The Summer I Met Her (GirlxGirl)

5- That Don't Impress Me Much

Standing on the porch, the break in the fence was far enough to see a speck of a person, so it was either a pretty far walk or a fast drive. The three of us piled into my dad's pickup, him driving us out to the spot. Jaycee took a look at it while my dad overexplained the details (and thanked her enough times to make anyone frustrated).

Not long after, Jaycee briefly left and returned with everything she needed to mend a fence.

The horses had been tied to some kind of makeshift pole she'd staked into the ground upon arrival, near the house. Other than flicking their tails every so often, they didn't do much other than stand where they were put.

It had been a while. I watched her distant figure intently focused on a line of wire through the criss-cross pattern of our screen door.

My dad came up behind me, mouth full, sandwich in hand. "You comin' to eat?"

I didn't turn around. "Yeah. I think I'm gonna eat on the deck."

<>

I resolved to walk to her. Sure driving was quicker, but unlike my dad, I decided walking was better than starting a car for such a short drive.

I alternated between jogging and walking, stepping high above the tall yellowing grass. Winged bugs in my path flew out in all directions.

Jaycee was kneeled close to the fencing. She lifted her head and saw me. She stood upright, wiped her forehead, and tossed aside the pair of fence stretchers she held.

"Hey," I greeted, coming to a stop. "If you wanna take a break, we made lunch, if you're interested. I made you a sandwich, as sort of a payment for your services." I held my hands together, rolling awkwardly back and forth on my heels.

She seemed a little touched. "Aww, you didn't have to do that. Can't say no to that, can I?"

I pointed back to the farmhouse with my thumb. "I didn't know what you liked so it's just turkey and cheese. You can add whatever you want."

She shook her head in dismissal. "Doesn't even matter, I'd never turn down free food."

I smiled.

Jay sat on one end of the deck with her paper plate in her lap. Just as she said, she didn't add a thing to the sandwich.

I sat a few feet away with my own sandwich, made exactly the same way. An ice cold can of Dr. Pepper sat close by, an open bag of sunchips beside it. I watched the pair of horses swish their tails, swatting incessant bugs as I chewed.

Our legs dangled off the ledge as we ate in silence.

"So, you like country music?" Jaycee asked, taking a bite of her sandwich.

I looked upwards in thought. "Um, a little bit, yeah. I only know the classics, and the popular stuff."

"Yeah?" Her eyebrows raised. "Like what?" She asked, curious.

"Hmm." I had to think about it. "You know, Country Roads, Ring of Fire, Taylor Swift... "

She turned away from me, pulling her hat low to hide her face. I thought she was looking at something at first, but I quickly realized she was trying to stifle a laugh.

I suddenly became self conscious, second guessing my response with a suspicious smile. "What did I say?"

She resettled her cowboy hat and faced me with a big grin. "I was with you in the first half 'til you said Taylor Swift."

"Her early stuff is country!" I said defensively.

She nodded once. I noticed she had a habit of that. Nodding her head only one time. "Yeah, true. But if you want real country, you gotta listen to the greats."