The One I Want

At the office, we’re guarded, but in the building, we date openly. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Her grandmother was such a lovely woman. I miss her. She passed away too soon.”

I look around to see if Juni is near, but I think she was luckier and caught an earlier elevator. She’s been coming and going through the stairwell all night helping, blowing me kisses here and there. She knows everyone and is a big part of this little community. Although I don’t want to invade her privacy, I’m not telling her to stop.

There’s a sadness that comes over Mrs. Hendricks’ blue eyes, and for a moment, I wonder if she’s going to cry. Unsure what to do, I lift my arm, not sure if I should give her support until she says, “It’s been a long time since a strapping young man, such as yourself, has held me. Hint, hint.”

Guess that settles it. I put my arm around her, and we sit there for a minute in silence. Then she says, “Her grandmother died a few years ago. Cancer. The incurable kind. My Artie smoked for sixty years, didn’t even have a cough. Got hit by a bus crossing down at 42nd. I just know he would have outlived me if he’d made a different decision that day. So you just never know how you’re going to go, but her grandmother deserved better. So did Juni. Such a sweet girl. I can still remember her with that Paddington Bear suitcase and this hat straight out of the jungle.”

I catch Juni holding hands with a little girl who’s carrying a teddy bear. She loads her onto the elevator with her mother and waves while the doors shut. She has so much love to give with her heart of gold. Invested in the story and more in the woman it’s about, I ask, “When did you meet her?”

“Her grandmother, Marion, I met the day she moved in. I think twenty-five, thirty years ago now. Keeping time isn’t something I’m keen to do anymore. Juni was seven when she came to live here. Her parents were botanists, famous even, but I guess they didn’t have time for a little girl.”

I’ve had a lot of thoughts about her parents since Juni told me her story. Some good. Some bad. At the end of the day, I think they were searching for a pot of gold that didn’t exist. It came at the expense of their daughter, though. “That’s too bad.”

“It really is. Everyone in the building adores her, but we’re also ready for her to leave.”

“Why is that?”

“Oh, honey.” She leans her head against my shoulder, smiling like a cat who caught the canary. “This is where we spend our twilight years, while for younger folk like you, it’s just a stop on your journey. A great location in a prestigious building. But she needs to spread her wings and fly out of this place. She needs to live without the security of this nest and find her place in this world. She’d be missed, but we’ll survive. Until we don’t because we’re old.”

Mike calls, “Mrs. Hendricks. It’s your turn.”

I stand and then help her to her feet. She says, “She could do worse than you. Handsome and rich.”

Laughing, I say, “I could only be so lucky to have the chance.” I look at the empty elevator and then say, “Are you ready to go?”

“Since Artie passed away.”

After the lobby is empty and everyone is safely back in their apartments, I drop on the bed next to Juni. “My body hurts. I must have run down twenty times.” I never wanted to keep the elevator from picking more people up by calling it to take me down. Juni’s idea.

“The good news is you don’t have to work out tomorrow.” She rolls to her side and props up on her elbow. “Don’t be too hard on yourself.”

I eye her out of the corner of my eye and then give her a wink. “I got distracted.”

“It happens.” She scoots closer and drapes an arm and leg over me. With her eyes closed, she says, “The good news. Number two is done.”

“At least something good came from it.”

We’ve had a lot of sex in the last week, but tonight, I just want to hold her. “What do you say we take a shower to get the smoke and sweat off, and we go to bed?”

“Sounds like heaven.”

It is. She’s heaven in my arms. I don’t know yet what to do with Mrs. Hendricks’s words.

But she needs to spread her wings and fly out of this place. She needs to live without the security of this nest and find her place in this world. She’d be missed, but we’ll survive. Is that what Juni needs? To be set free? Free of commitment to a job. Free of commitment to a tiny dog. Free of commitment . . . to me? Mrs. Hendricks was definitely right and wrong about one thing, though.