Page 29 of After Effect

I approached the door just the same. A small buzzer, white and rectangular, was positioned above the door handle. I gave it a press.

No answer.

Maybe this is the wrong place? I pulled up Baek’s number on my phone, but before I could hit dial, the door flew open. A man dressed with dark skin and dark clothing stood before me, barely visible in the night.

He gave me a nod, and took the briefcase without a word, moving swiftly back into the depths of the Pizzaria.

Well, that was fucking weird.

I shrugged outwardly, then returned to my car. 10:30PM…

Lilly’s probably still up.

She picked up after the first ring “Finchy?”

“Lilly.” The moment she answered, it suddenly occurred to me that I had no idea what I was calling her for. “Have you eaten dinner?”

“It’s 10:30PM. Is this a trick question to make sure I’m sticking to my diet?” Her voice was playful.

“No, I… I just happened to be in the area.” God, I sound like an idiot.

“You just happened to be in Oxnard?”

“Yeah,”

“And you’re hungry?”

“Uh-“ My stomach growled loudly enough that she could probably hear it through the line.

Her laugh filled the receiver. “Come over. You know the address,”

She hung up, and I sat there in my leather seats, staring at the screen of my phone. Why did I do that?

I guess there’s no turning back now.

I pulled up to Cisneros con Gandules. It was closed for the night, as I had figured. I went around back to Lilly’s door. It was slightly ajar, a dim light seeping from the crack.

I approached quietly and nudged the door open. I was immediately bombarded with the scent of Latin spices. Lilly’s voice carried down the hall, loud enough to be heard a few rooms over from the kitchen as she sang an old country song with playful notes. I stepped through the open door, and inched toward the kitchen.

Fresh cilantro and garlic tickled my nose. I could hear the sound of sizzling meats and sautéing vegetables. God it all smelled so good. My stomach grumbled in approval.

Then I heard another woman’s voice. I stopped in my tracks, making sure I was nowhere near the kitchen’s line of sight. “Ah, no sweetie! You don’t put cheese on that.”

“What? Why? Cheese makes everything better.” Lilly retorted with a whimper.

“It’s a complete butchering of the dish. Do you want to impress this ‘friend’ of yours, or are you going to go rogue on me?” Her tone carried the gentle but stern chastising that only a mother could master.

“Fine, I’ll do it your way.” She groaned.

“You mean you’ll do it the right way.” Her mother chuckled. “So when am I going to meet this ‘friend’?”

“I uh- I mean, it’s not-“ Lilly stumbled over every tremoring word. “N-not tonight, Mami. Next time.”

A smile covered my face. She wanted to impress me so much so that she even got her mom to help her, huh? Adorable.

I turned on my heel, and slipped back out quietly, so she wouldn’t know I had overheard. I moved my car to the front end of the building, then waited a few extra moments before I rang the doorbell. In about thirty seconds, Lilly pulled open the door.

“Finchy. Fancy meeting you here.” Lilly smiled a confident smile. Completely cool and collected. She was dressed in her usual jeans with a fitted, low plunging, white v-neck, and her tattoos peaked out from beneath her sleeve.

---