Page 3 of My Fake Neighbor's Valentine

Seth

Imake a mental note to tell Grace to get the maintenance check on her lock because no one should struggle this much to open it. These extra seconds it’s taking me to open her door could be the seconds a creeper needs to hurt her.

I finally open the stupid door and lay all the grocery bags on her kitchen counters. I put the items I’m not using before I take a couple of pots and pans to cook dinner. Grace must be tired from the driving, and she is emotionally exhausted from her family. We exchange messages here and there during the holidays, but the few we exchanged she complains about the incessant talks about marriage and why she doesn’t move back to Clear Spring.

I’m prep the ingredients when I hear the front door opening. There is no way Grace is back. It’s not even close to the time she said she would arrive in Maxwell. I peak my head to check who from her friends is walking in. I only know who she is because of the few photos of her around Grace’s bedroom.

“Who are you, and why are you in my sister’s apartment?” Margaret points at me with the keys Grace made for her the year she started studying at Maxwell College.

I reach for my phone and quickly dial Grace.

Grace barges into her own apartment. I could tell how stressed she is. The wheels of her brain are working overtime even though we already decided what to say.

“Maggie, I don’t have a text from you saying you’ll be here,” Grace says while she looks around, accessing the state of her apartment.

“I was dropping some take out for you to have as soon as you arrived, but instead of finding an empty apartment, I find a man cooking for you. Mind explaining who he is because I don’t think you have enough money to pay for a personal chef.”

I extend my hand to Grace, who is biting her lips. She takes it and intertwines her fingers with mine before stepping closer to me.

“Seth is my boyfriend,” Grace says.

“Your what? When did this happen? Why haven’t you told me? Why doesn’t mom know about this? How long you’ve been hiding this?”

“How about you and your sister sit down in the living room and have your talk while I finish the food?” I ask them. Gracelooks at me like a scary puppy. I lean into her ear. “You can use our real timeline. I’ll back up everything you say,” I whisper.

Grace takes a deep breath before letting go of my hand to pull her little sister to the living room couch. I could hear their voices over the sound of the food being cook but I don’t focus on it. If Grace sticks to our friends with benefit timeline, there is no need for me to listen over their conversation.

I take Grace’s luggage into her room as the pasta sauce thickens. When I come back, Grace and Maggie are setting the table. Her little sister gives me a tight lip smile before turning back to setting the cutlery for us.

She waits for a whole three minutes before the dam of questions to me releases.

“Do you know any of my sister’s friends?” Maggie asks.

“I’ve met Soraya and Maia a few times.”

“So they know about you two help you keep it a secret from us.” Maggie points to Grace.

“Maggie, you know our mother. If she knows I have a boyfriend for a year, the conversations about marriage would triple.”

“Why do you hate the topic of marriage so much?”

“Because is unnecessary pressure. It’s a decision between me and whom I’m dating. The more people want me to marry, the less I want to. Right now, work stress is the only pressure I can deal with. I’m happy with Seth just the way we are. Whenever it doesn’t work for one of us, we would have that conversation.”

“I guess I understand. You’ve always been the odd one in the family.”

I grab the dried tomatoes Grace pushes to the side and pop them on my plate. Grace smiles at me and whispers a small thank you.

“At least someone would eat the things you don’t.”

“Oh Maggie, is glorious to be a picky eater and have someone who would eat anything.”

I catch her little sister’s smile that comes after a sigh of relief. We might not be in a real relationship, but if this diffuses any concerns from her family and lowers her anxiety.

“Well, you look happy and your secret is safe with me until you are ready to let the rest of the family in,” Maggie says while reaching out to Grace.

“We should do this more often. I know your sister is busy with school, but I’m sure she would enjoy homemade food,” I say.

“That would be wonderful. It would save my budget so much.”

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