Our eyes meet just as she starts to go down, and thankfully, all those sprints at practice pay off. I make it to her just in time for my long arms to catch her, saving her from eating concrete.
Andsmashingher BBQ sandwich against my chest.
“Oh my gosh,” she breathes out as I pull her upward, the scent of her vanilla lavender perfume mixed with sauce hitting my lungs. Something about the warmth of her against me sends a tingle down my spine, but I ignore it, making sure to release her as soon as she’s stable.
I mean, it’s probably just the pulled pork.
“I think Cocoa needs to learn to heel,” I tell her, my voice coming out stilted as she uses my arm to steady herself while she gets untangled, her dinner splatting to the ground.
She laughs, shaking her head. “I think Cocoa needs a lot of things.” Nicole’s eyes drift to her dog, who’s now chowing down on her sandwich. “But I can’t blame him for wanting that. It’s from the best BBQ place in the city, and…” Her voice trails off as she looks at my shirt. “Oh no! It’sall overyou.” A hand flies to her mouth. “I amsosorry.”
“It’s fine,” I say, plucking at the front of my shirt with two fingers. The sauce is already seeping through to my skin, warm and sticky. “Really, it’s just a cheap shirt.”
“But I ruined it!” She looks genuinely distressed, which is kind of endearing considering it’s literally a three-pack Hanes t-shirt. “I’ll pay for the dry cleaning. Or a new one. Or both!”
I can’t help but laugh at her panicked expression. “Nicole, it’s a ten-dollar shirt. It’s not even worth dry cleaning.”
She bites her lip, looking from my shirt to my face, then back to my shirt. “Are you sure? Because I feel terrible. First we ruined your shoes, now your shirt…”
I shrug. “At least you’re consistent.”
She almost smiles, but her lips clamp shut to keep it in. “It’s really not funny. I don’t blame you if you hate me. I’m the worst neighborever. Sorry.” She places her hand against her forehead, smearing BBQ sauce across it.
“It’s fine,” I assure, stepping around Cocoa to the hot dog cart. I grab a few napkins and return to Nicole. I dab at the spot on her forehead, my throat growing dry as her eyes hold mine. “You got a little something on your face.”
She squeezes her eyelids shut. “Oh my gosh, I’m such a train wreck.” Nicole laughs and for the first time since moving here, I actually don’t feel like an outsider.
I feel like myself.
Cocoa, tail thumping, looks up at me and gives a single, content bark, having fully finished Nicole’s sandwich.
“You ate my lunch, you little menace…” Nicole groans.
“Looks like someone’s going hungry.”
She sighs dramatically. “The story of my life lately. Nothing ever goes according to plan.”
“Well,” I find myself saying, “since your dog ate your lunch, do you want to go grab something to eat? There’s gotta be a place nearby that’s not just for Instagram photos.”
Nicole looks up at me, surprise flickering across her features. “You want to … have lunch? With me?”
I shrug, immediately feeling self-conscious. “I mean, if you want to. Or not. It’s just a suggestion.”
“No, I’d love to!” The smile that spreads across her face is different from her usual polished grin. It’s a little crooked, a little uncertain, but somehow more real. “I know a great place just around the corner.”
She chatters as we walk, gesturing with her free hand while keeping a firm grip on Cocoa’s leash with the other. He trots along like the best boy ever, probably because his stomach is overloaded with his snack.
“I don’t know why these things only happen when you’re around. My life is ninety percent less chaotic when I’m alone. I swear.” Nicole looks up, blushing.
“Must be me, then. I’m a chaos magnet.” I gaze down at her, noticing the way she still has BBQ sauce on the corner of her mouth. Honestly, it’s adorable.
She laughs. It’s soft, and maybe a little sad. “You know, it could be your overtly manly cologne. I bet Cocoa’s just trying to establish dominance or something.”
Cocoa, as if on cue, leaps up and tries to lick my stained shirt, then resumes strutting like he owns the block.
“You know he’s not sorry at all, right?” I smirk.
Nicole rolls her eyes. “He’s never sorry. He’s basically an agent of destruction. He has zero remorse.” She lets out a sigh as she watches him for a few moments. “But I love him.”
