911

Dispatcher: 911 What is your emergency?

Caller: I heard what sounded like gunshots coming from the brown house on the corner.

Dispatcher: Do you have an address?

Caller: No, I have on a blouse and slacks, why?

Dispatcher: 911 What is your emergency?

Caller: Someone broke into my house and took a bite out of my ham and cheese sandwich.

Dispatcher: Excuse me?

Caller: I made a ham and cheese sandwich and left it on the kitchen table and when I came back from the bathroom, someone had taken a bite out of it.

Dispatcher: Was anything else taken?

Caller: No, but this has happened to me before and I'm sick and tired of it!

Dispatcher: 911

Caller: Yeah, I am having trouble breathing. I am all out of breath. Darn.... I think I'm going to pass out.

Dispatcher: Sir, where are you calling from?

Caller: I am at a pay phone. North and Foster.

Dispatcher: ! Sir, an ambulance is on the way. Are you an asthmatic?

Caller: No

Dispatcher: What were you doing before you started having trouble breathing?

Caller: Running from the Police.

Dispatcher: 911 What is the nature of your emergency?

Caller: I'm trying to reach nine eleven but my phone doesn't have an eleven on it.

Dispatcher: This is nine eleven.

Caller: I thought you just said it was nine-one-one

Dispatcher: Yes, mam nine-one-one and nine-eleven are the same thing.

Caller: Honey, I may be old, but I am not stupid.

Dispatcher: 911 What's the nature of your emergency?

Caller: My wife is pregnant and her contractions are only two minutes apart

Dispatcher: Is this her first child?

Caller: No, you idiot! This is her husband!

45 LIFE LESSONS, WRITTEN BY A 90 YEAR OLD

45 LIFE LESSONS, WRITTEN BY A 90 YEAR OLD

1. Life isn't fair, but it’s still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short not to enjoy it.

4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will.

5. Don’t buy stuff you don’t need.

6. You don’t have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.

7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.

8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for things that matter.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.

12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye… But don’t worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways.

18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It’s never too late to be happy. But it’s all up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Overprepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words, ‘In five years, will this matter?’

27. Always choose Life.

28. Forgive but don’t forget.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give Time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.

35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d

grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have, not what you think you need.

42. The best is yet to come…

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

''Our Apple Tree''

''Our Apple Tree''

A long time ago, there was a huge apple tree. A little boy loved to come and play around it everyday. He climbed to the tree top, ate the apples, and took a nap under the shadow.

He loved the tree and the tree loved to play with him. Time went by, the little boy had grown up and he no longer played around the tree every day.

One day, the boy came back to the tree and he looked sad.

“Come and play with me”, the tree asked the boy.

“I am no longer a kid, I do not play around trees any more” the boy replied.

“I want toys. I need money to buy them.”

“Sorry, but I do not have money, but you can pick all my apples and sell them. So, you will have money.”

The boy was so excited. He grabbed all the apples on the tree and left happily. The boy never came back after he picked the apples. The tree was sad.


One day, the boy who now turned into a man returned and the tree was excited.

“Come and play with me” the tree said.

“I do not have time to play. I have to work for my family. We need a house for shelter. Can you help me?”

“Sorry, but I do not have any house. But you can chop off my branches to build your house.” So the man cut all the branches of the tree and left happily. The tree was glad to see him happy but the man never came back since then. The tree was again lonely and sad.

One hot summer day, the man returned and the tree was delighted.

“Come and play with me!” the tree said.

“I am getting old. I want to go sailing to relax myself. Can you give me a boat?” said the man.

“Use my trunk to build your boat. You can sail far away and be happy.”

So the man cut the tree trunk to make a boat. He went sailing and never showed up for a long time.

Finally, the man returned after many years. “Sorry, my boy. But I do not have anything for you anymore. No more apples for you”, the tree said. “No problem, I do not have any teeth to bite” the

man replied.

“No more trunk for you to climb on.” “I am too old for that now” the man said. “I really cannot give you anything, the only thing left is my dying roots,” the tree said with tears.

“I do not need much now, just a place to rest. I am tired after all these years,” the man replied.

“Good! Old tree roots are the best place to lean on and rest, come sit down with me and rest.” The man sat down and the tree was glad and smiled with tєαяs.

This is a story of everyone. The tree is like our parents. When we were young, we loved to play with our Mum and Dad. When we grow up, we leave them; only come to them when we need something or when we are in trouble. No matter what, parents will always be there and give everything they could just to make you happy.

You may think the boy is cruel to the tree, but that is how all of us treat our parents. We take them for granted; we don’t appreciate all they do for us, until it’s too late.

~ Moral: 

Treat your parents with loving care…. For you will know their value, when you see their empty chair…We never know the love of our parents for us; till we have become parents .

A Must Read-Taleyard

One Night President Obama and his wife Michelle decided to do something out of routine and go for a casual dinner at a restaurant that wasn't too luxurious. When they were seated, the owner of the restaurant asked the President's secret service if he could please speak to the First Lady in private. 

They obliged and Michelle had a conversation with the owner. Following this conversation President Obama asked Michelle, 

“Why was he so interested in talking to you.?” , President Obama curiously asked his wife.

She informed the Husband that in her teenage years, the man had been madly in love with her. 

President Obama then said, 

“So if you had married him, you would now be the owner of this lovely restaurant?”

Michelle responded, “No. If I had married him, he would now be the President.”

Dear fan, believe it or not, sometimes its a woman that makes a man who he is..

1] For the Men that are still searching for a wife, As you *SHARE* & *LIKE* the is Post, May God help you to find that help mate that will turn you from " A Nobody" to "A Somebody"

2] For that Single Lady that is reading this, As you *SHARE* & *LIKE* the is Post, May you be that blessing no man can do without.

3] For those that are already married, As you *SHARE* & *LIKE* the is Post, May God Turn the lack in your Relationship to Abundance.

LET Someone special, Type 'AMEN' to claim this Blessing in the comment box below.

                                                              ...................

Love-n-Peace

....................

Microsoft Office Boy

Microsoft Office Boy

A jobless man applied for the position of "office boy" at Microsoft.

The HR manager interviewed him then watched him cleaning the floor as a test.

"You are employed." He said." Give me your e-mail address and I'll send you the application to fill in, as well as date when you may start."

The man replied "But I don't have a computer, neither an email."

I'm sorry", said the HR manager, "If you don't have an email, that means you do not exist. And who doesn't exist, cannot have the job."

The man left with no hope at all. He didn't know what to do, with only $10 in his pocket. He then decided to go to the supermarket and buy a 10Kg tomato crate. He then sold the tomatoes in a door to door round. In less than two hours, he succeeded to double his capital. He repeated the Operation three times, and returned home with $60. The man realized that he can survive by this Way, and started to go everyday earlier, and return late Thus, his money doubled or tripled every day.

Shortly, he bought a cart, then a truck, then he had his own fleet of delivery vehicles. 5 years later , the man is one of the biggest food retailers in the US .

He started to plan his family's future, and decided to have a life insurance.

He called an insurance broker, and chose a protection plan. When the conversation was concluded, the broker asked him his email. The man replied, "I don't have an email". The broker answered curiously, "You don't have an email, and yet have succeeded to build an empire. Can you imagine what you could have been if you had an email?!!"

The man thought for a while and replied, "Yes, I'd be an office boy at Microsoft!"

Moral of the story:

M1 - Internet is not the solution to your life.

M2 - If you don't have internet, and work hard, you can be a millionaire.

M3 - If you received this message, you are closer to being an office boy, than a millionaire. .........

Have a great day!!!

Smiling after reading is not mandatory!!!!

Up in Smoke

Up in Smoke 

By Rachel McClain

I don’t know if me, the horses or Sam sensed Daddy first; but where seconds before the air had smelled of sweat and we’d heard nothing but soft snorting, now, a quiet fell, tucking around the semi-darkness like an extra blanket.The horses made no move to betray what they’d heard in the loft; but Sam’s sweat froze in traceable rivulets on his back and I stopped picking hay off my sticky thighs the instant I heard Daddy meander through the door.He leaned against the half wall of the stall beneath us, settling in for considering. Sam panicked and blindly began grasping for his pants, but I clasped his wrist and gritted my teeth at him. Daddy reached into his pocket with one hand and over to a horse’s head with the other. I heard soft snorting start up again from below as Daddy scratched the horse’s muzzle. Ease returned to the barn, but only some.Through the cracks between the floorboard slats I saw his thin fingers thumbing open his pack of smoking papers and flicking open his tobacco tin. He delicately laid a single sheet of paper on the palm of his hand, cupping it gently against his half-curled fingers. He lined a row of stringy tobacco against the edge, pressing it into shape. My nose ran at the acrid memory of the scent, though I couldn’t smell the dark, neat pile from where I sat now. I sucked in my breath and watched.Once, he’d rolled a cigarette and slowly and deliberately smoked it without saying a word to me while I perched on the edge of the dining room chair, hands clasped on my knees, waiting. He’d inhaled each sweet breath as if it were the last one he’d ever take before finally pronouncing that I’d indeed be allowed to go away to college in the fall. He’d roll a cigarette and smoke it before reaching any major decision, then he’d stick to it, even if he was proven wrong later, like the time he’d found our supposedly stolen tools in the back shed a week after letting Chet, the farmhand go.Daddy stopped short of sealing this cigarette. He pressed the tobacco firmly and then studied it as if judging the amount, deeming it not adequate for this thinking. He added more tobacco and then pressed it into shape again. He never licked the paper in a smooth, single stroke; he always darted his tongue in and out like a snake’s when he sealed the edge, almost attacking the paper in fits and starts of salivary globs. Not a wasteful man, he curled the ends for fear of even the smallest bit falling to the ground.The flame from the match illuminated his thin face and cast dancing shadows across his brow. The deep crags of his cheekbones created swoops and hollows that I saw even in the dim light of the barn with the quick flash of the match. He cast a thin and meager shadow in that instant of light. The boots stacked in the corner, gear left behind at the end of a hard day’s work done by strong men, didn’t belong to him but to the men he employed.The orange circle at the end of his cigarette gave off enough light to trace the half-lines of his face; but after each slow inhale, a waft of exhaled smoke obscured my view. Sam stared at me. He made a move to pick bits of hay off my skin, which was prickly and red from the dried sweat and dust, but I shooed his hand. Sam had worried about shaking Daddy’s hand at the front door, about calling him sir, about making sure he was seen opening my car door . None of that mattered.The orange circle grew brighter all the time and I could see Daddy’s fingertips pinching the end of it close to his lips. The decision would soon be reached. I was fond of Sam, but as I sat there, the night air beginning to chill my skin and the cigarette running to its end, I considered that Sam wasn’t as smart or as handsome as I could find.The orange circle burned the brightest yet and then out. Daddy stubbed it against the barn wall and then flicked it on the hay. He sniffed the air and cleared his throat.”Whore,” he said. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and meandered out of the barn, into the dark.

Knock Three Times

Knock Three Times

Ellington awoke drowsily, stretching out his toned arms as his eyes fluttered open. He began to smile as he remembered it was Friday, and more importantly, his first day off from doing studio work in months.

He lazily dragged himself to the bathroom, chuckling to himself about the brown bed-head that stared back at him in the mirror. Turning on the water, he prepared to have a nice long, hot shower.

Getting out of his pyjamas and stepping into the shower, he let out a high pitched squeal when the water hit his body, feeling the stone cold droplets and starting to shiver.

Looking at the faucet, he made sure it said hot and that it was turned most of the way up. Ellington dropped the detachable shower head when the cold sent a shock down his spine, and immediately winced when it clanged with the shower floor.

He groaned loudly and wrapped a towel around himself, walking determinedly towards his bedroom, where he knew his wall joined with the girl from next door.

Ellington hit it loudly and frantically.

"Voosen!" he called, voice raised. "This is the third time in two weeks that you've run off all the hot water!"

"It's rude to knock on the wall," was the dismissive but firm reply.

"You know we share a hot water tank, just…" he trailed off, not knowing what to say. "Just don't let it happen again, alright?"

"Sorry, Ratliff," the girl from next door called back, not sounding sorry in the slightest. He could imagine her smirking face on the other side of the wall.

Except he couldn't.

Somehow, even though they'd had numerous through-the-wall conversations, he'd never actually seen her face and had no idea what she looked like; what she was like or what she did for a living, or anything about her for that matter.

It was strange, but somehow Ellington managed to take a small comfort from it.

He shook his head with a small, reluctant smile and turned on the immersion, planning to wait for the water to heat up.

Kelly ran a hand down her curly, ombré hair with a sigh. She was sure that Ratliff from next door would be home soon, and no doubt start playing loud music the way he sometimes did late on a Saturday night.

Not that she didn't like partying. Well. She liked to go clubbing, where you didn't know anyone and it was dark and the drinks were better. Parties to her felt like forced fun with people you didn't particularly like.

Anyway, sidetracking.

She didn't mind his parties normally, but for the past few weeks she'd been snowed under at her job, and any peace and quiet she could get would be a big help, honestly.

Her dad had gone to New York to expand their musical instrument business by advertising that people could record their own songs for a fee. Therefore, she'd had to offer this at the store she was stuck managing in Miami. Plus, her dad was terrible at taxes and anything number related, leaving her to do all the hard work and number crunching for both shops.

Kelly flopped back onto her bed in her pyjama shorts and camisole. She let out a big sigh of air and vaguely heard a door slam coming from her left, where Ellington Ratliff resided.

He crashed into something into the room next to her and she giggled at the distinct yelp of pain he omitted.

The walls between their apartments were thin, as if once their apartment had been one big one, but someone had haphazardly split it for whatever reason. They shared a boiler and an electricity grid, but she had never actually seen him before.

She knew he must have been some kind of singer, the amount of tuneful melodies that drifted through the walls, but assumed he was working hard on a debut album and that's why she'd never actually 'heard' of him before.

Kelly threw caution to the wind and decided she need to know whether he was planning to make the headache she already had turn into a migraine.

"Ellington?" she called, tentatively knocking on the wall.

He must've been close, as his reply came quickly. "I thought you said it was rude to knock on the wall."

She smiled. "I meant it was rude for you to knock on my wall." She hoped he heard her joking tone.

"Oh?" he inquired, laughter laced into his voice that she could hear through the paper thin wall and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yeah. I was just wondering whether you were planning on playing any obscenely loud music tonight?"

Ellington shook his head before remembering she couldn't see him. "Not unless you want me to."

"I'd rather you didn't," she exhaled. "I've got a blinding headache."

"Oh, well I'll keep the noise to a minimum."

She thanked him and crawled under the cover of her bed, feeling warm and content. She may have never seen the boy who lived next door to her, but she felt happy after speaking to him.

"Hope you feel better," he called as she drifted off to sleep.

:::

"Dan, please don't break anything in my apartment," Ellington whined.

"I wasn't!" Dan said, hands held up in surrender and hoping Ellington hadn't seen how quickly they'd recoiled from the vase he had been about to touch.

"Good." Ellington smiled warmly at his best friend.

"I wonder if the girl from next door is in," Dan thought out loud and Ellington's head snapped to look away from the television. His eyes were trained and narrowed on the red head.

"How do you know about her?" he asked, almost feeling protective. He was the only one allowed to have wall conversations with Kelly-from-next-door, as he'd taken to calling her.

Dan gave him raised eyebrows. "Dude, you talk in your sleep."

With that, Dan skipped off to Ellington's bedroom, leaving Ellington to stare astonished at the place his taller friend had been standing in. There were so many questions Ellington could ask, like, how did Dan know he talked in his sleep still? He'd stopped for a long time and they hadn't had a sleepover since it had started again. That brought on questions like, what was Dan doing in his house whilst he slept?

Ellington shook his head and got up to follow his friend to his bedroom, hoping Kelly-from-next-door wasn't in.

"Oh, yeah, he loves talking to you," he heard Dan say and a giggle in response. Ellington scrunched his eyes shut before opening them and the door, bracing himself.

"Oh, hey Ellington," Dan said happily. "I was just telling Kelly that you love talking about her, I mean, you even talk about her in your sleep! That's impressive."

"Didn't know you were in to me so much," Kelly says from the other side of the wall. "I'm flattered."

"Dan!" Ellington groaned, receiving laughs from both sides of the wall. "Why do you have to embarrass me so?" he asked, flopping down face first onto his bed.

"I'm just trying to let Kelly get to know you!" Dan said and Ellington's response was muffled by his duvet. "Sorry buddy?"

Ellington lifted his head of the bed with a petulant expression on his face. "I said, if she wanted to know she would ask. Or I could tell her."

"Yeah, well," Dan said shrugging. "Kelly, I've got to say, as much as he pretends he can sweet talk girls, if he really likes them, he's hopeless."

Ellington rolled his eyes as Kelly said, "I'll keep that in mind," from the other side of the wall.

"Hm, what else can I tell you?" Dan constantly thought aloud, and Ellington sometimes wished he didn't. "Ellington is brown-headed, he wears truck boxers the majority of the time, I can hypnotise him to be a cat but he doesn't know it most of the time, he has a fear of umbrellas, he is totally in love with you and has been for months, obviously—"

"Okay, Dan, I think that's enough," Ellington said hurriedly and lifted his best friend from where he had been sitting on the floor next to Ellington's chest of drawers. "I think it's time you went to see Maia."

"Who's Maia?" Kelly called.

"Dan's girlfriend."

"Yeah," Dan said, "That's a good idea. See you later Ellington and Kelly."

There was silence in both rooms for a number of seconds before:

"So, truck boxers huh?"

Kelly chuckled at the loud groan from her favorite neighbor.

:::

Ellington didn't think he'd ever been more bored in his life.

Everyone had cancelled on him, and he had nothing to do for the day. He considered face planting onto his bed and just lying there, but figured that was just sad, really.

He wandered into his room and bent to pick up his guitar when he heard a frustrated shout from his next door neighbor.

"Everything alright over there?" he shouted warily. He and Kelly had been talking a little more regularly lately, their wall conversations almost something funny to him.

"Yeah, fine," she groaned back and he frowned.

"Why don't you take a break from whatever it is that's frustrating you and talk to me." Anything to ease the boredom.

"Okay." Ellington was surprised that she had agreed, but happy nonetheless.

"So…do you have any funny stories to entertain me with?" he asked and heard laughter echo through the wall.

"No. How about you entertain me?"

"Hm, that I can do." He lay with his back on the bed, ankles cross and fingers interlinked, resting on his stomach. "I could tell you about the time Dan hypnotised me to be a cat. It's the only time I actually remember it happening."

"Oh yeah, he mentioned that when he came over," Kelly said with a smug grin that Ellington could only imagine.

"Ha ha ha," he said monotone, causing her to giggle loudly.

He was embarrassed to admit he may have fist pumped at making her laugh, but it's not like she could see him anyway.

"I remember, I was really mad at this guy at the time. He'd threatened me in school, not that I was bothered, but I'd never done anything to him. I think my anger was the only reason I knew what I was doing."

"Did you attack him?" Kelly asked.

"No, I scared him though. I think I kind of pounced on him and dug a few of my nails into his arm, and that was it, he was running off down the street."

"You did not!" Kelly said, laughter clouding her voice.

"Did too. Not my finest hour, but a funny moment." Ellington smiled to himself and then felt his phone buzz. It was his friends, saying they could hang out now. Way to mess up his day hanging out alone but with Kelly.

"I'm sorry, Kelly, I have to go." he said reluctantly and he felt his smile dropping.

"Oh, okay, well speak to you soon, I guess?"

"Yeah, Kelly, definitely. Bye."

"Later."

It was only after a period of time spent in the elevator did Ellington realise just how disappointed his next door neighbor had sounded.

:::

Ellington dropped his keys on the coffee table and looked around his apartment. He'd spent a long day finishing up recording for his debut album; it had to be perfect before it went out for sale.

He decided he would go to his room and listen to some music to try and lull him into a deep sleep, God knows he needed one.

As he entered his room, he heard the unmistakable sound of crying.

Kelly Voosen was curled up into a little ball on the floor like a cat, next to her wall. She was crammed into a small space between her bed and her wardrobe, tears flowing steadily down her face and sobs escaping her at irregular intervals.

Ellington realized the sound must be coming from the other side of the wall, and sat down next to his bed. The sobbing was loud and his face crumpled painfully when he realized it was Kelly.

"Kelly?" he called softly. "Kelly, it's me."

"Hey Ellington," she replied shakily. "Is there something important?"

"No, I just…" he trailed off. "Do you want me to come over?" This was a big offer, considering they'd never met in person. He knew she wouldn't want him to see her with tears down her face for the first time, but he didn't mind. Over the past few months of living next door to each other, he'd grown to care for her a lot, and considered that Dan may be right when he said Ellington was in love with her.

"No!" she said. "No honestly it's fine, if you want, you can," she paused to hiccup and sob, "Just talk through the wall."

"Okay. Why are you crying?" Ellington had his back to the wall as he spoke.

"Everything is just a mess right now." she sobbed. Ellington felt his chest clench a little. "I'm so stressed and I just feel like my head is going to explode."

"Well I wouldn't want that pretty little head of yours to do that," Ellington said.

He'd imagined many times what she looked like. It was weird he knew. He could just go next door, knock three times and she'd open her door, and he'd see her. It was a surprise they hadn't bumped into each other already, but he liked the mystery.

"I have so much work to do and I didn't ask for a full time job. My dad was supposed to be coming back to help me out in our shop here, but isn't. Some godforsaken convention that's so much more important than me. My mom's in Australia and she's not coming back until the end of the year, and I'm just so tired of being everyone's second choice."

"Kelly…I'm sorry," he said sincerely, he wanted to tell her that if she was a choice he could honestly consider, she would always be his first.

They lapsed into silence and Ellington began to think.

Ellington had spent many nights wondering what kind of girl was on the other side of that wall. He was sure she was brunette, he could just picture her in his mind's eye, all cute and brunette and little. He knew she was quirky, some of the things he heard coming from her apartment like shouts from herself and friends sometimes made him pause and chuckle, but he didn't mind.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked and Ellington swore she must be sitting back to back against the wall, almost as if she were against him.

"You," he replied honestly. "Please don't cry, Kelly-from-next-door."

"Is that your name for me?"

"Yeah." Ellington was just glad she couldn't see his blush. "Don't be sad, Kelly. I don't want to think about you being sad."

"I'll try, for you," she said and he felt himself smiling. "Thank you, Ellington," Kelly said as she felt herself ache. How was it possible to be in love with someone you've never seen?

"No worries, Kelly. You should go and sleep off that headache."

"Yeah," she said and looked somewhat longingly at the wall from her place. Her eyes felt puffy and still full of unshed tears, but as she ran her delicate little hand down the wall, she was really glad that Ellington lived next door to her.

:::

Kelly was just about to leave her apartment when she heard Ellington unlocking his door also. Her eyes widened and she darted back through her door, closing it and leaning against it.

The slam had created a very loud noise and Ellington started at door number 216, Kelly's door, warily. He knocked three times and Kelly heard it right above her head. "You okay, Kelly?" he asked.

"I nearly saw you."

She knows it's stupid, but she can't give up the mystery of him yet. Right now, her elusive neighbor is just about the best thing in her life and she's really not ready to give it up.

He doesn't laugh because somehow he understands. They're playing a game with each other and he doesn't want that to end either, not yet.

"Okay, give me five minutes and then leave. Bye Kelly."

"See you, Ellington."

She resisted looking through the hole in her door with all her might as she heard his footsteps wander off down the hall and down the staircase.

:::

Kelly was doing something she hadn't had time to do in years.

Write a song.

Her dad had finally come home and decided that maybe, it would be a good idea to hire someone else to work at the store besides her. Kelly had rolled her eyes and faked a smile, just wanting to get home and do things she wanted to do.

Her life had been a cycle of eat. work. sleep. repeat. and she was sick of it.

She took comfort from the cold keys as her finger flew across the piano.

Kelly began to sing, something she hadn't done in a long time. She had a blinding fear of singing in public, stage fright controlling a lot of her life and one of the reasons she'd never tried to really make something of herself.

The next thing to be heard when she finished her little song was clapping. She was confused until she realized that her piano was in her rather large bedroom (compared to the other rooms in her apartment, anyway) and nine times out of ten Ellington was on the other side of her wall.

"Kelly, is that you?" Ellington calls and she's hesitant to answer but she does.

"Yeah, it's me."

"That was amazing!" he shouts. "Like seriously. You know, I've just made my debut album, but I really think you could help me compose some stuff if I get the chance to make the next one!"

"Yeah, maybe," she called back to appease him. She didn't think she'd be doing that, but who knows, time changes people.

"Well, it was really beautiful, Kelly, what you just made up."

"Thank you." Kelly looked at the wall once more and started to wonder just why she didn't want to see the face of the guy she was practically in love with.

"Play some more for me?"

Her fingers started to shake but she made herself nod and took a deep breath. "Okay."

:::

Ellington was pacing around his apartment, not sure what to do. He'd grown impatient. Him and Kelly-from-next-door-Voosen had been talking non-stop, almost every day now and all he wanted to do was see her, because he had a sneaking suspicion they were perfect for each other and he just wanted to be with her.

He couldn't take it anymore, he needed to see her. To take her in, learn her in a way that he couldn't do just by talking to her.

Locking his door, he braced himself as he knocked on hers. She didn't answer immediately and he started to fidget. Then the door swung open.

"Ellington?" Kelly asked. He nodded subconsciously, but was too distracted with drinking her in to give a real reply.

So this is who he'd been talking to all this time.

She was small and brunette, like he'd imagined, but her hair had strands of blonde laced through it. Her eyes were dark brown and her lashes fluttered under his gaze. She was so little, and all Ellington wanted to do was wrap her up in his strong arms.

She was wearing a dress, coming down to her knee, black with beautiful white lilies on it. He loved her even more.

His hand started to move towards hers without him noticing. Kelly noticed. She slipped hers into his, smiling goofily at how his large hand almost engulfed her little one.

Ellington had dark brown hair, and the nicest of smiles. She could see his muscles through the black t-shirt he was wearing, and she smiled at the chains on his jeans. He didn't even have shoes on, just polka-dotted socks.

"So this is what you've been hiding from me all this time, huh?" he asked, licking his lips and pulling her closer to him so they were both standing in the doorway.

She grinned. "I could say the same about you."

"I'm really glad I fell in love with you," he admits without thinking. His eyes are just about to widen when she smiles so big, her pearly white teeth on show that he feels instantly relaxed.

Ellington brings his other warm hand to cup her face and she blushes. "Me too."

Now it's his turn to beam.

He leans down toward her and she feels so content as she leans up to meet him. Their lips mesh together and suddenly she's clinging to him, one hand bunched up in his shirt and the other firmly gripping his upper arm. One of his hands moves through her hair repeatedly and the other has a tight grip on her waist.

Kelly gasps and Ellington can feel himself start to smile against her lips. They pull away slowly, eyes still closed and foreheads pressed together, feeling each other's breaths on their faces.

"I have been waiting so long to do that," Ellington whispers and she nods.

"Finally," she says with a small smile and he opens his eyes enough to see and laugh softly.

"Yeah."