Daniel's Rental House

Getting to know Miss Grayson better.

Brenda was delighted when Daniel invited her to his house for an "indoor picnic," and a little High Fidelity music. Of course she liked  him, and wanted to know him better. His tiny rental house on East Tuckerman Street cost 60 dollars a month to rent from the owner who "lived next door, and basically minded her own business."

The living room, and kitchen were in the front, and a small bedroom was located in the back. A "built on" tile bathroom stuck out like a mini bird house facing the landlady's utility porch. There were a few closets, and cabinets. The peaked roof hid a little crawlspace. It was simply a doll house. Nothing fancy. Just a frame home covered with asbestos shingles, and painted with blue trim. Daniel had a clothesline, but no washer. He used a laundromat "out of habit" and had his uniforms serviced by a local dry cleaner.

Brenda loved Daniel's Eastlake bed, and strange lamps that he had made himself from old milk bottles, and colored Cellophane. The black and white TV was off. They had stopped at a deli to pick up potato salad, chips, and black olives. Daniel's fridge held a pitcher of orange Kool Aid, wafer cookies, baloney, white bread, and mustard.

 Brenda wanted to introduce him to a life without meat, and eggs. She had been a vegetarian all her life, but still ate the occasional omelette, and loved ice cream. Onion rings were a rare treat, and she could not pass up an orange freeze from Howard Johnson's.

The two new friends didn't seem to be in any hurry to jump into bed. Brenda wanted to know Daniel before they went any further. But that first kiss was a doozie. He was dangerous. Delightfully dangerous. She held back. He didn't get angry. They ate the chocolate cake, and talked about what they could do with their relationship.

Daniel was very different. Brenda was also a bit eccentric. Taking her back to her apartment was very difficult for Daniel Alexander. Her astrology forecasts had already begun to make sense. There was a whole lot more to come. Brenda was very fond of cemeteries.

C  J Marks