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New in Town

Chapter 6

"Hey J," Sydney said into the phone a few hours later after it rang and she checked her called id.

"Hey, thought I'd give you a call to let you know I got here safely," Johnny said on the other end as he and Derrick were relaxing in their hotel room before they had to get to the arena for the show.

"Aw that's sweet, you think I care about your safety," She joked as she cradled her phone between her ear and her shoulder so she could continue putting away the groceries she'd just bought.

"Ha ha," Johnny said, unamused. "So what are you doing?"

"Well, I am currently restocking your fridge." She said as she took a carton of milk out of the fridge and inspected the 'best by' date. "Honestly Johnny? Milk from September?" She asked in disgust as she instantly tossed it.

"Gee Syd, give me a little credit. I don't drink it, I just haven't thrown it out." He explained as if that made perfect sense.

"Well it's gone now you slob," She said as she put all the items she bought that needed to be refrigerated in the fridge.

"Hey, I take offense to that," He said defensively.

"What'd she say?" She heard Derrick ask in the background.

"She called me a slob," Johnny answered.

Derrick laughed which instantly brought a smile to Syd's lips. "Dude, you are,"

"What?" Johnny questioned. "I'm not a slob!"

"Anyway," Sydney interrupted their little side conversation. "I called mom today," She changed the subject.

"Oh yeah? What'd you talk about?" He asked, seemingly already forgetting about the slob comment.

She shrugged and closed the fridge door. "She just wanted to see how I'm adjusting here and if I'd made any new friends," She laughed as she remembered part of her conversation with her mom. "And I am pretty sure I distinctly remember her mentioning that Derrick is cute,"

Johnny groaned. "My own mother? I feel so betrayed!"

"What?" Derrick asked in the background. Johnny turned to his friend, unsure if he should share this information. "Come on! What?"

Johnny rolled his eyes. "I can't say it, Syd, you tell him," He said before outstretching his hand to his friend so he could grab the phone.

"Hello," Derrick greeted happily.

"Our mom thinks you're cute," She said with a smile.

Derrick looked at his friend and laughed. "I'd say I'm surprised but I've got a way with the ladies,"

Johnny groaned and rushed off to the bathroom. "I think I'm going to be sick,"

Derrick watched him go before sitting on the couch. An awkward silence filled the air. "So, uh, how are you?" Derrick asked, his voice lowered a little.

Sydney's head popped up in surprise. She'd almost expected them to just sit in the awkward quiet until Johnny came back from the bathroom. "Uh, I'm good...I'm good. How are you?"

Derrick nodded like a bobble head. "I'm good." Silence. He made a strange noise. "Hey, things shouldn't be awkward between us after…"

"That kiss?" She finished for him.

"Yeah, I mean Johnny's right nearby so I can't say much but I think we should clear the air when we get home tomorrow night,"

"Yeah…yeah, sure that's fine."

"Great," Derrick said, a smile making it's way back to his face. "So Johnny said you called him a slob…don't tell me you're cleaning again?"

She smiled. "Not cleaning really, just restocking his fridge."

"Well I certainly hope you've done more than cater to J-boy's needs today," He said, leaning back enjoying his conversation with Sydney.

She giggled. "Well, I spent a few hours watching the news and infomercials; very entertaining stuff. Then before stopping by the grocery store I went to the gym and got myself a gym membership."

"Well, aren't you the little party animal?" He joked and his grin only grew when he heard her soft laugh on the other end. "Are we going to have to bring a cleaning service with us when we get back tomorrow?" More laughter and then flirty words telling him that would not be necessary.

Johnny stood next to the bathroom listening to Derrick talk to Sydney as if they'd known each other for years. He ran a tired hand over his face. If he wasn't mistaken his best friend was flirting with his sister. And he had a girlfriend! He shook his head before walking over to his friend. "Alright jackass, stop hogging my sister," He said in a joking tone.

Derrick grinned. "Gotta go Syd, Johnny's in big brother mode,"

Johnny rolled his eyes and grabbed the phone from him. "All right sis, we should probably be getting to the arena soon. I'll give you a call when our flight leaves,"

"Sounds good, I'll talk to you later. Love you," She said before hanging up. She let out a sigh and stared down at her phone. God, why did she have to like the only guy she'd met here who also happened to be in a long-term relationship?

The movers had finally arrived about a half hour ago and had piled all her boxes in any available spot in the small apartment. She stood in the middle of the room, looking around at all her crap. Perhaps she should have asked her brother just how much available space he had in here. Maybe if she piled the boxes on top of each other then it wouldn't look so bad. She shook her head in frustration; she'd just have to play around with it.

She looked up in surprise when there was a knock on the door. She pulled open the door and smiled at the little old man standing on the other side. "Hi," She greeted amicably.

He looked at her in wonder. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize Johnny had a lady friend,"

She let out smirk when she understood that he thought she was Johnny's girlfriend. "Not quite," She said. "I'm actually Johnny's sister, Sydney. Do you know Johnny?"

"Oh, hi Sydney. Yes, yes, I live across the hall," He said hooking his thumb over his shoulder, pointing at the door. "Name's Jeff Gold," He introduced, offering her a hand to shake, which she did.

"Very nice to meet you,"

"Is Johnny home? He usually helps me bring my groceries upstairs," Jeff explained.

She cringed. "Actually he's not home; he's out of town for work."

He looked up at her. "It's Tuesday already?"

She nodded. "Afraid so." She paused as she saw him contemplate how he was going to carry his groceries up those atrocious stairs. "but I would be more than happy to help you,"

"Oh no, I couldn't ask that of you." He protested.

She smiled. "I insist, just let me go put on my shoes," She said and he nodded.

A minute later she following Jeff down the stairs that would take them into the parking lot. "So have you lived here long Jeff?"

"Here as in Tampa? Or this building?" He asked as he used his keys to pop his trunk open.

She gave a little laugh. "Both?"

He nodded and began handing her bags from his trunk. "Well I've lived in Tampa my whole life. Didn't even leave the state until I got married. You see, the misses and I had both never left Florida so we decided after we got married we would go anywhere and everywhere together." He handed her one last bag and then waved his hand in front of his face. "I'm getting off subject. Anyway I've lived in this apartment for almost thirteen years." He grabbed the last two bags himself before closing his trunk and locking his car.

"Wow, this building looks newer than that," She commented as she followed him back toward the building.

He nodded. "It was brand spanking new when we moved in."

"So you and your wife just can't stand the thought of going somewhere new huh?" She questioned as they slowly ascended the stairs.

"Well, it's just me now. My wife passed away a few years ago." He said though he didn't seem broken up about it.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," She said, feeling terrible.

"Don't be. She had cancer; we had been prepared for that moment for over two years when it happened. I've come to terms with it. Anyway, this place is home; I can't bring myself to live somewhere else." He explained. She nodded as she followed him inside his apartment. "So what are you doing here in Tampa? Visiting?"

She shrugged as she set down the bags on the table. "I guess you could call it a long visit." She turned around when she heard the sound of dog tags clicking together excitedly. "Oh you have a dog! He's so cute, what's his name?" She questioned as she crouched down and scratched the black lab behind the ears.

"Dex," Jeff answered as he began unpacking his groceries.

"Aw, so cute!" She said in a baby voice to the happy dog. "Anyway," She said, standing back up. "I've lived in Maine my whole life and I was ready for a change. I'm giving Tampa a shot to see if I want to move here permanently."

"You like it here so far?" He asked.

"So far. Though I have to say, I'm curious what it would be like to live in other places too. I've always dreamed of living in Boston or Chicago or even Dallas,"

He raised an eyebrow as he gestured for her to take a seat at the kitchen table while he began to put his groceries away. "That's quite a variety of cities,"

She laughed. "Well, I'm a curious girl and I've had a long time to think about it,"

He nodded. "Well, when the place feels right, you'll know."

"I sure hope so," she commented.

"I'm sure a pretty little thing like you has a boyfriend. How does he feel about you living here now?" Jeff asked curiously.

First she thought of her last boyfriend, Garrett. She honestly didn't even know if he was aware she had moved but she could only assume he was on to the next unfortunate girl and wouldn't even care. Then, for some reason, she thought of Derrick. Man that little, well ok big, kiss was really playing with her mind. "No boyfriend. But my mom's still back in Maine and she's pretty supportive."

"No boyfriend?" He asked in surprise. "Well, Tampa's filled with young people; I'm sure you'll find someone in no time."

"Yeah," She said though she really had no intention of boy hunting until she knew for sure she was going to move here. "Well, I think I'm gonna head back over to Johnny's unless you need something else; I've got a lot of unpacking to do."

He looked over and smiled. "I've got it from here, thank you for your help Sydney."

She smiled back. "No problem, just knock if you need anything," She said before leaving.

A/N: Ahhhh! I am so sorry for the delay in an update. I usually like to update at least twice a week but things have just been so hectic lately I haven't had time to sit down and write. Hopefully the next update will be relatively soon. Anyways, thanks as always for your reading and reviews! I hope you guys like this chapter, as promised, a little bit of Derrick in here. Also, I've added just a little side character in Jeff, just to have a little fun. :) Hope you guys enjoy!