Trisha

The doorbell dinged. It was my next door neighbor Pete. I had known him since I moved into these condos two years ago. We met at one of the monthly parties our association throws. That one happened to be a barbeque and I remember the dish he brought to the potluck was amazing. Pete was always trying out new recipes on me. Every once in a while he would concoct something new and told me he needed a Guiney pig, taste tester. Truth is, I was more than glad to oblige him. My only worry was that he was going to make me fat.

"Hey Ryan. Care to take a chance?" He held a pan of something that smelled incredible.

I laughed. "Park it on the table Pete. I'll get some dishes. You want a beer or a soda?"

"Diet soda please. Trying to watch my figure." I made sure that I kept stocked up on his favorite beverage. I also bought him groceries from time to time. I figured that this would offset the meals he made for me. We sat down and he started filling our plates.

"This is a seafood lasagna I found in Taste of Home. Has Alf redo sauce instead of tomato."

"Smells terrible." I lied. This was a running joke with us. I had yet to find him fixing a bad meal. That's when I noticed his neck had red blotches on it. "You got razor burn Pete?"

He put his hand up to his neck. "Got to stop using cheap aftershave I guess." Funny, I never knew he used aftershave or cologne for that matter. He just always smelled clean, like soap. I also noticed that his clothes had been baggy as of the last several months.

"How's the new job going Ryan?" I was a computer programmer and had just branched out on my own.

"Great Pete. I am really starting to get busy. I think that it is really going to work." I looked into his eyes. There looked to be smudges around them. It almost looked like makeup. But that couldn't be it. "Got something around your eyes Pete." He quickly moved into the bathroom. He was wiping his eyes with toilet paper as he returned.