Who: Remy and Candy (Les LeBeaux) What: House hunting! When: 4/16 Where: Various houses in Orange County Rating/Warning: PG Status: Complete
Remy wasn’t entirely sure how one went about looking at houses, but he did know that he and Candy and he were going to do it. They were at the realtor’s office now, and he just hoped that he didn’t make a fool of himself.
Candy held onto Remy’s hand, nervous and excited all at the same time. She leaned over to whisper into her husband’s ear. “I have no idea how this works,” she murmured.
“Me neither.” Remy laughed a little, squeezing her hand. “If nothing else we can just wing it.” They didn’t have to make a decision that day, after all. They could look around, check things out, and then have a confab before they went back to the realtor.
He did look back at their car, though. “You think li’l Miss Ruby is ok? I cracked the windows for her.” Still, he worried.
“It’s not too hot, I’m sure she’s fine. Want me to go check?” She snuck a brief kiss, loving that he worried so much about their dog.
“Nah, if the realtor shows up soon we gonna be okay.” Remy nodded. “Just didn’t wanna leave her too long.” He knew that it might be weird to bring the dog, but it was important that Ruby liked wherever they wound up, too.
Thank god the realtor showed up within a few moments. She was a woman dressed smartly but not overly so. Candy wondered if there was some sort of realtor boutique where they all shopped.
Remy would have put money on it. He greeted her warmly, let Candy introduce herself, and made to follow when she directed them to her office.
Once they sat down, though, he got down to brass tacks. “C’n we please go over what we want, just to make sure we ain’t wastin’ nobody’s time? I got an idea in my head, and I’m pretty sure my wife does, too.”
The realtor seemed to appreciate it; she nodded and asked what he had in mind. “Almost b’fore anything else, un big yard, s’il vous plait,” Remy said. “We got a dog, and she gotta have room to run. We been cooped in an apartment too long.”
“And maybe two bedrooms to start,” Candy said. “Three’s okay, but over that would be too much.” Sure, they were thinking about starting a family, but until then, it seemed silly to get a huge house that’d half sit empty.
After a few more minutes, the realtor printed out a list of houses, turning back to Remy and Candy. “So. Let’s go.”
“Fine by me.” Remy grinned, holding the door for the women. He was almost jumping with excitement; he couldn’t quite believe this was happening. They were going to look at houses!
Ruby was excited too, barking twice when they got to the car. Candy hopped into the back with the dog so that the realtor could sit up front. Midwestern manners died hard.
Remy thanked his wife before smiling at his dog. “You be nice to your mama,” he told Ruby, before getting in the driver’s seat. “Where to first, madame?” he asked the realtor.
“The first place I picked out is in La Habra,” was the reply. “Toward the edge of town, almost in Fullerton. It’s not in the rich area, but it’s not in the slums, either. Two bedrooms, and a yard.”
“Sounds good.” Remy started off, following the woman’s directions until they were looking at a simple ranch-style house with a driveway. The front yard was a little sparse, Remy noted, but that wasn’t a deal-breaker.
It was cute, and kind of reminded Candy of her childhood home. She smiled, getting out of the car with Ruby. “Whatcha think, little girl?”
The dog had begun to sniff around, and Remy watched her with one eye as he listened to the realtor talk. Aside from the yard, it was kind of nice. A good starter. “I think Ruby likes it,” he said, looking up. “C’n we see inside, please?”
As long as the interior was okay. A yard, they could actually have fun fixing up. The inside of a house, on the other hand, that took way more money and effort. As long as the interior was okay, the place was a contender.
Walking with Ruby, Candy was careful not to let the dog’s leash go too long. She smiled at Remy, taking his hand. It was nice and domestic, but they were technically still honeymooners. She still wanted to be close to him.
The interior of the house was in decent shape, but Remy couldn’t get past the fact that it was straight up ugly. There was tile in the entryway that clearly hadn’t changed since 1970, and the wood was tacky. He couldn’t help but wrinkle his nose.
Wow, it really did look like Candy’s childhood home. She looked imploringly up at Remy, trying to signal ‘oh hell no’ with her eyes. They’d have to spend so much money fixing up the interior that they’d end up losing money in the long run anyway.
Remy got the hint - he saw something like fear in her eyes. Still, he didn’t want to be rude. He asked a few questions, letting the realtor talk, but he tried to convey their lack of interest. They didn’t wind up spending much longer there, and on the way to the car, he squeezed his wife’s hand. “Not much for re-tiling the whole damn entry, eh?” He murmured, hoping she smiled.
Chuckling, Candy shook her head. “It looks just like Mom’s,” she whispered back, glad that he understood. Kissing him on the cheek, she walked Ruby toward the grass so she could piddle.
Remy made a face. “Next,” he told her, kissing her cheek back.
The next house looked better right from the start. The yard was well kept, the house was painted nicely and it just looked in better condition. “It’s cute,” Remy said, smiling a little. “Look at that yard, baby girl!” Ruby seemed excited, panting as she looked out the window.
The house made Candy beam. “This is cute!” Ruby scrabbled out before Candy fully had her feet, and she laughed as the dog fairly tugged her so she could wriggle on her back in the front yard. “If the inside’s as cute as the outside, it’s got my vote.”
Remy laughed at his dog, shaking his head. “The yard does look good, though,” he commented, after which the realtor informed him it had been re-sodded. “Somebody else done the work,” he told Candy, smiling a little. “I’ll stay here if you wanna look inside. Gotta let little girl have her fun.”
“Oh, she’ll want to check out the back yard too. C’mon, pretty girl.” Candy whistled, which prompted Ruby to stand back up and shake off the grass from her fur. “Besides, I have to have a say, Bright Eyes.”
“That’s why I said I stay with the dog.” Remy pointed out, though he appreciated Ruby minding so well. Still, he followed Candy back toward the back yard, eyebrows raising when he saw it. “Nice.”
The realtor pointed out the poles holding up the patio roof, which Remy appreciated. “They look in good shape,” he said, trying one out. “Roof ain’t gonna come off in an earthquake, I think.”
“This is gorgeous,” Candy smiled. She giggled when Ruby looked up at her, tail wagging. Candy sat down so the dog could go off her leash for a moment. “The fence is nice and high too, no jumping for our little girl.”
“Important.” Remy nodded, smiling as the dog began to sniff around. “Looks like you get here from the livin’ room, which is also good.” If the only doors had been from the bedrooms or something that would have been odd. He looked around a little more, noticing that the windows seemed to be in good shape, too. “Wanna go in?”
“Yeah, let’s. C’mere, girl, let’s get you back on the leash.” Candy wanted to make sure that nothing happened to her dog in an unfamiliar place. Humming a little, Candy entered the house and looked around, grinning broadly. “Oh, it’s so pretty in here!” It was bright and clean and looked recently recarpeted.
The realtor explained that the house had been a foreclosure, so there had been work done on it before it was put on the market. It made sense to Remy. “Look at them big windows,” he commented, liking the way the light poured into the living room. “I like that it’s so bright. Our apartment barely lets anything in.” Sometimes darkness was nice, but sometimes it was oppressive.
“We can put drapes up so we can keep it dark if you have a late night at work or something.” The point was about options. “And it’s big enough so that way when we want to start a family, we can.”
“Mais oui.” Remy nodded, though that did make him think of something. “What about the school system?”
The realtor was honest, admitting that it wasn’t the best, frankly. But there were private schools, and other options, which Remy had to admit the truth of. “Ain’t a deal-breaker,” he said, smiling a little. He still wanted to look up things like crime statistics, but the place looked nice. “Maybe we check out the bedrooms, then? Look at stuff like lights? I’m guessin’ it has A-C.” The realtor nodded to the last, gesturing down a long hallway.
“We’re still in the thinking stage, so it’s not a deal-breaker.” Plus, Candy liked that the realtor was honest. She walked into the guest bedroom, which was nothing special. But the master bedroom was bright and sunny and had a big window facing the backyard. It made Candy sigh, it was so pretty.
Remy followed her into the master bedroom, immediately nodding. “Oh, I do like this.” He smiled a little at his wife. “Could keep an eye on little girl playin’ in the yard, from in here.” From their cozy bed, from their house. He did like the idea.
“Exactly.” And they could feather their nest slowly but surely. She was still in school, but she wouldn’t always be. Soon enough, she’d have clients and would bring in money and then they could focus more on making the house pretty.
Remy couldn’t help but get a little excited. “I think we should see a few other places too,” he said, looking at his wife, then the realtor. “But this is real high on our list. Front-runner, right now. Yeah?”
“Absolutely.” Candy grinned at her husband, wrapping an arm around his waist. “But it wouldn’t hurt to see a couple more, just to be sure.”
“Mais oui. So lead on.” Remy smiled, still excited. They’d found a place they could live. It was hard not to be excited.