“Oh, I will,” Doreen said, wasting no time in pushing aside the wax paper to reveal her steaming lunch. “Looks awesome.”

“You say that every time,” Ruby said, unwrapping her lunch.

“Because every time, it is awesome,” Doreen said before taking a bite of her sandwich.

Ruby couldn’t argue. Over the years, they had sampled most of the cuisine offered by the food trucks, and they were never disappointed. Whether it was Korean meals of rice and meat, Vietnamese dishes of chicken and noodles, or any of the sandwiches and salads offered, it was all worth the prices they paid.

They ate their lunch in silence until Ruby stopped to take a sip of her drink. “So, anything new with you?”

Doreen held up a finger, signaling the time needed to swallow what was in her mouth. “Nope, same old, same old. Work’s a bitch, but it pays the bills.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean.”

“How about you? Any more chats with your not-so-friendly neighbor, or have you given up on her?”

“As a matter of fact…”

***

Twenty minutes later, Doreen clopped back to the bench after throwing out their trash. She sat down next to Ruby and said, “Okay, so do you care to hear what I think?”

“Sure.”

“Your neighbor just went from mysterious to creepy in a big way, and you need to leave her the hell alone.”

“What? Why?”

“If she were a hunter? Seriously? That’s a threat.”

“She could have been joking.”

“Did it sound like she was joking? I mean, was she smiling or laughing?”

“No, but I’ve passed her in the hall three times since Sunday night, and she didn’t appear angry or threatening.”

“How could you tell? You said she’s basically ignored you since Sunday. You say hi. She says nothing.”

“Yeah, but she hasn’t tried to toss me down the stairs.”

“I can’t believe you keep joking about this. This woman could be dangerous. Honey, you need to move on, and you need to move on now.”

“But she’s so hot, and I think we could really hit it off.”

“Geez, Ruby. Buy a vibrator, for God’s sake.”

“Ha ha.”

“And what’s with all these accidental meetings? I thought you said you only saw her occasionally. Now it seems like you see her almost every day.”

“That’s because I now know her routine.”

“Huh?”

“Oh…um…well, I started jotting down when I saw her, and then I kind of rearranged my weekly travels to coincide with hers. That way, I see her almost every day, although Sunday was a surprise. She rarely leaves her apartment on Sunday and Monday.”

“Wait.” Doreen said, holding up her hands. “Did you just hear yourself?”

“What?”

“Ruby, you just described stalking.”

“No, I didn’t.”