“Yes, ma’am, you did, and I assure you Adobe Sunset is what’s on your roof. In fact, Cedar Falls has a touch more gray mixed into it.”
“Well, it looks gray to me.”
The clouds are coming in quickly and casting a shadow over everything including the trees that have become a couple of shades darker in the time Mrs. Dunn and I have been speaking.
“I will save the packaging tomorrow and make sure to show you that the shingles are, in fact, Adobe Sunset.”
Mrs. Dunn places her hand on her cheek, shaking her head with disdain. “Thank you, dear. Also, I thought you would have gotten a bit more done today, no?”
I run the back of my arm across my forehead, stopping the sweat that’s beading up on my forehead from dripping into my eyes. “I got as much done as I could e, Mrs. Dunn. I had some trouble stripping the original shingles.”
“Okay then, we’ll see some more progress tomorrow,” she states, affirmatively.
“Yes, ma’am, my partner will join me tomorrow too, so we should be able to finish up quickly for you.”
“Is your friend insured, Mr. Miller?”
“Yes, ma’am, Davey works for me.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means he is insured, Mrs. Dunn.”
She gives a thumbs-up as if I said the magic words she needed to hear. “Okay then, have a nice night, Mr. Miller.”
I give the old lady a quick solute and hop into my truck, groaning along the way. I got into this business because the thought of working alone on top of roofs sounded like a dream. The work part is great, but the customers are a bit of a nightmare at times.
“Siri, call Pops.”
The moment I pull away from Mrs. Dunn’s house, I press on my breaks, noticing a bunch of grade school kids playing in the street. I didn’t think kids did that anymore. I also see their moms chit-chatting at the bottom of their driveways, and dads mowing their lawns. It’s the way life should be.
Just not my life.
“Calling, Pops,” Siri repeats.
“How ya doin’, son,” Pops grumbles into the phone.
“Not bad. Do you or Ma need anything before I grab a bite to eat?”
Pops clears the phlegm out of his throat. “No, no, we’re fine, son. Go on and eat dinner. Tomorrow night, I have someone coming to fix the oven though. Your ma is about to kick my ass out of the house if I don’t have that taken care of soon.”
“What’s the matter with the oven?” I ask him.
“It’s broken. How am I supposed to know?”
I toss my head back against the cushioned seat and shake my head. The Challenges with Ma and Pops aren’t getting any easier, and I know it will only get worse the older they get.
“I’ll stop by after work tomorrow then,” I tell him. I don’t want some repair guy taking them for a ride as usual when I’m not around.
“Whatever,” Pops says, sounding irritated that he can’t do this stuff himself anymore. That’s life, though.
The dirt crunches beneath my tires as I pull into Kenny’s. The place is filling up fast tonight considering it’s barely six o’clock.
I stop the truck and take in a long breath, fixating on the pine smell from my air freshener. It’s better than the rubber coating on a shingle. I push through the dream of eating a home cooked meal and head inside for my nightly burger.
The bells on the door hardly get through a full chime when Luke shouts my name like I’m royalty walking through the door.
“How’s it hangin’, man?” I grab my usual wooden stool at the bar and ease down, favoring a sore spot on the left side of my lower back. Thirty isn’t being good to me. My body must be ticked off after spending half my life doing hard labor, but I know the second I stop moving, age will really kick my ass.
