After Ben and Lonnie left the house, Mal went on to take a shower and plan her day; the girl needed to film a couple of brand deals, and she was way behind editing the vlog that was supposed to go up today. Maybe Mal should scratch the vlog and instead do a quick Q&A that she could film in one shot and upload in time for her regular schedule; then she can edit the vlog and take the extra time to ask Ben about how comfortable he was with letting her film the renovations plans she had for the house.
Deciding that the Q&A was her best option, she posted a story on her Instagram asking her follower to ask her questions for a video she was filming that day and promising them that her next vlog would be going up soon. While she was waiting, she noticed someone at the door from the Nust house screen that sat in the corner of the kitchen counter and went to open it. Mal was rewarded with the products from her brand deals and a clear goal of fixing the doorbell. After getting her tripod and camera and putting it into place, Mal turned it on and started explaining that she was beginning her renovations project by fixing the doorbell of the place. The girl had google the common problems with the bell, and after a couple of minutes of trying different things, she managed to make the doorbell work and even download the app that let her watch the camera from her phone.
With a satisfying smile, Mal made her way inside the house, ready to see if there were enough questions for a video, and once again, her followers didn't disappoint. She planned to film the video in her room, but she noticed that despite the excellent lighting, the angle would show some places that some of her more die-hard followers could identify. Mal loved her community, but she knew that some people had some issues with boundaries, and she didn't want them to know or figure out her address. After looking around the house, she decided that the yard was the best place to film the video, so Mal sat down in front of a bush and filmed, feeling relief that it was a quiet area.
Once she was done uploading her video, Mal decided that she needed to measure the windows of the rooms for curtains; first, she was just going to do it in her room but decided that it would be nice to have coherence around the floors. The second floor should have curtains, but maybe the first floor should have those retractable shades; it took a couple of minutes to measure her room. Then she went to the vacant room and then to Lonnie; once there, Mal wondered if the girl would be mad that she invaded her space without asking her. She was already in, so she decided to measure it and not disturb the girl's place. Mal stood outside Ben's room, his door was half-open, and she wasn't sure if it was ok for her to get in, but she was a goal-oriented person, and Mal knew that if she didn't finish doing that, she wouldn't be able to focus on another thing.
So with that in mind, Mal went in and made her way straight to the window to take the measurements. Still, after taking them, Mal couldn't help but take a look around. Ben's room was organized and clean, which made her smile. The boy had several lists on top of his desk, and Mal could read they were mainly for supplies and costs of each renovation with tentative dates when he would be able to afford them. Mal noticed then that Ben had a clear idea of what he wanted for the house but was trying to do most things himself due to his budget.
Mal sat down on the boy's chair and read every single list and noticed that the boy had created Pinterest boards of inspiration, and she wondered if she would be able to find them. She knew it wasn't right to go through the boy's things, but Mal couldn't help herself; she needed to learn more about Ben's plans and vision for his home. With that in mind, she opened his laptop, and to her joy and shock, it didn't ask her for a password, so she went on his Pinterest page and spent hours analyzing it. Ben's sense of style complemented hers, making her feel warm inside; since the conversation, they shared the day before, Mal noticed how easy and calming it was to be near the boy. Even when everything happened to her place, Mal noticed that having him near and knowing that he was helping her made the girl feel less overwhelmed. When she talked to Carlos and Jane the night before, they commented how Mal seemed to have a very positive perspective about her plans and how she was moving forward even though the situation was terrible.
Mal thought about how sad she felt seeing her apartment destroyed; for a moment the scene where she was standing in the middle of the pool that was her living room invaded her mind, almost making her tear up. Her dream home was suddenly an absolute nightmare, and then Lonnie and Ben came to her side, and she was filled with a sense of comfort, like there was a way out of the mess.
Mal started to feel hungry, and she realized it was close to four, and Lonnie and Ben were coming back in two hours. She stood up and then sat back and took her time to put everything back to how it was, Mal was not proud of this, but she was going to surprise Ben with some of her designs, so she didn't want him to know she looked up his plans for now. The girl knew that she would be able to get some brand deals that would considerably lower the renovations' cost, and more plans started to form in her head. It was so weird that she was so excited about renovating this place while she was basically without a home now, but Mal couldn't help it; this house was perfect.
Making her way downstairs, she put up her tripod and started preparing her meal kit, making sure to explain all the points needed for her brand deal. After doing the first one, she ran upstairs, changed and made another video, making sure not to show the food she had just finished making. Mal was supposed to post one deal this week and another one in two weeks, so she decided to take advantage that she needed to make more food for the three of them and do both. When she finished, she filmed herself tasting the food, and she fought the urge to eat it all because of how good it tasted.
Just as she was wondering if maybe she could eat some of the food while waiting for her friends, the door opened, and Lonnie walked laughing with Ben behind her, smiling and shaking his head. The girl smiled at the couple, and before Mal could ask what they were talking about, Lonnie explained how they had run into one of their neighbors who loved to know everything about everyone. Mal assumed that she knew what was coming next and was proved right when Lonnie told her how the neighbor tried to invite herself to their house subtly and then point-blank asked Ben if he was dating someone. She had seen Jay and Lonnie together, so she assumed Mal was moving in with Ben when she saw the boy getting her things into the house.
"Don't worry; we told her you are our new roommate and that we knew each other from New York. Still, I wouldn't put it past her to just appeared here on day after hijacking one of your packages with the excuse that "they messed up the address" and introduce herself." Mal assumed she was joking, but when she turned to look at Ben, the boy shrugged looking at her, and assured her that the woman was harmless, just extremely nosy. The boy saw the discomfort on Mal's face and asked her if she wanted to say hello to the woman with him so they could appease her.
"I understand that this might be uncomfortable but trust me, she isn't a bad person; Emily is just a lonely person. She moved in with his son last year, a couple of months before I came here, to help him raise his grandkids. As far as I know, she lost her husband last year, and when his son got divorced, he invited her to move in to help him when it was his turn to have his kids. They usually spent two weeks of the month here and two with their mom, so Emily is busy sometimes and lonely the rest." Ben finished the explanation and looked at Mal apologetically, feeling bad about not telling her about Emily before, even though it wasn't like he was hiding the information he simply forgot.
Ben knew that Emily's situation didn't justify how she always was looking around into other people's lives, but he couldn't help but feel bad for her. Still, he would talk to her about Mal and how the girl was going through a hard patch, and it wasn't the right time for her to be pushy. Mal listened to Ben's explanation about their neighbor's circumstances and nodded; how he talked about the woman's situation made her understand a little from where she was coming. This wasn't her first nosy neighbor; she had several instances of having issues with neighbors and boundaries, but the way Ben talked about Emily made her think that maybe she was going to like her in the end. With that in mind, she asked the boy if they could look for the woman and asked her to join them for dinner.
"I made two of my meal kids for dinner, so we are going to have more than enough food to share for all of us." Ben smiled at her, and together they went looking for Emily while Lonnie went on to change and put another place on the island for them to eat. Soon, they would need to decide what table they would buy for the kitchen or even the dining room or most of the room.
While making their way to Emily's house, Ben thanked Mal for giving the woman a chance. "I promised next week she is going to be busy with her grandkids and you won't even notice her. She is going to notice you, but it will chill I promised." Mal laughed at his comment and told him about some of her experiences with old neighbors, and soon enough, they were knocking Emily's door. The woman had the decency to wait a couple of minutes before opening the door even though Ben saw her looking at them from her window. Mal introduced herself to Emily and asked her to please join them; she looked taken aback but smiled and agreed.
She disappeared for a couple of minutes inside the house and then came back, and they walked back to Ben's place. When they made it to the house, Emily asked Mal where she learned to fix doorbells. Ben looked at them funny, and Mal went on to tell him that she was waiting for a package in the morning when she noticed the doorbell not working, so she decided to fix it. The boy apologized for not telling her, but Mal told him not to worry. "Actually, you did tell me on Saturday when I came looking for Lonnie."
They got into the house, and Lonnie welcomed them, ready for them to sit down and eat. Emily asked Mal why she decided to move in when she had a beautiful place of her own, which shocked all of them. How exactly did Emily know that Mal lived in an apartment by herself? Lonnie was the one to ask her, and the woman blushed and went on to share that her granddaughter was a fan of Mal, and she remembered seeing some of her videos.
The woman saw the worry in the girl's eye and asked her if she was ok. Mal nodded, but everyone saw that she was lying and pushed her to share what was on her mind. "Is just that I don't share my address with my subscribers. I understand that we can cross paths, but sometimes people have found my home, and let's just say that they don't always respect my boundaries."
Emily assured Mal that Lauren wouldn't share her address with other people; the way the woman said it, though, made it clear she took offense to what Mal said, making the girl feel bad about sharing her concerns. Mal was about to apologize, but Ben said Mal wasn't accusing Lauren of anything just sharing her concern based on her own experience. Then Lonnie shared some experiences Jay had with his subscribers and people who didn't follow him but liked to mess with influencers and how she understood Mal's point of view. After that, she shared her day, and when they finished eating, Emily said goodbye and went on her way.
The entire situation made Mal feel uneasy about staying in the house and felt terrible about making the situation awkward with Emily. Once they finished cleaning the dishes, Ben went to her side and apologized for Emily's behavior. "You were right to share your concerns about Lauren, sharing that you are living near her. She is a great kid, but I wouldn't put it past her to tell her friends out of excitement. I know this will weigh on your decision to stay here, but don't worry about our relationship with Emily; with time, she'll realize that you were right."
Lonnie came near them too and told Mal that now that the doorbell was working, it would be easier for them not to go to the door without knowing who was there. "If Lauren comes here alone or with her friends, I'll talk to her, don't worry."
Mal nodded; she liked the house, but the situation could get complicated. Ben made a point to look her in the eyes, asking if she was ok, and she smiled at him, assuring him that she was. Then she clapped her hands and asked them to join her on the couch to share with her the projects she was thinking about for the house. The girl opened her laptop and began showing them her plans for the living and dining room; the house had a semi-open floor design that Mal loved. The three of them talked for hours, and Mal could see Ben getting excited but then getting a little down, and the girl wondered why. Finally, she asked him, and he shared that although he loved everything about Mal's plan, he wouldn't be able to afford it.
"Me and my friends are doing everything from now. I already pay for the plumbing and electricity jobs, so I can't afford much more for now. Sorry Mal, I appreciate everything you did, but for now, I don't see it coming true."
Lonnie's phone started ringing, and the girl excused herself to talk to Jay in her room. Ben stood too and was about to make his way to his room, feeling a little defeated, when Mal asked him to please stay with her for a little while. The boy nodded and sat next to her, ready to apologize again for wasting her time on the planning. However, Mal stopped him and told him that she didn't waste her time making plans because she already knew they were doable.
"Look, Ben, I can get some of the things we needed through brand deals, and the rest we can get with what the videos make. I would be making a series about the renovation and monetizing it." Ben shook his head and told her that he appreciated her willingness to help him, but he would not let her pay for his house.
Mal tried to argue that he wouldn't be taking her money, but the boy said no and said it was late and he needed to sleep because tomorrow was a workday leaving Mal alone in the living room.