solo / carlos sainz

nine

Long after the usual early dinner and Elsie's gone to bed, there's a knock on the door that sends me into an automatic panic.

Until I remember that this building's got a doorman and intensive security and I have zero reason to think anyone at my door would be there to murder me.

I still have one hand on the bat by the door as I begin to unlock it, though. Better safe than sorry.

"¿Hola? ¿Necesitas algo?" I ask through the door, leaving the sliding lock toward the top done up in case it's needed.

"Lo siento, señorita, mi primo es su vecino y le han entregado unos paquetes... ¿los ha visto?" Paquetes? Oh my god, the packages.

"Oh my god! Yes, hold on!" The door gets slammed shut, lock slid off, and door reopened before I've finished my sentence. "Hi, I'm so sorry, I meant to leave a note. Please, come in."

My texts with Amira come to mind as I invite the man into my flat, cringing at my hypocrisy. So you'll let in a neighbourhood stranger but not Carlos?

"My daughter tried to colour on the boxes so I had to lock them in the guest room, un momento." There's a shuffling behind me, probably from the man looking around as I rush into the guest room to get the first box. "Ayudaré a trasladar todo a casa de tu primo, es lo menos que puedo hacer."

The wine's got me switching in and out of Spanish, a terrible habit I've never been able to train my tipsy mind out of. My neighbour's cousin doesn't seem to mind, giving me a polite smile as I push the first box toward his feet. When I return with a second, he's begun to clear some toys off the floor to make a path toward the door.

"Gracias y lo siento," I move around him to help, pushing Elsie's plushy out of the way and bending over to scoop up her discarded shoes. "Is the door to your cousin's place open?"

He nods, clearly contemplating whether or not he should pick up the massive box as I begin the push toward the only other apartment on the floor.

"So you're Malik's...girlfriend? Wife?"

I shake my head, glancing back at the man pushing a box behind me, "Oh, no, I'm just renting the flat from him. Malik is my assistant's older brother, actually. And I guess my landlord as well."

It's insane how different the neighbour's flat is from mine. It's relatively bare, with a massive u-shaped couch dominating the space in front of a nice media set up and a massive custom built-in that's host to a variety of helmets.

And a massive dog I recognise to be some kind of pointer is sitting directly across the room, staring me down. "Um."

"That's Piñón. He's harmless."

I laugh, having figured as much when he didn't move in my direction as I'd pushed the door open. "Is he yours?"

"My cousin's actually." He gestures for me to just leave the box by the couch, the two of us walking back to get the next two. "He's out for dinner right now but should be back soon, if you'd like to meet him."

"It's probably the polite thing to do after I've held his packages hostage all week."

Back in my flat, we get the next round of boxes and begin to push them when I realise I never got this guy's name...and the joke is sitting right there, just waiting to be made, "Any chance your name is Carlos?"

The man grins, "Yeah, it is."

"And your cousin's name is Carlos." He nods, laughing a bit to himself when I let a giggle loose. "Sorry, it's just, recently, my assistant and I met someone also named Carlos and she'd wanted to look him up but...well, the name is pretty common here."

With a system established, pushing the boxes through the path we'd made and into Carlos's apartment, the last set of boxes goes by pretty quickly. "And what's your name?"

"Mara."

When I give my name, his smile falters for a moment, the two of us standing in the hall after finishing off the moving of the boxes. I'm used to it though. The name's uncommon and difficult as hell for some Spaniards to pronounce. "And your daughter?"

"Elsie." When his smile morphs into surprise, I can't help but laugh, "I know, Mara and Elsie, two odd names. Both are nicknames, though, so there's that."

Oh sweet Jesus why'd I tell him that?

Carlos hums, "What are they nicknames for?"

He turns back to look at the open door to his cousin's apartment, where Piñón has stuck his head out to watch us. "Acuéstate, Piñón." The dog turns away, the light sound of his paws walking back into the apartment echoing down the hall.

"Would you like a glass of wine while you wait for your cousin? I'd rather not leave while Elsie's sleeping."