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She took it, their hands connecting briefly.
“Try again. Like you saw me do it.”
She took a breath and stepped forward, feeling like an even bigger idiot. Now she had to do it while he watched?
Asa’s stifled chuckle had her side-eyeing him.
“You look like I asked you to butcher your first chicken. It’s just paint and it’s just me.”
She nodded with his reminder because he was right. The only other person here was Asa and if he was going to make fun of her, he’d already had plenty of opportunity.
He coached her through the next several minutes. Showing her how much pressure to use and to go in different angles for a more thorough coverage.
Sweat trickled down her temple and she blew a loose strand of hair out of her face. Asa’s eyes tracked the hair’s journey up and back down. She grinned at him. “Thank you.”
“Of course,” he replied, his mouth tugging up on one side. He turned to go back to his side of the room.
She watched him go before turning back to her task. A task that she now felt more equipped to tackle. She wanted to express her gratitude in more than just saying “thank you,” but nothing came to mind. How do you tell someone thank you for not making you feel stupid?
She thought about it as she continued painting.
Someone had set up a small radio in the corner and it had been playing oldies and classic rock all day. Not loud, just enough to keep the attic space from feeling too quiet.
Chicago’s “If You Leave Me Now” started to play through the tiny speakers and she sang along.
“Are you—?” Asa started to ask and stopped.
She squatted to refill her roller. This was going way better now.
“Are you singing along to Chicago?” Asa asked, sounding confused.
She glanced his direction and flashed a smile. “Guilty. I’ve been listening to them. You know what I love about this song?” she asked. “It reminds me of the theme song fromThe Man From Snowy River.”
He didn’t respond but that was okay. She returned to her wall—she was making good headway now—and kept singing.
Goosebumps broke out along her shoulders as Asa’s rich voice joined hers.
God, that man could sing.
The next song was Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine” and they kept singing. Together.
Same with the next song and the one after that. Soon, she lost count of how many classic songs they had sang together, drowning out the small radio speakers.
Through it all, the walls got painted a beautiful pale yellow. The lid of the paint can called the color “Moonglow” and Zara decided it was the perfect choice.
“Wow.”
Zara had just set the paint roller back in the tray, having finished her last little section. Nikki stood at the entrance to their little space. She crossed her arms and surveyed their work.
Zara hoped she had done an alright job for her friend. It wasn’t until she was more than halfway done that she thought maybe she should have just paid professionals to do it. But there was somethingjoyfulabout doing the work herself. She was contributing to Nikki and André’s future with effort and time. Things she couldn’t often do for her loved ones. She didn’t know if it meant anything to them, but she knew what it meant to her.
“You guys did a great job,” Nikki said, sounding pleased.
Asa cleared his throat and stepped back. He looked around the room and then flashed Zara a smile. “We make a good team.”
“In more ways than one,” Nikki added. “We could hear you from downstairs. That was next level.”
Zara snickered but she agreed. She just didn’t want to point it out in front of Asa since he was still so shy about the music thing.
