The Boy Next Door

Chapter 2

Lyric's pov

"This is my older son," a familiar voice says. Anne Marie, our next door neighbor. I babysit Harry and Lauren, her kids, for her sometimes. I strain to hear more, but can't. I give up on snooping and walk into the kitchen. I immediately go over to the refrigerator and grab out a bottle of water. I unscrew the lid and start to sip it.

"-on the counter in the kitchen," my mom's voice calls. I ignore it. That's when a tall, curly haired boy walked into the kitchen.

"Um, hi. Your mum sent me in here to get the Oreos," he states. I look at him for a minute, confused. He seemed really familiar.

"They're right there," I say, pointing to the counter by the stove. He nods and grabs them.

"You're that girl, aren't you? The one from last night who I sang a duet with until you yelled at me, right?" He asks suddenly, turning back around to face me. My eyes widen. That's why he was so familiar.

"Um, yeah," I mumble, embarrassed. My mom picked that time to come into the kitchen. She sees me and the boy talking, smiles, then ushers us both out into the dining room.

~

"Hey Lyric!" Lauren exclaims, smiling at me.

"Hey Lauren, Harry," I greet, smiling at them. Harry fist bumps me.

"How do you know my little brother and sister?" Curly hair questions, confused.

"I babysit them, but they're your little brother and sister?" I ask shocked. He nods.

"Lyric, meet our older brother, Ashton. Ashton, meet the coolest babysitter ever, Lyric," Harry says. I awkwardly wave, sitting down in my usual seat. Ashton takes the only available chair left, which happened to be the one beside me. Harry and Lauren go back to playing on their phones, earbuds in. Our moms were deep in conversation, leaving Ashton and me sitting there silently.

"You have a really pretty name," Ashton says softly, surprising me.

"Um, thank you," I reply, blushing. He smiles in return.

"So do you normally go around singing duet with random people or was last night a first time thing?" I question, smiling. Ashton giggles, which makes me smile wider. He has a really cute giggle.

"It wasn't the first time I sang a duet with someone I didn't know. Every once in a while at the store or airport or something. But those aren't really intentional. We both just happened to be singing the same song," Ashton tells me. I nod.

"My turn," he continues.

"For what?" I ask.

"To ask a question. And yes, we are taking turns," he answers. I shrug and wait.

"Why did yo-" He's cut off by my phone ringing. I sigh and pull it out of my back pocket. I take one glance at the caller ID, wince, then deny the call before putting my phone back into my pocket. He gives me a questioning look, but I shake my head no, telling him to drop it.

"You like Green Day?" He asks instead, referring to my ring tone, which was American Idiot.

I nod, "They're one of my favorite bands."

"Oh Lyric," Ashton says, smiling widely, "we are going to be great friends."