The attic - Chapter 3

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"I am back" 

Moira said apologetically as if she felt sorry for him.  

"Would you like to sit down?" 

Billy looked at the wheelchair and then back at Moira. 

"I'm already sitting"  he said jokingly.

Moira felt super silly for suggesting that he should sit down, and an awkward silence fell upon the conversation. She took a bite of her pancakes and stared at him with her mouth full. 

"You're making a mess here, wait, let me help you."  Billy took her napkin and wiped the maple syrup of her chin. She slowly chewed her pancakes as if that was going to help prevent her talking to him. 

"How are you doing Moira...I really missed you."  Moira nearly spit out her pancakes.  

"How dare you...you missed me???...why didn't you ever come and visit me?" Moira said angrily and took another bite of her pancakes.  

"I was a little busy becoming a paraplegic" Billy bit her back. 

"Oh, and that was more important than coming to see me?" Moira said and immediately realized that she shouldn't have.   

"You could've come to visit me too you know...." Billy said softly and she nodded.  

"I know, I think we are both to blame here." Moira said and smiled at him. 

"Life just got in the way.  How did this happen Billy?" She asked and pointed at the wheelchair. 

"It was a stupid mistake. Freak accident.  I fell of a horse and broke my back."

"I'm so sorry Billy, I never knew."

"It's okay...I was pretty roughed up about it but I've learned to make my peace. There is still hope though.."

"You're a strong person Billy.  So what have you been up to lately? Are you married?"

"Nope, haven't met the right one yet. I've taken over the garage from my dad.  We're doing pretty good, seeing that we're the only garage in town."

"That's wonderful, perhaps you can take a look at my grandfather's old station wagon some time?"

"For sure, how about now? Or no wait....I promised to have breakfast with Vera today. Do you have anything else to do in town?"

She told him that she had to go to the store and he agreed to meet her back at the diner in an hour. Billy went over to sit with Vera and Moira finished her pancakes. 

It was a bright and sunny morning and Moira quickly walked through the store and had arms full of packages when she arrived back at the diner.  

Billy was waiting for her at his truck and he signaled at her to get in.  

"Are you going to feed an army with this?" Billy said sarcastically.

"No silly, I need to feed myself you know....the house is in shambles and I don't have time to waste going to the store for every little thing."

"With this amount of food you won't have to go to the store for a year..." he said jokingly and laughed at her.  Billy drove down to the house, and parked in her driveway. 

"I haven't been here in years. By the looks of it, nobody has. What are you going to do with this place?"

"I'm going to live here Billy."

"You're moving back here permanently?"

She nodded.  "I have nowhere else to be."

"Something must have happened to make you come back...everyone always try to leave Atterborough, not come back to this godforsaken little town."

"I don' want to talk about it.  Come on, help me carry this inside." 

She stacked his wheelchair with all the packages and grabbed two planks lying next to the garage.  She quickly dragged them closer to build an instant ramp and then pushed the wheelchair up the stairs as if it was a natural thing to do.  She left Billy in the kitchen and quickly unpacked all the cleaning material and food and grabbed the car keys from the kitchen cupboard.  

"Come on, let's go check the car." She said and pushed him outside again. She opened the bonnet for him and got in behind the driver seat. 

Without looking any further Billy told her that the problem was not with the car, but with the battery.  

"How do you know that?" 

"Come and have a look yourself."

She climbed out and checked under the bonnet.  She had absolutely no idea what to look for.

"Show me."

He pointed at a big empty open space next to the engine. 

"There is no battery."

Moira instantly blushed when she turned to him, but burst out laughing when she saw his face, and she knew that he thought she was a complete idiot. 

"So I don't know anything about cars silly Billy, but I can teach you all about cooking. Would you like to come over for dinner tonight?"

She hated cooking for herself only, but still preferred her own cooking instead of fast food. 

Billy gladly accepted her invite.  

"I'll see you at six, and I'll bring you a battery for the car tonight..." he said and drove away laughing.  

-To be continued-

Chapter 1 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-attic-chapter-1

Chapter 2 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-attic-chapter-2