Four

Laura was sitting alone in a restaurant, it was the one she went with June when she first moved in.

She really liked it here. The old woman working here was the owner and her name was Mrs. Pamela. She really liked her, she was very friendly and warm.

The cooking here was amazing and the prices affordable so she spent quite a lot of time there, usually sitting by the window, watching people outside, occasionally talking to the owner or just reading a book.

“Hello, Grandma, how are you?” a slightly familiar voice made Laura look up from her book. “Ezra dear, I am really good and you?” Mrs. Pam smiled gently at him.

“The usual?”

“You know it,” Ezra winked at the old woman.

“Ezra , hey!” Laura spoke up and waved before she could stop herself .

“Laura ,” the other smiled and came to her: “I see you already know the best places around here.”

“I like the atmosphere and the food is great.”

“Grandma Pam’s cooking is impeccable,” Ezra nodded: “How are you adjusting?” “Pretty well, haven’t been robbed yet,” she jokes.

“That is a record,” Ezra teased back.

“Where have you been? I haven’t met you in the building.”

“I don’t go out that often, I work from home so there is no need for me to go out. Have you made some new friends here yet?”

“Not really, only my friend June sometimes comes to visit me, although she is not really fond of the neighborhood.”

“Well, you have at least one friend across the hallway,” Ezra winked.

“Then you won’t mind joining me for a meal,” Laura smiled brightly, putting on her charms.

Ezra looked like he was contemplating for a while before he eventually turned around and yelled towards the kitchen: “Grandma , I will eat here tonight.”

“Got it!” The old woman yelled back, peeking from the kitchen to see why her favorite customer changed his mind, smiling to herself when she saw him sitting opposite from the lovely brunette that has been coming here often lately.

“Well, you said we are friends, but we don’t really know anything about each other except for our names,” Laura looked at Ezra when he sat down.

“We can change that,” Ezra reassured her with a soft smile that made Laura ’s heart make a small jump.

She had no idea what it was about Ezra but he just seemed so...alluring. Not just because of his good looks, but he was friendly and there was this aura around him, aura that was telling Laura that he was interesting and Laura has always liked interesting people.

“We can start with ages, I guess,” Laura said: “I am twenty four.” “I’m twenty nine,” Ezra revealed that he was actually older.

“I am not really into formalities so you can speak to me casually, I grew up in a very...laid-back environment where we didn't use formal language,”

Ezra said and that alone sounded very mysterious. Laura instantly had a feeling that the man didn’t really want to talk about it .

“So when did you come to phoenix?” Ezra wondered, leaning back in the chair.

“What makes you think I am not from here?”

“Your accent is pretty good, but not perfect.”

“I am from Horizon city,” Laura revealed: “Moved here when I was twenty.”

“I thought so, you have that Horizon vibe.” “What is a Horizon vibe?” the brunette laughed. “I don’t know, you just have it.”

“And you are from Phoenix?”

“Yep, I was born and raised here nearby.

Do you know the neighborhood up the hill? That is where I lived most of my life.”

“Up the hill? I’ve heard stories, it is not a very exclusive neighborhood.”

“That is an understatement,” Ezra snorted: “Whatever you heard, I can assure you it’s even worse. This area is like paradise compared to that one.”

Laura has lived in Phoenix long enough to know about that neighborhood , if crime was quite high here, it was up the roof up there. It was known to be home of gangs, drug dealers and all kinds of thieves, it wasn’t an address one wanted to have.

Now he wasn’t really surprised why Ezra wasn’t used to honorifics or formal language, that wasn’t something that was used in areas like that. Phoenix residents had a lovely nickname for that neighborhood – Hellhole, which always seemed ironic to Laura since it was on the hill, but the reputation explained it.

“What made you come down here?” Laura wondered.

“Just wanted some change, a better life, you know?” Ezra shrugged ambiguously: “It is nothing fancy here, but I guess I wouldn’t really feel good in some more lucrative place.”

“I know what you mean,” Laura nodded: “I grew up in a middle class family, but since I came here, I’ve been struggling with money and life. I am glad I got this apartment, it is my proper first one.”

“Is it?”

“Yeah, I had a roommate before, huge asshole, so living alone is a blessing.”

“I can imagine. Why was he an asshole?”

“He used to date my best friend, their breakup was nasty and I took my friend’s side obviously. Since then he just hated me and I got tired of his bullshit and him taking a new guy or girl to our shared place every week,” the younger cringed at the memory.

“I get it, having roommates can be tough, I have one, but he is my friend so we are getting along really well, although we have to respect each other’s boundaries and privacy, only then we can make it work,” Ezra hummed.

Mrs. Pam brought Ezra his order and he started eating while Laura ordered another beer for herself since she already ate.

“What do you do for a living, Laura?” Ezra wondered when he swallowed a piece of delicious meat.

“I work at a supermarket, it’s nothing special,” Laura shrugged.

“I don’t have a college degree, I went through all kinds of jobs and this one is not bad. I have good shifts, a decent salary and it is calm.”

“We all do what we have to to get by,” Ezra nodded. “You said you work from home, what exactly do you do?”

“I work in IT, mostly programming and web design,” Ezra revealed: “I have always been pretty good with computers and technology in general, I don’t have university, but when I left my home, I took some lessons and got a certificate. I am not having any huge deals, but it is enough to get by and I like the job. It's calm, I can work whenever I want and I stay at home.”

“Isn’t it boring though? Always at home?” Laura wondered.

“I don’t mind boring,” Ezra shrugged: “My life was previously very hectic and that was one of the reasons why I moved here and started this job, I am happy I can just sit at my computer.”

Laura looked at the older man searchingly. He could just tell that there was something exciting about Ezra, it seemed like he had some good stories, but once again, it didn’t look like he’d want to talk about it, most of his answers were pretty vague.

“Well, thank you for the company but I should go and go to sleep, I have a morning shift tomorrow,” Laura got up when Ezra finished his meal and he drank his beer: “We can walk together.”

“I am not going home yet, sorry,” Ezra smiled apologetically.

“Oh, that’s fine, it’s not like I need someone to walk me, I am a big girl, I can take care of myself,” Laura joked with a wink.

“I bet,” Ezra said with sparks in his eyes. He could tell that Laura was tough, she was pretty and had soft features, but there was something about her that was telling Ezra that there was a lot hiding in her.

“See you around, Ezra , don’t be a stranger and don’t make me wait for weeks to see you again, when you get too bored with your computer job, just come over for a coffee or something,” Laura smiled.

“I will take you up on that offer,” Ezra grinned and then added when he saw Laura pulling out her wallet: “Don’t, it’s on me, you will repay me with the coffees I am gonna drink at your place.”

“Alright, thank you,” Laura chuckled and with one last wave, she left.

Ezra watched her through the window, smiling to himself when he saw the younger walk away confidently without any signs of discomfort walking around in the dark in this neighborhood.