Page 11 - It Ends with Us

the end of hi s joint , then puts it back in hi s pocket . “I’ve nev er

no ticed you bef ore. ”
“Tha t’s bec ause I don’t live here. ” I point in the direc tion of my
apartment . “See tha t ins uranc e building ?”
He squint s as he looks in the direc tion I’m point ing . “Yea h. ”
“I live in the building nex t to it. It’s too sho rt to see from here. It’s
onl y three stories tall.”

He’s facing me again, res ting hi s el bow on the led ge. “If you live
over there, why are you here? Your boyfriend live here or somet hi ng ?”
His comment someho w makes me feel chea p. It was too ea sy—a n
amateu rish pickup line. From the looks of thi s guy, I kno w he ha s
bet ter skills than tha t. It makes me thi nk he saves the more diffic ult
pickup lines for the women he deem s worthy.
“You ha ve a ni ce roof,” I tel l him.

He lifts an ey eb row, waiting for more of an ex plana tion.
“I want ed fres h air. Somew here to thi nk . I pulled up Google Earth
and found the closes t apartment complex with a dec ent rooftop
patio.”
He reg ards me with a smile. “At lea st you’re ec ono mical,” he says.
“Tha t’s a good quality to ha ve. ”

At leas t?
I no d, bec ause I am ec ono mical. And it is a good quality to ha ve.
“Why did you need fres h air?” he asks.
Be cau se I buried my fat he r toda y an d gav e an epical ly di sas trous eulogy
an d now I feel like I can ’t breat he .
I face for ward again and slowly ex ha le. “Can we just no t talk for a
little whi le?”

He seem s a bit rel iev ed tha t I asked for silenc e. He lea ns over the
led ge and let s an arm dang le as he stares down at the stree t. He stays
like thi s for a whi le, and I stare at hi m the ent ire time. He probably
kno ws I’m staring , but he doesn’t seem to care.
“A guy fel l off thi s roof last mont h, ” he says.
I would be anno yed at hi s lack of res pec t for my req ues t for silenc e,

but I’m kind of int rigued .
“Was it an accident ?”
He shru gs. “No one kno ws. It ha ppened late in the ev eni ng . His
wife said she was cooking dinner and he told her he was coming up