At First Sight

Chapter One

He cranked the wheel left into the first fast food place he saw and directed the truck through the drive-thru, ordering the burgers with sodas. "Fries?" he asked Keaton. 

Keaton shook his head. "Just cow. But make sure Wes's has no mayo, extra cheese." 

It could be the golden ticket burger, wrapped in diamonds; guaranteed Wes wasn't going to like it. Drew knew because he felt the same way. Eating healthy on the road could sometimes be a challenge but they were home and there were no excuses. This simple fact was of equal importance to him and Wes. To be fair, it was important to Keaton too but he was less rigid in his routine and didn’t give much thought to splurging on junk food when he felt like it. None of that mattered now. They’d let Keaton pick so burgers were on the menu. 

The luxurious promise of his own bed had intensified by the time they returned. Wes sat on the couch, eyes glued to his phone when Keaton reached into the bag, tossed a burger at his brother and proclaimed. "Extra cheese, hold the mayo."

 Wes’s face turned several shades of green. 

"Keaton chose. You said you didn't care," Drew pointed out. 

Wes said nothing at first, and then bit down into his burger. "There's a hot girl next door doing yoga."

Drew was seconds away from planting himself next to Wes before he stopped and walked over to the patio doors, his mouth stretching into a smile.  A beautiful girl was always reason to smile, especially one that did yoga. When he stepped out onto the balcony, the only thing there was a slight breeze and thousands of lights illuminating the horizon.  

Keaton looked in both directions. "There's no girl out here." 

Drew nodded. “Disappointing. No doubt.” 

Keaton returned to the house. “There’s no girl there.” 

"She was just there." 

"Well she's gone now." 

Wes shrugged. "I don't know what else to tell you except that you missed a beautiful thing." 

Eager for a decent visual, Drew asked, "What was she like?" 

"Like a beautiful girl in yoga pants." 

Not the description he'd hoped for. He ate the tasteless burger far slower than Keaton who crumpled his wrapper in the palm of his hand and yawned. 

"I'm going to bed. I'm exhausted." 

The dog followed. 

That was enough of a sign for Drew. It was late when even the dog was done for. He rose to his feet. "I gotta go too. We've been gone for months. I just want my own bed. I'll see you tomorrow." 

"Yeah," Wes said. "See you then." 

The scent of roasted garlic lingered around Mr. Li's house, clinging to the heavy, humid air of Boston's summer. Copeland's stomach growled as she pushed the front door open and made her way through his living room to the backyard patio. 

Mr. Li stood over a grill armed with a threatening looking fork in one hand and a small container of seasoning in the other. 

She gave a small wave. "Hey Mr. Li. We're leaving but I wanted to say goodbye." 

His lips pursed as if he were chewing on a lemon. She didn't need a mirror to know he was mocking her. "Don't look so sour, Copeland. You should be smiling; it becomes you."   

She forced stiff muscles in her mouth into a grin although she probably looked more like she was about to start growling. "I'm smiling," she said through her teeth, "see."