” I asked.
Scarlet stood there, staring at me for a moment. Finally, she beamed a beautiful smile at me and said, “Yeah, I think I will.”
“Great. I’ll see you then.”
“Okay,” she replied as she looked away with a smile still tugging at the corners of her mouth.
At that, I fired up the mower again and gave Scarlet one last up-close look. Then I got back to battling between mowing the lawn and looking at her. It was tough to say which one I did more of.
Later that evening, I was standing at the head of one of the lines validating tickets and directing customers to the appropriate theater when Scarlet walked up.
“They told me at the front that you bought my ticket,” she greeted me.
I shrugged my shoulders and replied, “I have no idea what they’re talking about.”
Scarlet shot me a look that told me she didn’t believe a word I was saying. It also said that she really found the gesture to be sweet. That made it all worth it. But I wasn’t done yet.
I took her ticket, tore it, and directed her to her theater. From her perspective, nothing other than me paying for her ticket was different than her last trip. In thirty minutes, that would change.
“I’m taking my break,” I told my co-worker.
“Okay.”
I ran to the break room, grabbed the surprise, and took off toward the theater Scarlet was in. Luckily, it wasn’t too crowded, and there were several empty seats around her. I walked over and sat down next to her.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
I handed her the small Styrofoam container and returned, “Happy Birthday.”
Scarlet took the container, opened it up, and her entire face lit up. “This is for me?” she asked.
“Yeah,” I answered.
“I feel bad for not getting you anything to celebrate your