At his salute, Sav tipped an imaginary hat and laughed, before nodding enthusiastically at his assessment of the rudeness of the so called gods that captured their attention through various screens and media outlets. She was pretty sure the equivalent of their book of worship was Netflix. “I know! All that power and no one taught them any manners. It’s like they’re politicians.”
It was hard to encapsulate all of the feelings that she’d had over the last few weeks. Before she’d even decided to move, she’d felt hopeful, if not maybe entirely content, with the direction her life was going in. And then she’d been heartbroken, which had spurred her into a rare spontaneous frenzy that had led her to calling Jake and asking for a run down on all the available properties in Willow Creek. That small ray of hope had been a lifeline through the sadness. And then she heard about Jake and it wasn’t that her heart was broken; it’s that everything in her was tied in knots, with the exposed nerves hyperaware and so sore that it took a lot of focus not to let the tears show. As much as she thought that she needed to be here with her family right now, it hadn’t seemed like a very auspicious start for a move. Meeting Harding was good, though; it broadened her tunnel vision and let her see more than just what she was running to and away from. His reassurance made her breathe a little more easily.
“Thanks. I love New York, I really do. And I don’t mind big cities. But sometimes I just feel like I get swallowed up in everything. Everything. I think a change of pace is what I need to reclaim myself.” Her head tilted up with a bit of fortitude, before she realized that she’d maybe just indulged in some personal oversharing and she threw a light-hearted smile at Harding, because he hadn’t offered to help with her emotional unpacking, too.
Fortunately, their next topic sparked and kept her interest and she looked at him with admiration. “Your brother really did that? That’s amazing. I feel like I can’t always manage a successful coffee run, much less a whole coffee shop on the spur of the moment. He sounds awesome. I also have a hot shot older sibling who runs her own business, so successful families for the win, am I right? Do you have any other family in town?” When he mentioned his businesses, Sav turned to him and held out her hands in excitement. “And you own your own businesses? That’s incredible, Harding. That must be a lot of work. I don’t go to the gym a lot? But I am down to try to your smoothie place, for sure.”
Sav listened to Harding intently. “I’ll definitely knock on your door if I have any questions. Where else have you lived? It sounds like you’ve accomplished a lot. And I don’t think you’re that old?” Ages were tricky to navigate even without the supernatural element. In Willow Creek, it was almost impossible to correctly guess at how old someone was. She had no idea if or how his Midas touch power affected his life force. “That’s really impressive.”
When they were in the truck, Sav smiled brightly at his assessment of the couch. “I am so pleased that you think so. You’re welcome over anytime to enjoy it. You’ll have totally earned it after this.”
Speaking of the manual labor that would necessitate having a couch around to collapse on afterwards, Sav took her cues from Harding. When he hefted, she lifted with him. The weight wasn’t an obstacle as much as the maneuvering, and she took the lead, walking backwards and guiding him away from the truck and toward the apartment building. “Let me know if you need to stop.”
She thought it was only polite to offer.
No matter how strong or agile a person was, moving a solid object (a couch) through a narrow, immovable space (a stairwell) wasn’t without its challenges. Still, between the two of them, they managed to ease to the sofa up the stairs without much trouble. It was only as they neared her apartment that Sav called out to him, “So, how are we going to get this through the door?”