driveway.
After my run, a shower, then
dinner with Jeff and my brother, I’m exhausted. Staring at the half deflated
air mattress, I hear Jackson start brushing his teeth down the hall. I would
complain about going to bed this early again if I weren’t so tired. Dropping to
my knees, I hook the pump up to the air mattress and flip the switch. It sounds
like a storm of angry bees, but the bed gradually fills.
On the way to the bathroom,
I venture a look into the darkened guest bedroom. I can’t imagine how much work
it’s going to take to get it back to where I can use it, which is frustrating,
because after just one night, I’m already dreading sleeping on the air mattress
again.
After we brush our teeth and
get undressed, Jackson clicks off the bedside light and I climb onto my airbed.
“Did Dad talk to you about getting ready on time?” he asks.
“He said we need to be ready
exactly at seven.”
“You got the easier talk,
then. I got an earful.”
Maybe that’s why Jackson was
acting so pissy about his shoes. “Really?”
“Yeah, which is stupid,
because it was your fault,” he says. “But he took it out on me, because I
should have let you know the expectation ,” he imitates Jeff’s voice. I
can practically hear Jackson’s scowl.
“Whatever, so you set the
alarm earlier?”
“Fifteen minutes will be
fine I think, as long as you shower faster tomorrow morning. Unless you want to
shower together, then we don’t have to get up any earlier.” When I don’t
respond, he says, “Damn, Ben, learn to take a joke.”
I let out a long breath and
roll onto my side, the mattress adjusting underneath me. Jackson is such a
cocky little shit sometimes.
Chapter Nine
Ben
The next morning, I wake up
to Jackson’s alarm with a stiff neck and my butt pressed into the floor. I’m
starting to hate the air mattress. Yet despite the subpar sleeping
arrangements, Jackson and I are washed, dressed, and ready to go by two minutes
to seven. The cab on Jeff’s truck is pretty big, but it’s still a squeeze as
the three of us pile in.
I spend the first part of
the morning watering again, but before ten o’clock rolls around, Jeff kicks
Jackson out of the store and comes to get me. “Ben, ready to learn how to run
the till?”
I shrug and follow him back
up front. There aren’t a lot of customers this morning, but he stays up front
with me the whole time, stepping in whenever I need help. He seems to know more
than half the people who come through. Must be a popular guy.
After lunch, the same girl
from yesterday shows up, working at the opposite end of the greenhouse from me.
When it becomes too difficult to keep my eyes away from the tight jean shorts
and tank top she’s wearing, I walk back to the storefront.
Jeff stops me as I slip
behind the counter. “I need you to help out Katie today,” he says.
My heart thumps and a thin
layer of moisture erupts on my palms. “Is that the, uh, girl who works here?
Are you sure? Shouldn’t I be–”
“I’ve got everything covered
up here.”
“What’s she working on?”
He looks at me like I’ve
asked a silly question. “I’m not quite sure, honestly. Go and find out.”
Feeling like an idiot and
not entirely sure what Jeff is playing at, I walk all the way to the end of the
greenhouse. She’s bending over, scooping a trowel of dirt into another pot.
It’s really hard to avoid looking at those shorts right now.
“Hey,” I venture.
“Hey, Jackson,” she says
with a light Midwest accent. Straightening and turning to face me, she freezes.
Tilting her head to the side, she gives me an examining look. “Wait a second.”
She takes a step forward, looking me right in the face. “Holy shit. You’re his
brother, aren’t you? I totally didn’t know he had a twin.” Crossing her arms,
she goes on, speaking more to herself than to me. “That totally makes sense. I
could have sworn I saw Jackson everywhere yesterday. It was creeping me
After my run, a shower, then
dinner with Jeff and my brother, I’m exhausted. Staring at the half deflated
air mattress, I hear Jackson start brushing his teeth down the hall. I would
complain about going to bed this early again if I weren’t so tired. Dropping to
my knees, I hook the pump up to the air mattress and flip the switch. It sounds
like a storm of angry bees, but the bed gradually fills.
On the way to the bathroom,
I venture a look into the darkened guest bedroom. I can’t imagine how much work
it’s going to take to get it back to where I can use it, which is frustrating,
because after just one night, I’m already dreading sleeping on the air mattress
again.
After we brush our teeth and
get undressed, Jackson clicks off the bedside light and I climb onto my airbed.
“Did Dad talk to you about getting ready on time?” he asks.
“He said we need to be ready
exactly at seven.”
“You got the easier talk,
then. I got an earful.”
Maybe that’s why Jackson was
acting so pissy about his shoes. “Really?”
“Yeah, which is stupid,
because it was your fault,” he says. “But he took it out on me, because I
should have let you know the expectation ,” he imitates Jeff’s voice. I
can practically hear Jackson’s scowl.
“Whatever, so you set the
alarm earlier?”
“Fifteen minutes will be
fine I think, as long as you shower faster tomorrow morning. Unless you want to
shower together, then we don’t have to get up any earlier.” When I don’t
respond, he says, “Damn, Ben, learn to take a joke.”
I let out a long breath and
roll onto my side, the mattress adjusting underneath me. Jackson is such a
cocky little shit sometimes.
Chapter Nine
Ben
The next morning, I wake up
to Jackson’s alarm with a stiff neck and my butt pressed into the floor. I’m
starting to hate the air mattress. Yet despite the subpar sleeping
arrangements, Jackson and I are washed, dressed, and ready to go by two minutes
to seven. The cab on Jeff’s truck is pretty big, but it’s still a squeeze as
the three of us pile in.
I spend the first part of
the morning watering again, but before ten o’clock rolls around, Jeff kicks
Jackson out of the store and comes to get me. “Ben, ready to learn how to run
the till?”
I shrug and follow him back
up front. There aren’t a lot of customers this morning, but he stays up front
with me the whole time, stepping in whenever I need help. He seems to know more
than half the people who come through. Must be a popular guy.
After lunch, the same girl
from yesterday shows up, working at the opposite end of the greenhouse from me.
When it becomes too difficult to keep my eyes away from the tight jean shorts
and tank top she’s wearing, I walk back to the storefront.
Jeff stops me as I slip
behind the counter. “I need you to help out Katie today,” he says.
My heart thumps and a thin
layer of moisture erupts on my palms. “Is that the, uh, girl who works here?
Are you sure? Shouldn’t I be–”
“I’ve got everything covered
up here.”
“What’s she working on?”
He looks at me like I’ve
asked a silly question. “I’m not quite sure, honestly. Go and find out.”
Feeling like an idiot and
not entirely sure what Jeff is playing at, I walk all the way to the end of the
greenhouse. She’s bending over, scooping a trowel of dirt into another pot.
It’s really hard to avoid looking at those shorts right now.
“Hey,” I venture.
“Hey, Jackson,” she says
with a light Midwest accent. Straightening and turning to face me, she freezes.
Tilting her head to the side, she gives me an examining look. “Wait a second.”
She takes a step forward, looking me right in the face. “Holy shit. You’re his
brother, aren’t you? I totally didn’t know he had a twin.” Crossing her arms,
she goes on, speaking more to herself than to me. “That totally makes sense. I
could have sworn I saw Jackson everywhere yesterday. It was creeping me
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