Room For Rent [Dylmas]

Chapter 10

With a heavy pat on my back, he started walking towards his home but was met with a redhead girl that looked similarly close to Dylan's age. They exchanged a few words and looked over me. I turned my head away and started checking the car.

I was trying to start it when a shadow hovered over me, making me look up. It was the girl, which I'm assuming is the daughter.

"Hi!" she smiled brightly. I tried not to wince at the sudden loudness and cheerfulness, deciding to nod at her. "I guess you're the one who's fixing my car!"

Obviously, I thought. She was still smiling at me and leaning by the driver's window, as if waiting for a reply. I inwardly sighed. "Yeah, that's me."

"Awesome! How long have you been doing this work for?" She babbled about and I honestly don't know what to do. I mumbled my answers to her as she kept following me around while doing my work. I didn't want to come off as hostile so I gave her some attention and answers every now and then, half of me ignoring her presence.

I just don't want to talk to other people since I'd like to focus on my work. I am now reminded why I rarely do home service. It tires me more than usual. If I'm at my shop, I don't need to build pretenses like what I'm doing now. I was strongly praying that time would pass more quickly, making the effort of fixing the car as fast as I could too.

"Here, have some iced tea and snacks!" I heard Renee say. She introduced herself without me actually asking but it was a good thing to know instead of just referring to her as a redhead inside my mind. Looking at the tray she's holding, I realised I didn't even notice she went away.

"You didn't have to," I told her honestly and she waved a hand as she set down the tray.

"It's nothing! It's quite hot today so you should cool down for a bit. Here," she handed me a cool glass of iced tea. My hand instinctively welcomed the cold relief it gave me. "Why don't you sit down for a while?"

She patted the seat next to her by the wooden bench. It was under a huge tree, which I'm assuming bears apples in the right season. The shade from that tree made me give in. I gingerly sat next to her, keeping a proper distance. "Thanks."

She gave me a huge but gentle smile and started chatting away, offering me snacks and some more drinks while at it. You could probably say Renee was a good girl. If I was better at socialising or talking to people, I would be relieved to have her as a talking mate. Words easily flow out of her mouth and she welcomed whatever answers you give. I was mindlessly listening when my ears perked up at a familiar topic.

"B.U.? You go there too?" I asked. She brightened, probably delighted that I was actually paying attention.

"Yeah! Why, do you go there?" she asked eagerly and I shook my head. No, that's where Dylan goes but I didn't say that. I told her my friend goes there and reminded her that I'm a working adult. "Maybe I know your friend!" she said.

"Doubt it," I told her. I'm assuming there's a lot of people going to B.U., so I don't think she knows Dyl. "Anyway, the car's almost fixed," I decided to change the topic. I've been here for quite a while and I want to go home and rest. "There's not much damage to it so it's pretty fine already. I'll just double-check if I missed anything but it won't take more than 20 minutes. Will it be alright if you call your dad over so I can give him the invoice?"

Renee looked away for a while, seemingly thinking about something. "I could give him a ring if—"

"No, it's okay!" she cut me off, offering a smile. "I'll go call him over now. You wait there. I'll be back!"

I watched her retreating form for a while, drinking my tea as well. I decided to finish my job and write down an invoice. Honestly, the car didn't need to be fixed at home. At all. It was working properly and could be driven to a shop but I guess they didn't have the time to do so.

"Hey there, lad. Heard you're done?" the man asked, which Renee told me whose name was Josef.

"Yeah, here," I handed the invoice. "There wasn't much to be fixed to be honest. It could be started as well but I figured when you said you couldn't do so before, you probably didn't give it time to warm up."

"Oh?" he remarked, looking at the paper I gave him. "Sorry about that. I didn't check. It was my daughter who told me about it," he pulled out his wallet and started counting some bills, handing them to me.

"I see. Well, all's good," I told him, giving him thanks for the payment. "Feel free to send a message if you have any questions or needs a repair again."

"You don't mind if I give my daughter your number, do you?" he asked.

I thought about it for a while and figured he's asking just in case there would be future issues. I agreed. She's the car owner anyway so she should feel free to message me for any concerns. I hurriedly packed my things, eager to go home.

It was Renee who decided to see me off. "Thanks again, Thomas! You were a big help," she said with a big smile, some strands of her bright red hair falling over her eyes.

"No problem. Thanks for having me," I gave a curt nod and drove off, peeking at my mirror to see Renee still standing by the gate and watching me go.

Once I took a turn, I let out a huge sigh under my helmet, honestly thankful and relieved that my job's done and that I'm on the way back.

That should be enough socialising for a day. I just want to lay down and rest or maybe talk to Dylan before heading to bed or so. Either way, I just want to be home.