The Boy Next Door

Mandy pulled over at the drive-through. She didn't know why she's still hungry even after eating dinner at the office with Josh. She rubbed her belly which was now rumbling. She strained to see the menu at the front but it was too small. She was the third car from the front. The first car's orders felt like forever and Mandy thought what could the people in the car be ordering that's taking so long. She imagined they were a family — parents in front and three kids at the back seat, each shouting their orders to their mother and then changed their minds and ordered another one. She was holding the steering wheel so tightly that her hand grew numb. At last, the first car was done.

The second car took as long to order. She imagined maybe they were a group of friends going to one of the friend's house to hang out. They were buying food to last the night, probably while binging on some movies. Mandy looked at the rear view mirror. She thought of going to another drive-through, one with less cars, but there was already a queue behind her and she couldn't back out. Just then, the car in front of her moved forward. Finally, it was her turn.

"May I take your order?" The man behind the window asked Mandy. He was big but his voice was too small for his body. Mandy tried not to laugh at her observation.

"Yeah, a bucket of buffalo wings please, make it extra spicy. And a large Coke."

The man took her order without asking anything more. He punched the items in. Mandy noticed he was struggling with the machine.

"New here?" Mandy couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah, just started today." The man said as he punched Mandy's orders.

"I feel for you," Mandy said as she nodded towards the screen.

The man didn't answer but continued with his job.

"Thank you. Next window please." The man didn't even smile at her.

Mandy drove to the next window where she paid for her food. This time, a woman waited on her. After a few minutes, the woman handed her the bucket of buffalo wings in a brown paper bag. Then she gave her a large sized Coke.

Mandy took the bag and the drink. She could smell the wings from inside the bag and it made her even more hungry. She drove faster than she normally would. She wanted to get home fast so that she could eat the wings while they were still hot.

. . .

The basement parking to Mandy's apartment was dim tonight. Mandy noticed some busted lights and made a mental note to report them to the concierge. She wasn't paying maintenance for nothing.

She followed the usual way to her parking slot. Her dad had bought that parking slot together with the apartment so that she wouldn't have to take chances on parking — there is always a guaranteed slot for her. She parked her car, got her take out and went to the elevator.

There was an unusual queue in the elevator tonight. Mandy stood to the end of the line, bewildered. And as if the person beside her was reading her mind, he leaned over and said, "Two elevators are down. Only one is running."

Mandy nodded, just to acknowledge what the man said. She didn't want to be mean but she also didn't want to start a conversation with anyone. She isn't neighborly. She minds her own business and she expects the same in return.

"Are you new here? Because I think this is the first time I saw you." The man continued to talk to Mandy.

"No," Mandy said, her eyes fixed on the elevator, "I've been here for years."

"Really?" The man said, surprised that he has never seen Mandy ever. "Me, too! It's amazing how we never bump into each other before. This might be destiny, you know?"

Mandy looked at the man for the first time. She wanted to know what he looks like, if indeed they have never bumped into each other before. He was smiling at her, his flawless, white teeth showing. He was tall, about 6 feet 6 inches, she thought, although she was never good at estimates. He had freckles on his face and his hair neatly cut. She guessed he might even be using hair wax to keep his hair in place. He was wearing dark gray slacks. His long-sleeved light gray shirt fit his body perfectly. Judging from his arms and shoulders and his flat belly, he clearly worked out. His tie was a bit loose on the neck, maybe because he was already going home, Mandy thought. He was wearing black leather shoes that were undoubtedly buffed that day. Mandy guessed he was about her age. He obviously just came from work. He carried a duffel bag of all things, which clashed with his ensemble but in a fashionable way. A few seconds ago, she was ready to retaliate but seeing him now, she decided to keep quiet.

"I'm sorry," the man said, "I didn't mean to sound arrogant. I was just making conversation. You know, since the elevator is taking too long."

Mandy didn't answer still.

"I'm Xander, by the way." The man extended his right hand to Mandy.

Mandy didn't want to look like a snob so she extended her right hand and shook Xander's hand as she forced a half-smile.

"And you are…"

Mandy took a sharp breath before she answered. "Mandy."

"Mandy," Xander repeated. "Well, nice to meet you, Mandy. I believe this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship, don't you think."

Thankfully, the elevator door opened and the line began to move so that Mandy didn't have to reply to Xander's last sentence. Mandy quietly prayed that she and Xander won't be sharing the elevator. As Xander hopped in the elevator, it set off an alarm which meant that the elevator had overloaded on passengers and one needs to step out. Xander stepped out and the elevator door closed.

"Looks like we'll be having longer conversations, huh?" Xander said as he stepped back in line, now beside Mandy.

Mandy looked behind her and was surprised that the people in line behind her were gone. She figured they must have given up waiting for the elevator so they took the stairs. Mandy would have done that already had it not been for her feet that were already killing her since lunch.

Xander guessed what she was thinking. "Do you wanna take the stairs?" He asked.

"No, I'm good. The elevator will be here any moment."

Three people came in from the parking and Mandy wished they would also queue with them but the three took the stairs.

It was quiet for some time and Mandy welcomed it. She prayed the elevator would come, she was starving, her stomach was quietly rumbling.

"Hungry?" Xander asked.

Mandy was surprised. It's as if he had been reading her mind.

Xander nodded on the paper bag that Mandy was carrying. "You must be really hungry to buy that much buffalo wings."

"How the heck did you know this is buffalo wings?" Mandy asked, in amazement.

"I could smell it," was Xander's simple reply.

"Oh," Mandy said softly, as she looked at the paper bag. She didn't even realize that she'd been hugging the bag.

They waited silently for the elevator after that. When the elevator finally came, only the two of them were there. They both hopped in the elevator. Mandy pressed "5" but Xander didn't press any. Mandy felt nervous. Were they living on the same floor? Or did he just forget to press his floor?

Mandy stepped back and leaned against the elevator's back wall. If ever she and Xander was in fact living on the same floor, at least she would see where he'd go and not the other way around.

When the elevator reached '5', Xander stepped out without looking back. Mandy also stepped out of the elevator, slowly, keeping her eye on Xander. 5 was the top floor and there were only 6 units on that floor.

As Xander passed two apartment units, he looked back at Mandy.

"Are you following me?" Xander stopped and waited for Mandy to answer.

"Of course not! I live on this floor, too!" Mandy quickly walked past him, not interested anymore which apartment he lived. She just wanted to get out of the hallway.

"Okay, relax," Xander said as Mandy passed him. He let Mandy walk farther before he walked again himself.

Mandy went straight to her apartment, the end unit on the right side of the building, facing the street. She stood in front of her apartment's door, opened her bag and fumbled for the key card. Xander passed her. Mandy looked at him, from out of the corner of her eye. He also stopped on the end unit at the LEFT side of the building. She couldn't believe he lived right across the hallway. He took his key card from his pocket and tapped it on the sensor. The door sounded a soft beep. Xander opened it a crack before speaking to Mandy.

"Are you sure you live here? Do you need help finding your key card?"

Mandy found her key card as he was saying those words. She raised it high enough for Xander to see. She tapped it on the door's sensor. When she heard the beep, she pushed down the knob, looked at Xander and entered her apartment without saying a word. She closed the door behind her and left Xander in the hallway.

Xander smiled, still looking at Mandy's apartment's door. After years of living in the building, he finally had something to look forward to every night when he came home from work.