My Pills are for Doris [Part One]

There’s no easy way to go about introducing yourself to someone new, especially when you don’t know which person to introduce them to.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve struggled with keeping a good track record of first impressions. When I meet someone new, I feel like I’m spinning a wheel to see what personality I land on and have to roll with for the duration of that relationship. It sucks, especially because I feel like I’ve lost who I truly am throughout the years. I hope to find him someday, though. Harvey, if you’re reading this, I wish you well, and I hope you ended up getting with our old high school math teacher, Ms. Hart. God, what a bombshell.

I knew I had to begin preparing for whatever awkward meet and greet I had to endure when I spotted a woman moving cardboard boxes into the well-aged house across the street. I was surprised because that residence had been empty ever since I moved in. It’s not like a run-down boarded-up wreck where squatters reside or anything like that, it’s just not a house that anyone has taken a liking to, I guess. Whenever I take my nightly walks, I always pass by the place on the way back and can’t help but notice a subtle scent of lemons and incense. There’s probably someone out there who’s really missing that smell right about now.

I decided it’d be best to just get it out of the way. “Hey! I just noticed you’re moving in, are you new here?” No that won’t work, of course she’s new here. “Mornin’! Care for a ha-“ Okay, this is stupid.

I started taking this new medication a couple of weeks ago that’s supposed to ease my worries. The doctor said I shouldn’t be nearly as anxious about this kind of thing, so why am I still so worked up about it? Maybe it’s a placebo thing, maybe not. Damn.

Either way, I realized I hadn’t taken them today. So I headed for the bottle in my bathroom, popped some pills for some good luck, and made my way out the front door. It was beautiful out. I’ve always loved summer weather, and in my opinion, June is the best month. But we’re nearing July, so I know it’s going to get too warm for my liking, especially here in Nevada. For now, though, I’m going to appreciate the nice breeze that’s been kind enough to stop by.

I take a look at the house across from mine. The woman from before is no longer outside, neither are any of the cardboard boxes. I focus my gaze on the windows. The curtains have been drawn back, so it’s not hard to see who’s inside. At first, I didn’t think anyone was home, but then I noticed what looked like green and spotted cloth fly past the glass; the signal I was looking for.

My shoes hit the asphalt as they lead me forward, and suddenly I find myself at her front doorstep. That familiar lemon scent fills my nose along with…what else am I smelling?

“My, what wonderful cookies!”

My ears perked up to the sudden exclamation of excitement and I quickly turned my head to see where the voice came from. I look to my left to see a cheery woman with short, dark hair stepping out of the garage. She’s holding a pan of freshly baked treats in one hand, and a partially eaten cookie in the other, careful to not get any crumbs on her green polka-dot dress.

“My mother always told me that it’s rude to stare, let alone fail to even tell me who you are or what you’re doing on my property.” Her smile gleamed.

I stammer as I attempt to grasp an explanation or even an apology, “What? Oh- no, that’s not- I’m not-“

She bursts out into a fit of laughter and struggles to find time in between her gasps for air to say something again, “I’m just pulling your leg!...Ohh…oh dear, your reaction was marvelous…whew boy!” She pretends to wipe a tear from her eye, what a dramatic touch.

I throw in a nervous smile of my own and clear my throat, “Right, of course, of course…um, I’m your neighbor- straight across from you. My name-“

“Oh, I know who you are, Harvey!”

A look of confusion crosses my face, an expression she must’ve taken notice of.

“Why, I must’ve taken you by surprise- your name is written on your mailbox, Mr. Witman.”

Duh. “Oh, no, Harvey’s just fine. And you are?” I welcome her with a handshake.

She flashed me a grand smile, “Ms. Seeks. But Doris is just fine.”

The conversation continued pretty well, actually. I asked her about her husband, to which she responded saying that she didn’t have one. She explained to me that her parents owned the place and that they were letting her stay for a while as a birthday gift, giving her a chance to find someone new, I suppose. She said she was going by this “Thirty-two is the new you” mindset, said she wanted to find someone who would help her find herself. At that moment, I remember feeling a flash of understanding, as if I should’ve been the one to say that instead of her.

Before I could think about it too hard, I thanked her for the conversation and welcomed her once more to the neighborhood- remembering to leave off wishing her a belated happy birthday.

During the very short walk back to my place, I pondered over what she told me. Maybe it’s time I also start looking for someone to settle down with. Growing up, I always thought that by the time I’d hit thirty, I would’ve already had two sons to call my own. Now I’m here, ten years past that due date, and my studio along with some clutter occupy the only two other bedrooms in my home. I don’t entirely mind the lack of family though, I’ve actually come to like my time alone. It’s peaceful.

Evening rolled around and I settled on Hamburger Helper for supper. Midway through my meal, I noticed something outside. There’s a window directly across from where I was sitting at the dining room table, giving me a clear view of Doris’s house. Her baking tray was outside, lying right near her garage. None of her lights were on either, maybe she wasn’t home? She must’ve just forgotten to bring it back inside. I could picture her getting distracted by one of her other various hobbies she might have and leaving it out there, it doesn’t seem all that surprising. The only thing that threw me off was the fact that the tray was still full of cookies.

I finished my meal and set the leftovers in the fridge, ready to go on a walk. I always take the same route; a left from my house, straight down for about a mile, cross the street, then wrap back around. It’s a very simple path and a scenic one at that. After putting my running shoes on, I open my door. The moment I step outside, I hear a quiet click. But it wasn’t just one click, it was more like a group of clicks all going off at the same time. My eyes dart to the source.

Every single light in Doris’s house was on.

I was taken by surprise, I don’t think there was a single switch left un-flipped in that house. Huh…okay. She must’ve returned from wherever she went at the same time I was supposed to leave for my walk, a wild coincidence. My eyes couldn’t help but notice the tray still sitting near the garage door, the cookies were now being happily enjoyed by a wild deer like a scavenger stumbling upon buried treasure.

How did she not notice the tray when she came back? Let alone the deer. I figured if the two were still there when I came back, I could at least bring it to her knowledge. I decided it was time to finally time to leave, maybe I’ll pass by some more animals on the way.

No luck, not a single animal in sight. I couldn’t even hear the rhythmic buzzing of the summer cicadas. I didn’t mind a quiet night, sure, but this was unnecessary. I realized I was nearing my street again when I spotted the familiar seafoam green of Doris’s house from behind the trees’ branches, the light from her windows shone like fireflies.

There should’ve been four houses in total on her side of the street, two to the left of hers and one to the right. The two on her left used to be owned by this one guy who sold them off, the new owner tore them down. Then the following year in 1968, around four years ago, the house that was supposed to be sitting to the right of hers burned down. It was a miracle that the fire didn’t spread to the only other house next to it.

As the end of my walk came to a close, the ceiling of hanging tree branches opened up to reveal a darkened sky above my street. Warm orange and yellow hues were now barely visible on the horizon, and the faint presence of a few stars began to appear, not afraid to show off their sparkle.

On a night like this, seeing as I strangely haven’t fallen victim to a single mosquito bite, I’d spend some time on my porch and continue to enjoy the cooler weather. But I still have to check back in on the neglected bakeware situation. I shook my head away from my thoughts and continued moving forward, only to pause right then and there.

The deer was still outside of her garage, but its body now sat lying sideways on the pavement, attempting to shovel more cookies in its mouth with its tongue. It looked swollen. Like a dead whale washed up on the shore. Only a small number of cookies had been consumed. The deer could easily eat the remainder, but it almost seemed like it didn’t want to. Its eyes were bulging out toward the sky as if it desperately wanted out of that position, but its body wouldn’t let it leave.

I stepped closer toward it and stopped when my shoes were at its antlers. The deer’s eyes shifted toward my direction; it looked like it was practically begging to be saved. I probably looked like an idiot standing there with my hands on my head, because I didn’t know what the hell to do. I’m not a deer expert and I was not equipped to handle this at all. I don’t know why I didn’t call someone for help, all I was thinking was what I could’ve done personally at that moment. So I took the tray away from it. I almost heard what sounded like a sigh from the deer. God, I hoped it would be okay.

I slowly backed away from the deer until I made it to Doris’s doorstep, my face still painted with bewilderment. I give the door a quick couple of knocks, my eyes never leaving the disturbing sight.

What the hell happened? Was it sick?

I was trying to make sense of it in my head but failed to come up with an explanation, like I said before; not a deer expert. I was standing there for probably a minute or two before knocking again.

Time passed. Still, no answer, even though the lights were on. Something was very off, maybe she just didn’t want to answer, but I was already there and I wasn’t planning on going anywhere until this tray was out of my hands. I finally fixed my gaze on the door and knocked again, this time just a little harder.

I felt strange though, I mean anyone would in this situation, but this was a sudden switch. It felt like I was being watched. I looked back at the helpless deer, its eyes were bulged back toward the night sky. I looked past the deer, searching for other animals behind the trees. Nothing was out there, but I still couldn’t shake the feeling.

It was then that my eyes finally adjusted. Not past the trees, but right below my sightline, just a few feet away, was a pair of eyes peeking right at me from around the corner of the house.

I jumped back and dropped the tray of cookies, startled by the sudden unexpected eye contact.

“What the fuck? Hello??”

It sprinted. Sprinted straight toward the deer, grabbing it by its leg, and dragged it back around the corner, all in one dangerously quick motion. My breath was fast and my voice was caught in my throat, I couldn’t find not one word to guess what the fuck that was.

It was small, around the size of a child. It was hard to tell since it was dark, but for the split-second that it was under the light and I had to witness whatever amalgamation of disorganized limbs that was, I can say that I barely registered it as human. The only thing that allowed me to believe that possibility was the fact that it stood upright on two legs. Otherwise, that craned neck that swung around like it was about to snap off was telling me that it wasn't.

I hesitated, but hopped off the doorstep. I knew I should just stay away but my curiosity had me by the throat, so I slowly made my way toward where that thing went.

That’s when I heard a voice from behind me.

“Harvey! Say, what brings you here this late?”