Not Your Typical Good Girl x Bad Boy Story

CH 16 - Comfortable Hangouts

I receive a call from Mrs. Martin from the neighborhood. "Hi, Melanie! Are you free right now? Any chance you could watch Shirley for a few hours?"

Shirley is a sweet 7-year-old. She stays with her grandma when her parents are working, so I don't babysit her often, but something must have come up in Mrs. Martin's schedule, and now she has no choice but to leave her with me. "I'm free until five. No problem."

I gape at Mrs. Martin's short black dress, high red boots, and face full of makeup. "Going somewhere?"

She smiles. A strap of a lacey bra slips off her shoulder and she fixes it back in place. "I'm 58, dear. I don't have many years left to live, so I'd rather not waste the ones I do."

I give her a thumbs up. "I hope I have your attitude in my fifties."

She crosses the street in the direction of the local garage owner's house. Damn. That man has women coming and going in and out of his house at all hours. I guess that happens when you father a rockstar and are responsible for his good looks on top of that.

"Shirley, would you like to go to the park?"

"Yes, please."

We spend time on the swings and the seesaw and talk about school and the new friends she made. Mr. Martin picks up Shirley three hours later and slips a fifty in my pocket. "Thank you for the last-minute help."

I try not to gawk at her debauched hair and smeared makeup. "No problem."

It's four-thirty. Justin will be off work soon. I decide to head to the shop and wait for him.

A girl with a pixie haircut and manic energy is at the counter. "Hi! How can I help you?"

"Hi! I'm here for Justin. Is he still working?"

Her eyes go wide and her mouth falls open in the most anime-like expression of surprise I've seen in real life. "For Justin?"

"Yup. I'm his girlfriend."

"His girlfriend?! I didn't know he has one. He doesn't talk much. He's like... super secretive." She swoons. "I bet he's one of those guys who don't let anyone get close to them until the right girl comes along and turns them into a teddy bear." She points at the door with an employees only sign. "He's working alone. Go see him."

"You'd win that bet. He is a sweetheart. Thanks for letting me in the back!"

Justin is hunched over a motherboard with a soldering iron in one hand and a wire in the other. I wait for him to put down the tools before I announce my presence. "It's nice to see you in your element."

He raises his head and a smile blooms across his face. "Melanie! What are you doing here?"

"Saving you from needing to pick me up. I was bored, so I thought I'd just come here."

"Give me 15 minutes to finish up." He makes connections on the motherboard, cleans the workspace, and writes down some information on a sheet of paper. "Done."

"I thought we could hang out at Brandon's house today."

"Is he aware of that?"

"No. It'll be a surprise." I tug on Justin's hand. "Let's go!"

He mutters something about calling instead of showing up unannounced. I never do that. Brandon struggled with making friends in high school. I was the first person he brought home. His parents adore me and treat me like an adopted child. I spend as much time there as I spend in my own home.

Brandon's mom opens the door. Justin looks like he's about to bolt. I introduce him before he does just that. "Hi, Rosaline! This is my boyfriend Justin."