Heads

She hesitated after hearing the question. It was always a gamble: to consult her husband, or make the decision herself? He never felt strongly either way, so she knew when to act.

“I was hoping for the red oak. Let’s see these options.—No.—No.—This canyon hickory looks nice. Yes, close to the color. How much per square foot?—Really?—No, no. That’s fine, I suppose that’s fine. Insurance is covering it anyway. That won’t eat into it too much, I don’t think.” 

The contractor put in the order, said they would be able to install the floors next week. The plan that day was to place the new layer of concrete. After pulling up the molding carpets, they discovered the subfloor was uneven, and it needed to lay flat before the hardwood.

The renovation had gone like that—protracted. She grabbed her toddler’s necessities from the bedroom and bathroom: toiletries, stuffed animals, games, a change of clothes. They wouldn’t be able to enter for a day or two as the concrete hardened. She stood at the end of the hallway, watching the workers. In her mind’s eye, she pictured the finished area and smiled.

No. 118

Tails

He hesitated after hearing the question. It was always a gamble: to tell the truth, or exaggerate? The weight of reality overwhelmed him, and he needed to release it.

“My toddler flooded his first floor bathroom and bedroom a couple months ago. So we’ve been dealing with that.—Yeah, it’s been a nightmare.—My wife’s actually very excited to remodel the house. I guess it’s good to see the silver lining. But you don’t want to spend a holiday weekend remodeling.”

As he said it there remained in the back of his mind a suspicion that his wife had been hiding some fact from him. It’s true, he received the call from her when the flood happened. The water removal company came with their pumps and fans and tarps. He remembered the mildewy smell coming back from the hotel, and hearing the roar of the fans. It took days before the house felt fresh again.

And his wife had been so quick with the renovations. Types of wood floors and wainscoting developed for what seemed like pre-planned opulence. 

It was ridiculous to suspect her, he thought. The renovations he could afford, and he, too, anticipated the renewal, despite the headache of turning the home into a worksite temporarily.

No. 117