The guys laugh.
"I need a couple people to pack up trash," Danny says. "Everyone else can head home."
"I'll get the trash," Kendrick says.
"I'll help," Eve says.
Kendrick looks at her, surprised.
"What?" she says. "It's not like I have a choice. I can't trust you do it right."
"It's trash. How could I screw it up?"
"You really have to ask?" she says with a sigh as she goes past him.
Kendrick follows her as the other guys leave.
"Did you see the outside?" Danny asks me.
"No, I didn't go out there."
"Come check it out."
We go out to the front of the house. The weeds have been cut down and the lawn's been mowed.
"It looks so much better," I say.
"They also cleaned the windows. They were really bad. Probably hadn't been cleaned since Dean's grandma died."
I turn to Danny. "I can't thank you enough for doing this. There's no way I could've done all this on my own."
He shrugs. "Dean's my best friend. I'd do anything for him, but what Josh said is true. I wouldn't have thought to do this. It's good you suggested it."
"You think Dean will be mad at me? You know how he is about letting people see his house."
"He might be mad at first but he'll get over it. He's not good at accepting help but this time he needed it. Now he can focus on getting better instead of worrying about the house."
"Did you talk to your parents about taking Jake?"
He smiles. "They've already got his bed made up. He'll be staying with my little brother. My brother will have to sleep on the floor but half the time he does that anyway. He builds a fort and puts a sleeping bag in it and sleeps there."
"I didn't know you had a younger brother."
"Darren. He's eight. I have a younger sister too, and an older brother."
"You sure you guys have room for Jake?"
"It's only for a few days. We'll make it work."
Eve walks out of the house with Kendrick trailing behind.
"We got all the trash," Eve says. "It's piled up out back."
"Josh will get it tonight when he brings the truck," Danny says.
"Ready to go?" I ask Eve.
She glances at Kendrick. "This idiot offered to buy me dinner for putting up with him all day. Could you get a ride with Danny?"
