windows - benjey

uno

"benji!"

benji pulled out his earbuds and yelled back.

"yes?"

silence. he was pretty sure that was a mom thing, calling their kid for no reason and then not saying anything back. he waited a bit and tried again.

"what, mom?"

she appeared at his doorway, like she teleported there. maybe benji just needed to pay attention more.

"mijo, que estás asiento? we have company!"

"we do? since when?"

"since right now. there are new neighbors. now get up and make it look like i raised you well."

she joked, and benji rolled his eyes as she left. truth was, she did raise him well. his parents gave him all the support he could ask for. he loved them a lot, but still had every right to be annoyed by them at times. just teenage boy things.

benji threw on a red sweater and fluffed his hair—it would probably be some old conservative couple that would introduce themselves and then leave them alone until they either die or moved out, whichever came first. it wasn't that benji didn't want new neighbors, it was just that, well. no one interesting ever came into their neighborhood.

but the least he could do for his parents was make them look good, so he prepared to be a nice, respectable young man and headed downstairs.

standing by the doorway was an older couple, though not as old as he was expecting. they looked very serious, though smiled politely as benjis parents talked to them.

"—and this is one of our sons, benji." his father said. benji smiled at the couple, who smiled back.

"oh, our son jorge is around your age. shame that he insisted on not coming. maybe you could show him around town sometime." the lady said.

benjis father put a hand on his back firmly. "what a great idea! benji would be happy to do it."

benji wouldn't have minded doing it, but god, he hated when his parents spoke for him. instead of voicing his thoughts though, he kept smiling, nodding to whatever his parents said.

eventually, the couple left, and his parents left benji alone to go back to his room and not interact with anyone else for the rest of the evening.

benji took off his sweater and shirt. it was getting late and all he wanted to do now was lie in his bed and be lazy on his phone for a while. that was what he would have done, too, if something else didn't catch his eye.

through his window, in the new neighbors house, was a boy in a bedroom full of boxes. looking at him. was that the boy? jorge? benji smiled slightly at him and waved.

startled to be caught staring, the boys cheeks tinged pink and he quickly shut his blinds. benji sighed and flopped onto his bed. in the back of his mind though, he was thinking. maybe this new neighbor would turn out to be more interesting that he thought.

a/n i'm so sorry this is such an overused trope the stupid fucking "next door neighbors w windows right next to each other" i'm soRRY