Chapter Five Mateo
A s soon as I heard the asshole’s footsteps disappear into the distance, I turned Bessie around and led her inside. I shut the door behind me before letting her go.
“First off,” I said, pointing a finger at her. “No more going outside without a leash for you. And secondly, I’m gonna change the lock if you keep breaking out of the house.” I crouched down in front of her, running my fingers through her fur. “And last but not least, why are you bringing home guys that are mean to us? Can’t you bring me a boyfriend instead?”
She didn’t respond of course, and I had to be content with her silence. At least I’d gotten the guy back. The silence after I told him Bessie looked like a cow was golden. He didn’t know what to say, and that made me smile. Messing with people was the best part about being blind, especially when those people were assholes like that guy.
Still, I couldn’t deny that he’d piqued my interest. The tone of his voice and the way he said his words definitely gave me gay vibes. No judgment of course, but he had the affectation, nonetheless. That coupled with the expensive leathery cologne he doused himself in told me he probably cared about the way he looked and took decently good care of himself. Obviously, I couldn’t see him, but his steps were light and calculated, meaning he was fairly dexterous and probably on the thinner side. And I heard the bracelet on his left-hand jingling. It must have been made of stone because it didn’t sound like glass, metal, or ceramic.
All of that put together conjured up an image of a curly-haired playboy with gold jewelry, tanned skin, brown eyes, and very loose-fitting clothing made completely of linen. In my head he looked like the sort of guy that would own a boat. Probably a big one. And he spent the weekends making people feel bad while he caused trouble.
An asshole.
Then again, he sounded rather genuine with his apology. And sort of hot.
“No,” I muttered to myself, straightening back up with a huff. “He doesn’t like dogs. There’s not a single good person on this planet that doesn’t like dogs.”
I wasn’t really sure why I cared anyway. I’d had two interactions with the dude, and both were less than stellar. There was no reason for him to be occupying so much of my mindspace. Then again, he sounded like he was close to my age and that would’ve made him the first I’d talked to in a long time. The neighbors said hello, but they were all much older than me. I hadn’t been out on a date or even chatted with someone my age in months. Then this stranger came along, and I was sure we had a lot in common.
It made me realize how lonely I was.
“Come on, Bessie,” I sighed, patting my leg. “Let’s get some lunch. I’m sure you’re hungry after taking off into the wilderness for over an hour.”
I got Bessie her food first before setting to work in the kitchen for myself. Cooking for myself was the thing that terrified my parents most about me living alone. I honestly didn’t see what the big deal was. Using a knife was easy, and I always knew where it was at when I was chopping. Cooking itself wasn’t difficult either. Most of the time I used the oven so I could set a simple timer and know everything was done. But using the stove wasn’t hard either. People who could see forgot that they had other senses. I could feel the heat, smell the doneness of the food, and I could hear if the gas stove was on. Not to mention, all my tools and cookware had braille on them, so I always knew what I was using.
But today I didn’t really feel like making something extravagant. After worrying all morning that my extremely expensive dog and only companion had run away and been hit by a car or something, I was feeling a bit worn out. Instead, I opted for a sandwich and a handful of grapes. That would be enough for me.
“I’m gonna eat on the patio,” I told Bessie after I’d assembled my plate. I heard her finish her food several minutes before. “And you are gonna stay inside because I don’t trust you right now.”
No sooner had I pulled the slider closed behind me and sat down, my phone began to ring. It chimed once then read the name of the contact.
“ Mom calling ,” the phone said in a feminine robotic tone.
I clicked the button on the side and left it on the table. I didn’t need to hold it up to my ear to hear her.
“Hey Mom,” I said, popping a grape into my mouth. The skin snapped between my teeth and my tongue was flooded with a dry sweetness.
“Hi honey,” she replied. “How are things going?”
She called nearly every other day just to make sure I was still alive. It used to be every single day, but I had to tell her to back off a bit. This was as far as she was willing to go.
“Things are good,” I replied, wondering if I should tell her about Bessie. I decided it wasn’t worth hiding. At least it would give us something to talk about besides the weather. “Just got Bessie back home. She decided to let herself out of the condo again this morning and go for a walk by herself.”
“Again?!” My mother sighed. I could hear her earring strike the side of the phone as she shook her head. “That dog has tens of thousands of dollars of training, and she still runs off… I wo nder if there’s something wrong with her?”
“She seems fine. This is the only weird habit she’s gotten into. It happened once a couple months ago and maybe two times since. But she always comes back, usually alone.”
“Usually?”
“Well, she brought back a guy this morning.”
I could almost hear my mother’s ears perk up. “Oh? What’s his name?”
“Asshole,” I replied, shaking my head.
“Oh… not nice?”
“He was nice enough this morning. But a couple days ago he ran into me on the beach and called me a dickhead. He told me to watch where I was going.”
“He probably didn’t know you were blind, honey.”
“I know that,” I sighed. “But it was a dick thing to say, regardless. Although he was pretty apologetic.” I couldn’t help a chuckle. “You should’ve seen the look on his face when I told him Bessie was black and white like a cow. I could almost see it.”
“Mateo Lombardi!” my mother cried, trying to contain her laughter. “You have got to stop doing that to people!”
“It’s too funny to stop,” I laughed back. “Even you think it’s funny!”
“I do, but that’s not the point! What if this boy was the one ?”
“Oh Christ.” I rolled my eyes hard and took another grape from the plate. “You think every guy that talks to me might be the one .”
“Your father was just some guy that talked to me, and he turned out to be the one !”
“Mom,” I sighed. “This guy is definitely not it. He’s rude and he doesn’t even like dogs! How could I be with someone who doesn’t like dogs?”
“You never know, honey,” she replied. I could hear the smile in her voice.
“I’m sure, Mom. This guy, whatever the hell his name is, is the last person I’d ever want to be with. Believe me.”