Chapter 152 | Suprise
The interior of the house was finished, only the exterior remained. He decided to tackle the roof first.
But there was just one problem, the ladder he bought wasn’t tall enough.
He could actually, jump up. With his current Superhuman-level strength, four meters was nothing.
But the house was old. If he landed too hard, he risked cracking the tiles or create even bigger hole which would create an even larger, more expensive problem than the leak he was trying to fix.
’I hope Tessa’s dad has one.’
Dexter wiped his hands on his jeans, walked out the front gate, and turned left toward Tessa’s house.
He reached the wooden fence and knocked three times, and waited.
A moment later, the door opened.
Tessa’s father stood in the doorway.
"Good afternoon sir. I was wondering, do you happen to have a ladder I could borrow? Mine isn’t tall enough to reach the roof."
The man blinked, then nodded. "Sure. Wait here a moment."
He disappeared back inside the house. While Dexter waited, he glanced up at the second-floor window.
Tessa was there.
She was leaning against the window with her chin propped on both hands, her messy red hair falling around her face like a curtain as she waved enthusiastically at him.
Dexter shook his head and waved back.
A minute later, Tessa’s father reappeared through the front door, carrying a heavy wooden extension ladder.
"There you go. Bring it back whenever you’re done."
"Thank you, sir. I appreciate it." Dexter reached for the ladder, then paused.
"Actually, there’s something else I wanted to discuss with you." He paused.
"Tessa mentioned the idea of forming a business partnership — that I would provide Enchanted Meals, and you would sell them at your bakery."
"I wanted to make sure that was also your idea, And she’s not just jesting. Moreover I needed to hear it from you personally."
Tessa’s father was quiet for a while, then he slowly nodded.
"She told me about it. And I think it’s a good idea."
He unfolded his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "You’re a Foodsmith. That’s not something you see every day in this neighborhood. Having Arcane Meals available at our bakery would boost our sales considerably."
Dexter smiled.
’Seems like the little girl is reliable after all.’
"Thank you, sir."
The man waved a hand dismissively. "Just make good food. That’s all I ask."
Dexter nodded, hoisted the ladder onto his own shoulder and carried it back to his house.
He set the ladder against the rear wall, climbed up and reached the leak.
He carefully removed the damaged tile, cleaned the area, applied a layer of sealant, and fitted a replacement tile into place, pressing it down firmly, then he inspected the surrounding tiles for any additional cracks.
There were two more minor cracks and he worked on them both.
He spent another fifteen minutes on the roof, checking the flashing around the chimney pipe and clearing debris from the gutters before climbing back down satisfied that the roof would hold through the next storm.
He moved the ladder to the front of the house and began painting the porch.
The old wooden railing had been peeling. He sanded it down, applied a fresh coat of brown paint, and moved on to the porch columns.
He was halfway through the second column when he heard footsteps behind him.
He turned around.
Lyra and Selene were standing at the edge of the porch.
Selene was holding a cold bottle of soda in her hand as she looked in his general direction.
Lyra stood beside her, holding a clean white towel.
Dexter stared at the two girls in front of him, then blinked in surprise.
He looked at Selene. "Do you need me to open it for you?"
Selene shook her head slowly.
Dexter’s brow furrowed. ’Then why is she holding it?’
Then Selene spoke in an almost shy voice.
"For you."
Dexter froze.
He stared at the cold can of soda in her hands. Then at her face. Then back at the bottle.
"For... me?"
Selene nodded. Her fingers tightened slightly around the can nervously and there was a faint hint of color on her pale cheeks.
Dexter stood there and stared at the blind girl holding the drink, he was stunned.
Behind Selene, Lyra held out the folded towel with both hands, her dark eyes watching him through her glasses earnestly.
Dexter looked at the towel. Then at the soda. Then at Selene’s face.
Something warm bloomed in Dexter’s chest, spreading slowly through his ribs like warm tea on a cold morning.
He set the paint roller down, wiped his hands on his jeans, and reached out to take the soda from Selene’s hands and at that moment, their fingers and Dexter felt her could skin. seems
Selene didn’t flinch this time nor did she pull away allowing the warmth of his finger to cub the frost in her. Her fingers lingered against his for just a fraction of a second before she reluctantly pulled away.
"Thank you," Dexter said quietly. "Both of you. Thank you."
He took the towel from Lyra with his other hand and she looked up at him, a small smile on her face.
The two nodded their head and walked back inside.
Dexter stood alone on the porch, unmoving.
Then he exhaled slowly, walked to the porch steps, and sat down. He wiped the sweat off his face with the towel and draped it over one knee, cracked open the soda bottle, and brought it to his lips.
’Pfft.’
The can hissed as cold, fizzy liquid rushed down his throat. He closed his eyes and let out a low, satisfied sound.
"Ah... that’s the spot."
He took another long sip and stared out at the neighborhood.
The sun was beginning to set.
The sky had turned a deep, molten orange as the ray of light spilled across the rooftops and fences of the street.
"Woof! Woof! Meow!"
He could hear several animal noises somewhere in the street.
Dexter leaned back slightly.
’This is nice.’
It would have been a perfect life.
Sitting on a porch, cold drink in hand. Sunset painting the sky. Three women waiting for him inside his own house.
It looked like the kind of life any man would kill to have, just like a dream.
From being a servant to getting to this level... it was quite the accomplishment.
He finished the drink, set the empty bottle down on the porch, and stood up.
There was still work to do.
He started with the lawn. The small patch of grass in front of the porch had grown wild and uneven, with weeds. He pulled them by hand, cleared the dead patches, and raked the soil flat.
Then the fence.
He sanded the corroded spots applied primer, and painted over the entire fence white, making it looked really really nice.
Then the porch columns next, the railing, the front steps and other things.
It was well past seven when he finally set down his tools.
He went to the street to admire his handy work and he couldn’t help but smile.
’Now it looks perfect!’