Next Door Neighbor

CHAPTER 4: GET YOUR MIND OFF IT

SPENCER'S POV:

It's been a week since I first met Stephanie. I was gone for two days due to a case, but I got back a couple hours ago. I'm excited to see Stephanie again, I missed her brightness. I could really use her positive energy after this case. I took the time to shower and rest, but now I'm standing outside her door trying to get the courage to knock. I take a deep breath, then I rap my hand against the wood. The door swings open and I see Stephanie.

"Spencer! You're back!" Stephanie shouts. She holds the door for me to come in and I walk into the living room. "How was the case?" She asks. I run a hand through my hair. "Not great. The victim was killed before we got there." I sigh. Stephanie's face falls. "Oh, Spence, I'm sorry. Do you want to talk about it?" She questions. I sit on the couch and she sits next to me.

"It just sucks. If I had figured it all out sooner, we would have caught him. I'm the reason he got away." I mumble. "Don't you dare blame yourself. You couldn't have done anything. You did all you could, and that's what matters." She comforts me. "Sorry, I shouldn't be unloading all this on you." I groan. "You are my friend and friends listen to each other." she reassures me, putting an arm on my shoulder.

I may only have known this girl for a week, but it feels like I've known her for years. We've spent hours together, chatting, reading, whatever. Her presence relaxes me, she's happy listening to me ramble off facts, happy to sit in silence and read, happy to have long conversations until the sun is rising. As weird as it is, we just fit. I feel peaceful around her. Usually around beautiful girls like her, my IQ goes down to 60 and I'm a bumbling mess. But with her, it just feels so effortless, so right.

"I know what will cheer you up. I'll make you some homemade soup for dinner and we'll watch a movie to get your mind off of the case." She says, standing up. "You can make soup? Is there anything you can't do?" I chuckle. "I can't reach the top shelf, I can't run for more than a mile, and I can't stand in the shallow end of the pool." She shouts from the kitchen. I laugh.

I walk into the kitchen and see her pulling out ingredients, pouring them into a pot. Her nose is scrunched as she focuses, her tongue peeking out from between her lips. I find myself admiring her. She's a beautiful girl inside and out. That's when it finally hits me. I may be a genius, but I'm as confused as can be when it comes to romance. But now it all makes sense, the butterflies, the way I smile whenever I think about her, the fuzzy feeling in my chest. I think I might maybe have a tiny little crush on Stephanie.

"Are you going to stand there and watch or are you going to help me?" Stephanie jokes, hand on her hip. I walk over and she hands me some vegetables to cut. "Did you know that celery was first mentioned in English in 1664 by the diarist John Evelyn, who spelt it s-e-l-l-e-r-y? Also, April is National Fresh Celery Month. Celery can also reach the height of 3.3 feet. Celery was initially used as medicine in treatment of toothache, insomnia, hypertension, anxiety, arthritis, rheumatism and to purify the blood." I say.

Stephanie looks at me with amazement. "I can't believe you know all that off the top of your head. That's amazing. What about tomatoes?" she asks. "Tomatoes are the state vegetable of New Jersey. They are the official state fruit of Ohio and tomato juice is the official beverage of Ohio. There are more than 7500 tomato varieties grown around the world." I explain. We continue like this, her holding up some sort of food item and me listing off some facts about it.

By the time the soup is done, I've told her all about celery, tomatoes, noodles, carrots, potatoes, and chicken. The soup is simmering in the pot and it smells delicious. Stephanie spoons it into bowls and hands one to me. We head out to the living room and sit down on the couch. Stephanie clicks on the TV, skipping through channels to find something good.

We finally land on an old sci-fi movie about aliens. It's cheesy, but that's part of the fun. The soup is the best soup I have ever tasted and I eat two bowls of it. I feel happy and relaxed, all thoughts from the case gone. I turn to Stephanie. "Thank you for tonight. I really appreciate it." I tell her. "You helped me move in, this is the least I can do." She says. Suddenly, she jumps, instinctively curling into me when a scary moment comes on in the movie. Her arms are wrapped around my arm, her head resting on my chest.

"That was terrifying." She mutters. She pulls away from me and I find myself missing the feeling of her next to me. But then she leans her head against my shoulder. I look over and see her looking at the TV, calm and content. I feel a giant smile on my face.

When the movie ends, I help her clean up. It's late but I don't mind. Before I leave, I have to ask her something. I muster up the courage, nerves getting the best of me. "Stephanie, my team and I are going out for drinks tomorrow night and I was wondering if you wanted to come you can say no but if you want I would like you there?" I rush out. I can tell my face is bright red. "I would love to, Spencer. Here, let me give you my number." she says. I breathe a sigh of relief. I hand her my phone and she types it in, handing it back to me. We say our goodbyes and I head back to my apartment. I can't believe I just asked her to go out for drinks with me and the team. I thought she was going to say no, but I'm so glad she said yes.