Great job Kiku,, he thought. "Yeah, there was some sawdust that I didn't see," he replied. His Slavic accent had softened in the last eight years, but it still sounded harsh compared to hers. Josh wished that he had been taught to hide his accent like his cousin Daniel.
"Be careful," she said. "I wouldn't want to see you get hurt."
Josh mumbled incoherently as she waved and walked off. A dark-headed person peeked over the edge of the roof, grinning like an idiot. His eyes were hidden behind blue mirrored sunglasses. "God knows that girl looks good," Daniel said.
He didn't get an answer because Josh was too busy staring at Briana as she walked across the job site, his green eyes following her every move. Her auburn curls were tousled, presumably from driving her Jeep, and she had set her sunglasses on top of her head to keep it back from her face. Absently, she smoothed the dark blue tank-top that she wore and tugged on the oh-so-tight khaki shorts. Bikini straps snaked around her neck and brown leather flip-flops slapped lightly against her heels as she walked. A slender chain with silver bells jingled on her left ankle. To contrast everything, she had a very dusty tool belt slung about her hips. "Yeah, she does," he finally answered when he could bring himself back to reality.
"Don't let Chris catch you staring at his girl like that," Daniel said. "Hey, since you're down there, toss me that roll of tarpaper."
"She's not his girl anymore." Josh grabbed the four-foot-wide roll of black paper and threw it to Daniel.
"What? Since when?"
"You were there."
"What?" Daniel didn't hide his shock very well.
"Remember that party that the night she came back from college?"
"A month and a half ago? That was T.C.'s party, right?"
Josh nodded, "Apparently she caught him fooling around with Caitlyn at the party. I was talking to Ashley and D when it happened. Briana came running up to Ashley. She spilled the whole story. She was really mad," Josh said. He had climbed back up the extension ladder and was nailing the edge of the tarpaper down.
"No shit, I'd be pissed too," Daniel was measuring the length of paper. He pulled a knife from his tool belt and cut it to length before starting the next row. "Caitlyn is a nasty ho!"
"You would know. Oh wait, you were really drunk and blah blah blah, right?" Josh ducked to avoid the nail that Daniel threw at him.
"Why didn't I know about this?" Daniel changed the subject.
"Probably because you've been up India's ass for the last few months."
"No I haven't. She's been up mine."
"Yeah, okay. That's why you're always with her and no one else? Can't call nobody back, don't want to go to the bars with us... And she's up your ass? Uh-Uh."
Daniel glared at him, for once he didn't have a smart remark for that. Probably because he knew that his cousin was right. "Look man, I really like her. There's something special about her."
"I hope so man. I don't know about that one."
"Why not?"
"Did she even look at you before you finished fixing the truck? Nope. Would she even talk to you before you started coming around with your fancy new watch, and your system and ground effects? She's only in it for the money."
"Kiku! Fomin! Get your shirts back on and get down here," Darryl, their crew chief, interrupted. Daniel grabbed his grey shirt and pulled it over his lanky frame.
Josh grabbed his shirt from the ridge line and pulled it over his head. In a previous life it had been green and had "Galley Crew" stamped across the back in big yellow letters. Now it was more of a pea green color that sort of matched the ratty navy blue shorts he was wearing. He gave a mental shrug. Not that it mattered what he looked like; he kept making an ass of himself in front of Briana. Daniel was already talking to Darryl when he got down the ladder. Daniel was tugging on his goatee as Darryl spoke. "Lou said that he needs you two to frame up the shed over there. I'm going to go get some more lumber, but go ahead and get started. I think Briana already cut some of the studs you'll need."
Josh and Daniel looked at each other skeptically. Briana? Sure enough, she was standing at the chop saw, her tongue poking out the corner of her mouth in concentration. She measured, then stuck the pencil behind her ear, and made the cut. She added the new stud to her stack and threw the scrap into the growing pile. "Just what do you think you're doing?" Daniel teased as the three guys walked over.
"Contrary to popular belief, I actually know a thing or two about construction. I guess that comes from hanging around you guys so much. Either that or because my dad is fanatical about this company and thinks I should be that way too. Take your pick."
"Who knows," Josh said.
"Okay Darryl, I've got to ask," she
continued, laughing. "What's with the flip-flops?"
Darryl looked down at his feet. Wide blue nylon bands strapped his feet to square grey flip-flops that stuck out at least an inch and a half on each side. He looked back up at her. "What about my flip-flops?" He asked defensively.
"They're huge! You could probably walk on water with them!" She exclaimed.
"My mommy bought them in New Zealand and sent them to me," he replied. "I like my flip-flops. They're comfy."
"I know you do, but they're strange."
"So are you."
"Probably," she conceded.
"I'm going to go get that lumber now," he said.
As soon as he was out of sight, Daniel pulled his shirt back off and draped it across an unused sawhorse. Then he moved to give Briana a hug. "Ew, you're all sweaty!" She joked, but hugged him anyway.
Daniel and Briana had known each other since he had transferred into St. Claire Walker Middle School after his family immigrated from Russia ten years ago. Josh's family had come over two years later, but he and Briana had never been as close as she and Daniel were. That's because you're too busy trying to impress her, he reminded himself. He'd had a crush on Briana since the day they had met. She still didn't know.
"How are you doing, kiddo?" Daniel asked her.
"I'm great, why?"
"Josh was telling me about Chris. Sorry that I didn't notice before now."
Briana shrugged. "He's an ass. What more do you want?" She grabbed another length of wood to cut. "Shouldn't you two be building something?"
Daniel stuck his tongue out at her and grabbed the sheet of dimensions from the saw table. "You look nice today, what's the occasion?" He asked, changing the subject.
"Do I have to have a reason to look nice?"
"No, but you're usually in your Boat US uniform when I see you."
"At least when I work, I wear a shirt," she retorted.
"I was wearing a shirt! Besides, I wouldn't mind going into Boat US and seeing you without a shirt on."
Josh laughed as Briana landed an open-handed slap on Daniel's bare shoulder. She left a dark red hand print. "You deserved that," he said.
"Probably," Daniel said.
A five foot by eight foot concrete slab had been poured earlier that week. They both knew that it wouldn't be hard to frame the shed. The only thing that they would need help with is lifting the walls into place so that they could be screwed into the toe-boards. It didn't an hour to get the first two wall and a half framed. They ran out of wood before Darryl could get back with more lumber. One of the perks of being fourty-five minutes from the nearest Home Depot. Daniel decided to take a break for a cigarette and some water. Leaning on the back of Josh's truck in the shade was actually comfortable. "Suka," Josh said, opening the door to grab a cigarette.
Daniel glared at him for a moment. "I'm a bitch now? I don't think so. Who's whipped?"
"I'm not whipped."
"No," Daniel paused to light his cigarette, "You've just been in love with the girl for eight years."
Josh didn't have to reply to that. After all, Daniel was telling the truth. "Why don't you just ask her out?" Daniel asked.
Josh half-laughed. "O-kay, ask the boss' daughter out. That would go over really well with Lou, I'm sure."
"Besides that, why not?."
"She'd say no."
"No she wouldn't."
"Oh yes she would."
"I'm telling you that she wouldn't."
"And how do you know that?" Josh lit a cigarette.
"You're supposed to save that for after the sex," Daniel told him.
Josh took a drag and glared at his cousin. "Answer my question."
"Oh I don't know... Let's just say a little bird told me."
"Ashley."
"I didn't say that."
"Whatever. I'm still not asking her out." Darryl walked up as Josh was talking. "Not asking who out?"
"Briana," Daniel answered for Josh.
"No shit? The little Russian wants a girlfriend? I was starting to wonder about you," he said.
Josh scowled. "That's not funny mother fucker."
"Oh yes it is," Daniel was trying very hard not to laugh. "Josh, listen. Just grow some balls and ask her out. Right Darryl?"
Darryl held up his hands. "I'm not in this. While you're standing around bullshitting, get the lumber out of the truck. Then you can finish framing the shed."
"What about lunch?" Daniel asked. He was always finding some excuse to work as little as possible.
"Okay, fine. Unload the lumber and then take a lunch. Hell, why doesn't Daniel unload the lumber so Josh can take Briana to lunch."
"I thought you weren't in this!" Josh protested.
"I'm not," Darryl said, walking off. To Josh's horror, he stopped where Lou was working and said something. They both laughed. Josh wished that he knew what they were talking about.
"You're helping me unload this," Daniel said as he grabbed several two-by-fours.
"Nope, that's your job," Josh caught a glimpse of himself in the window of his truck. His brown hair was matted down with sweat. Somehow he'd gotten a line of sawdust across his forehead. He wiped at it and tried to make his hair look decent. It almost worked.
"And what are you going to do?"
"Just like Darryl said, he's going to take me to lunch."
Josh and Daniel both jumped. They didn't see Briana come around the truck. "Wait, what?" Josh was confused.
"You were standing, like, five feet from me for that entire conversation. You think I didn't hear you? I'm not going to turn down a lunch invitation." She took off the tool belt and put it in the bed of her dad's truck. "Are you driving, or am I?"
Josh didn't know what to say. Daniel shoved him towards Briana. "He's driving."
With a look that should have killed Daniel, Josh took off his tool belt and slung it into the bed of his truck. Briana slid an arm around his waist. "Hey Dad! Josh and I are going to lunch. Be back in an hour!" She called. Lou nodded in agreement. Josh was glad that he was smiling instead of loading the shotgun that most of Briana's dates got threatened with. "Oh, Daniel? Tell Ashley to keep spilling all my secrets, would ya?" She grinned.
"She's your best friend, you tell her."
"Like she'll listen," she climbed into the passenger seat of the tan truck and shut the door.
"See ya Daniel," Josh said.
Daniel shook his head and unloaded the rest of the lumber, then went in search of his own lunch. As he pulled out of the job site in his metallic blue S-10, he briefly wondered how Josh's "date" was going. He was sure that he would hear all about it when his cousin got back.