Incandescent

I walked to the entrance, where I’d left the toolbox I’d carried inside from my car. Opening it, I reached for the multimeter, then tested the voltage in the outlet near the front desk. “Just like I thought. Nothing registers. It might be a while.”

“That sucks.” He sighed. “I wonder if I’ve got power at home. Thought my mom could tell me, but I forgot she’s visiting my sister in Mentor today. Their electricity is still on.”

My thumbs were already crafting a text, first to Grant, who should’ve arrived home by now, then to a friend who worked for the city. “Hang on, let me ask one of my contacts.”

I sent off the message and was surprised when I could already see him responding, so maybe he was on a break.

“It’s a huge outage, but he thinks some parts of Euclid might still have power,” I said, glancing at the return text. “My friend will be working into the night.”

“Imagine having that kind of job,” Marcus said, shutting the back door, then blowing out one by one the candles he’d lit. I could see through the window that the rain had momentarily abated.

“At least they get paid double time.” I shrugged. “I’m a union guy, so been there, done that.”

“Guess I gotta stay closer to you when there are outages.”

For some reason, my stomach tightened at his statement.

“Suppose I’m useful for something.” I cleared my throat. “But I can totally set you up with a generator for times like this.”

“I might just take you up on that.”

I felt my ears grow warm. It was good to feel valuable.

“I live close by, only a few streets over.” Marcus reached for his keys behind the front desk. “So I’m going to head out, see if my neighborhood has electricity.”

“Fingers crossed for both of us. I texted Grant to see how we’re faring too.” Right then, my cell chimed with a response from Grant. “Speak of the devil.”

The storm’s cleared, we didn’t lose power, and I’m home safe and sound.

Awesome. Be home soon.

I thought about my conversation with Grant from the other morning.

“Here’s an idea,” I said to Marcus as I followed him out the door. “If your power’s out, come have dinner with me and Grant.”

I held my breath as I waited for his reply. I didn’t know why I needed this so much. But maybe Grant had been right about spending more time with friends.

“Would you mind following me home to check on the lights?” he asked in a hesitant tone. “If I’m out of luck, I’ll totally take you up on your offer.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

I slid behind the wheel of my car and quickly texted Grant. Just FYI, if Marc’s neighborhood doesn’t have power, I invited him to have dinner with us.

Cool.

I smiled.

My pulse was beating erratically the entire time I followed him home, which didn’t make a ton of sense. Marcus was my friend, and I had extended an invitation. No big deal. Except, not only had I never seen his workplace until today, I was about to see where he lived, and if the power was out, he would be meeting my son. That was likely the reason I was feeling out of sorts.

He lived in a neighborhood of small bungalows, and when we pulled into his driveway, I could see what he meant about his house—not that I’d admit it out loud. It didn’t feel like him, not after visiting his shop. I could see him living in something with more charm and character.

“See what I mean?” he said when I followed him up the steps to his porch, as if he could read my mind. Hopefully it wasn’t written all over my face.

I shook my head. “It’s a nice house.”

“I noticed you didn’t call it a home.” He glanced over his shoulder as he placed the key in the front door. “You’re just being kind.”

“Absolutely not.”

He pushed it open, and I waited on the landing as he tried a lamp. When it didn’t turn on, he told me to wait as he stepped farther inside. I could actually picture him living here with Carmen and making future plans. Too bad they were never able to come to fruition.

“You’re right that it doesn’t feel like you, but it’s a cozy place,” I said as he returned, wearing a clean shirt. “Your furniture is nice.”

“Guess it’ll do for now.” He locked up the house behind him. “Thanks again for the offer. I would’ve boiled in here from the humidity alone.”

“You were gonna boil in that store too, Mr. Workaholic.”

“Yeah, suppose I can ignore shit around me when I’m working.”

I nudged his shoulder. “I like it. How dedicated you are.”

His cheeks colored as we stared at each other a bit too long.

A crack of lightning broke up the moment.