Archive of Our Own

The heat was unbearable. Qifrey listened to the news anchor announce the forecast for the next week, sewing the hole in his summer shawl. Over a hundred and three fucking degrees. Their air conditioning had stopped working since the kids had been blasting it day and night. He warned them to turn it off and give it breaks in-between, but they refused.

It had suddenly stopped working two days ago, and the only thing keeping the household from melting into a puddle were the fans hooked into every possible outlet on the maximum setting. He was only in a pair of jean shorts, a tank top, and flip flops. Any other article of clothing added onto this would be a death sentence.

"This is fucking ridiculous," he muttered to himself, staring at the television in disbelief. Could it get any hotter? No human being could live under these conditions. They weren't living in a tropical climate, but the humidity when he stepped outside to tend to the gardens felt hotter than hell itself.

"Mom!" Agott, the most volatile of his four dear children, pushed open the sliding doors in the back. Qifrey was listening to the news, so he didn't acknowledge her the first time until she said it again, even louder and angrier." Mom!"

"Yes, what is it honey? I'm working!" Barely. He couldn't concentrate when he felt the sweat rolling down his forehead and onto the summer shawl he'd been working on.

"It's too hot!" Agott normally wasn't one to complain like this, but… (it's hot, can he blame her?). The girls been playing in the backyard pool for the past two hours now. Footsteps came hobbling in, and Agott was followed by Coco, Richeh, and Tetia.

Qifrey whipped his head around, seeing the tracks they were leaving on the floor.

"What did I say about drying off before you come in the house?!" He shrieked, putting down his shawl and needle, rushing for the linen closet for more towels to dry them off.

"The pool got warm," Richeh said. "Richeh doesn't like warm water."

"We thought maybe we can dump a bunch of ice in it," Coco suggested as Qifrey began to dry her off. Tetia slipped away to search the closet for a bucket.

"We need to preserve that ice!" Qifrey reminded them. They were already dumping ice with a scooper into the bucket. Qifrey couldn't multitask. He sighed, wiping the wet floors with the towels he retrieved. One thing led to another, Richeh insisting that she wanted to carry the bucket, Tetia and Agott wrestling each other over the scooper, Coco trying to mediate, and bam! The ice container flew off the fridge and everything came tumbling on the floor like dominoes.

Qifrey fostered these children with hopes of giving them a better home. Love, shelter, education. With the help of his father's money, they rented a nice house in Kalhn, with everything a child could ever want in walking distance. The city life came with perks, like being around kids their age, arcades, stores, restaurants, malls. Qifrey spoiled them silly and they deserved it.

But he wasn't prepared for just how much children like to play around and break things. It was like clockwork. Finding a handyman in Kalhn wasn't difficult, it was finding an inexpensive one.

The room went silent at the mess that had just occurred. Agott opened her mouth, so did Tetia, both pointing fingers. Qifrey decided there was no use in blaming each other.

"It's okay," he said, as calmly as he could, walking toward them. "I'll clean it up. But, you girls will have to take a trip to the store and grab some more ice."

They groaned.

"But—"

"Ah ah," Qifrey cut Agott off. "What do all of you have to say? I am very upset."

"We're really sorry," his children replied at once. Qifrey smiled at them despite his fatigue, it was a long morning, and he sent them outside to play in the pool so they could cool off. Unfortunately, that didn't pan out the way he thought it would, so he had to come up with another compromise.

"Come on. Go. Get the house keys," he announced, using his authoritative voice.

"Can we take the toy jeep?" Richeh questioned.

"No you cannot take the toy jeep."

"Boo. Richeh doesn't want to walk."

"What?! We're walking?!" Tetia asked, as if she'd been tasked to walk a hundred miles on foot as punishment. "Mom!"

"It's good exercise," Qifrey said, ushering them to change out of their swimsuits so they could get going. "You spent two hours in the pool. The least you can do is go get some ice."

"You should call someone to fix the stupid AC!" Agott whined. "The ice is just going to melt anyway!"

"Upstairs," Qifrey ordered. "Now."

The girls rushed upstairs, changing into a new pair of clothes. Qifrey went back to cleaning up the house. He heard them descending the steps, bickering about something else, looking for the house keys by the front door.

"Wait," Qifrey said, stopping them. He sighed. They all had an allowance, but he knew very well they blew it off the second they got it. "Coco, get my purse."

Coco's eyes lit up, knowing what that meant. She ran for the coffee table, grabbing his purse and taking out his wallet. She handed it to him, the others girls coming up to the couch where Qifrey sat, waiting like they were being given candy.

Qifrey gave Agott a fifty dollar bill. He trusted that she was the most responsible out of all the kids despite her frequent temper tantrums.

"Make sure everyone gets to buy something for themselves," Qifrey explained slowly. Agott took the money from him. "Don't buy anything too expensive."

"You're the best mom!" Coco hugged him tightly, joined by Tetia.

"Can we go shopping?!"

"You're going to buy ice."

"Ice doesn't cost fifty dollars," Richeh pointed out. "Unless mom wants us to go to the mall."

"You can buy ice after so it doesn't melt," Qifrey decided. "But you must come back with the ice. It's very important that you do." They nodded eagerly.

"Okay," he ruffled their hairs, kissing each of their foreheads. "Go. I have to clean up, and I'll call a handyman." Agott sounded pleased by that. They hurried out the front door once they had all their things, tote bags, backpacks, trinkets and whatever a twelve year old girl needed to bring along with them on an outing.

Qifrey raked his fingers through his damp hair and turned off the TV. He cleaned up the rest of the mess the girls left behind. He was able to think now that the house was quiet, which wasn't often. He told them to text him if they needed anything, and he trusted they wouldn't get themselves kidnapped or he'd have a heart attack. They were responsible. Agott took karate lessons to protect them. Qifrey was paying a lot of money for those lessons.

He couldn't continue sewing in this weather, deciding he'd pick it up another time. Qifrey put away the sewing kit. He sat down on the couch with those old-fashioned yellowpage books. Beldaruit lent one to him a few months ago, said there were plenty of local businesses in Kalhn who's services he could use in a pinch.

He poured through a handful of pages, feeling himself grow a headache. There were thousands upon thousands of businesses. Qifrey scoured more, looking carefully until he found a handymen service. There we go, he thought.

Hearth and Hammer contracting. For some reason, that particular name stood out. Qifrey got up and headed for the telephone, dialing the number in the book. He had the heavy yellowpage book balanced on one thigh, the phone on his ear. Three rings.

"Hearth and Hammer services, how can I help ye?" A gravely Scottish accent bled through the line. Well, at least it was a human and not a robot.

"Hi!" Qifrey held the phone with two hands and the book fell right on his foot. "Fuck!" He shouted.

"I'm sorry?"

"I'm so sorry." Qifrey hopped on one foot, turning around, pulling at the cord. "Hi. I have an issue with my uh, air conditioner?"

"Alright. What's goin' on then?"

"It's not working. My kids are complaining about the heat. I really need someone to fix it and I just called the first person I found on yellowpages. Sincerely, I hope your services are affordable, and if you do well, you can be my go-to. I have four children, and they break things. A lot." Qifrey might as well lay everything down on the table. He was sweating out of every crevice of his body.

A raspy chuckle on the speakers. "Sounds like ye got a lot on yer plate. Yer just in luck. Got an openin' for the next two hours. Last client cancelled 'cause they found somebody else. Tell me yer address, we'll talk about pricin' later. I can promise I willnae charge ya an arm and a leg."

"I will hold you to that," Qifrey agreed, proceeding to tell the man his home address. "How long will you be?"

"Ya ain't that far from me. Prolly 'bout fifteen minutes."

"Lovely. Thank you so much. I'll see you soon," Qifrey answered. He picked up the large book, ignoring the throbbing pain in his foot.

"Alright then." Click. Qifrey hung up the phone. He set the book down on the coffee table and went outside, doing a second round to ensure that the girls didn't leave anything behind. He did have to put all the floaties away along with their other toys. The only people he had over was either Alaira or Beldaruit, who made a fuss whenever Qifrey's house got too messy.

He also got started on laundry, cleaning the girls' bedrooms to pass the time. Fifteen minutes went by, and there was a knock on the door. Qifrey was shoving clothes in the washer, filling the detergent compartment and slamming it shut.

"Shit," he cursed. Qifrey turned on the washer, rushing up the stairs. He stopped by the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. There wasn't much he could do about the sheen of sweat on his forehead. Still, he tried to make himself look presentable. The doorbell rang again.

"Coming!" Qifrey hurried to the door, opening it.

On the other side stood a stocky, shorter man. He had shaggy black hair, a salt and pepper beard, and wore a short-sleeved flannel over a tank top and jeans with heavy duty combat boots, and a tool belt strapped around his waist. He had inked tattoos on both arms, studded earrings, thick brows and a chiseled jawline.

Good lord.

"Hi," Qifrey whispered, finding himself breathless. Oh no, he's hot.

"Top of the mornin'." The handyman saluted with a gloved hand.

"Um," Qifrey began. "Just to make sure, you're—"

The handyman was already on it, reaching into his tool belt and handing Qifrey his business card.

Olruggio de la Antorcha. Hearth and Hammer contracting. His phone number and email listed in fine print with a two hammers forming a cross, dancing orange flames behind it.

"Ye can just call me Olly," he said with a shrug.

Qifrey nodded, smiling. He wasn't a serial killer. Good. Who was to know that his handyman could've possibly gotten killed and was impersonated by someone else on the way here?

Olruggio gestured vaguely. "Can I come in?"

"Oh! Yes." Qifrey stepped aside, welcoming in his guest. He closed the door. "So my girls are out right now, I told them to go shopping because they used up all the ice and complained that the pool was too hot."

Olruggio checked out the place, silent, so Qifrey nervously kept rambling.

"I'm using the fan right now because our AC stopped working, and I have no idea how to fix it. It's right up there." He pointed toward the air conditioner above the sliding doors leading to the backyard pool.

"Ah," Olruggio hummed. "I'm gonna need to grab me ladder. Most likely yer HVAC system's got a dirty air filter. I'll also hafta check yer circuit breakers."

"My what?" Qifrey didn't have the slightest clue about what a circuit breaker was.

Olruggio let out a breathy chuckle. He probably had customers like Qifrey all the time, because he wasn't annoyed at all.

"Basically, every house's got this big power switch. It's summer. It's hot as a motherfucker. Ya got electricity runnin' all over the fuckin' place." He had no filter, but that was extremely attractive to Qifrey. "Sometimes ya got too much power goin', so the switch is like a safety pin, yeah? Except ya pull it and ya dinna get fires startin' in the house. It protects ya. Keeps ya safe from harm. As a parent, ye wouldnae want yer wee ones fuckin' around with that shit, aye?"

Qifrey nodded slowly. "Well we have been using the air conditioning an awful lot the past month. Have you seen the news? The weather's going to be like this for the next week!"

"There you go," Olruggio nodded. "Yer smart. Most clients assume the circuit breaker's broken and think I'm scammin' 'em outta 'their money when in reality, I'm tryna tell 'em how to not set their house on fire."

"Well. You are the expert," Qifrey agreed. "However, I have no idea where this circuit breaker thing is that you speak of. I never had to worry about anything like this happening until now. My girls don't break circuit breakers; they put holes in the walls."

Olruggio pursed his lips, not seeming shocked in the slightest. He beckoned at Qifrey.

"Come with me," he said. Qifrey wordlessly followed Olruggio down to the basement, where he led Qifrey to the circuit breaker.

"Hm, safety's off," Olruggio noticed, pointing at the switch. Qifrey frowned.

"So what does that mean?"

"Means we gotta look for a secondary switch."

"Okay? But where?"

"Outside. Wait here," Olruggio said, jogging up the stairs. Qifrey waited patiently. He heard the front door open, meaning Olruggio was outside. Qifrey shouldn't trust a stranger roaming around his backyard. He did have a big house and a nice garden. However, he didn't suspect Olruggio was a thief. In five minutes, Olruggio returned to the basement.

"No?" Qifrey asked. Olruggio shook his head.

"If it ain't the safety smart switches, I'm gonna have to check the AC itself."

"But how would you know what's wrong if all of the switches are still in place?"

"Like I said earlier, there's many reason why an AC can start shittin' itself. Air filter, drain line, or some type of electrical issue in the wirin', what gets it runnin' in the first place," Olruggio explained. Qifrey didn't mean to question the man on how well he knew how to do his job, he was just clueless when it came to home appliance issues. Qifrey followed him back upstairs. Olruggio said he'd be right back, leaving the house to get a ladder and some more tools.

Qifrey got a text from the girls. They were at the shopping plaza, just as he expected. They said they'd get the ice soon after they finish shopping. Qifrey told them the handyman was here and for them to be safe and to have fun.

Olruggio came back with the ladder and tools, climbing on top to check out the AC up close, taking it apart. Qifrey figured this was part of his work where he'd want to be left the hell alone and didn't need someone talking his ear off. But it seemed Olruggio preferred otherwise.

"So," he began. "I don't believe I caught yer name."

Qifrey was awkwardly hovering under the ladder, hands behind his back.

"Sorry?" He asked.

Olruggio stopped what he was doing for a moment, glancing down at Qifrey.

"Yer name," he repeated.

"Oh! My name is Qifrey. Sorry I didn't mention it earlier."

"'S alright. It's only polite if I ask." Olruggio went back to working. "If ye don't mind me askin', is it just ye and the wee ones?"

"Yes. My father helps sometimes, but he's dealing with his own health issues, so he can only provide so much," Qifrey said. Alaira convinced him to do this speed dating thing, didn't work out because usually men were intimidated by the idea of a single parent and were repulsed by dealing with that baggage.

If their interest was clearly towards having fun, Qifrey would get up and leave in the middle of the date without saying goodbye. He was raising four daughters. He didn't have time for immature assholes who didn't want anything serious.

Qifrey could see the fear in their eyes, the way they'd struggle to pretend that the thought of helping raise children didn't bother them. They'd ask if he had a babysitter, a boyfriend or husband, as he was gay, or if the girls' biological parents were in the picture as that could be complicated. Qifrey said most of the time he raised them himself, and he didn't intend to abandon them to make a stranger feel comfortable. If they didn't like that, they could just leave.

He wanted to gauge Olruggio's reaction to being a single parent. Olruggio didn't stop what he was doing, only nodding.

"Good on ye, aye? For managin' the youngins." Not at all the response Qifrey was expecting. "I ken it ain't easy, dealin' with holes in the walls, and shit like that."

"I got them this toy jeep for Christmas. Ran into so many antiques and furniture and walls. I had to temporarily ban them from driving it in the house." Richeh was often the culprit.

"Damn. A kid's first car and they already got into their first accident," Olruggio quipped.

Qifrey laughed. Olruggio was funny.

"But yes," Qifrey continued. "It's not easy, but I manage the best I can." There were days where he was so overwhelmed he wanted to scream, calling Beldaruit to help him with babysitting when they were too much to handle. Other days, he learned how to adjust to their antics.

"Are they in school?" Olruggio asked, tinkering away at the broken AC.

"I'm homeschooling them full-time," Qifrey replied, rocking on the balls of his feet. "It's summer, so, I figured I'd give them a little break."

"Stay at home ma?" Olruggio realized what he said, correcting himself. "Fuck. Sorry, did I misgender ye—"

"Not at all," Qifrey said, as he'd gotten a few of those hasty corrections before. "You're fine. Mother or father, such labels are very trivial to me. I don't mind either or."

Olruggio slowed his movement, waving a wrench in his hand as he thought about it. "Do it confuse people?"

Qifrey leaned against the wall. "Sometimes."

Confusing people with his gender was amusing. As a teen, he'd drown himself in nothing but baggy clothing. As an adult, he learned to embrace his femininity.

Olruggio nodded, twirling the wrench in his hand. "Mint."

Qifrey stared at him, raising his eyebrows. "Mint?"

"Means cool," Olruggio answered with a bashful chuckle. "Northern slang."

"Oh, I see. Mint," Qifrey repeated, testing how the word rolled off his tongue. He liked it. "You're very mint." The compliment came out before he could stop himself. How corny was that?

"So are ye," Olruggio answered. Even though he was busy, his words were kind and genuine. It made Qifrey's heart flutter. "Say. Ye don't got any preferences, do ye, Miss Qifrey?"

"No sir," Qifrey smiled.

"Alright then." Olruggio tugged at a loose wire. His muscles flexed again. Qifrey swallowed, feeling parched. "The bairns. Ye care for 'em full time?"

"Yes I do. My father supports us as much as he can. I wouldn't have it any other way."

"I respect it. I got a big sister and many cousins, but wragglin' bairns raises me blood pressure. I bet they're glad to have a da as hard-workin' as ye are."

Qifrey felt his cheeks turn pink, and it wasn't because of just the heat. Olruggio was honest without even trying. It wasn't that people didn't acknowledge the difficulties of being a parent, but they always talked about how they couldn't ever do it, saying he was crazy for adopting kids.

The chances of him ever having his own was slim to none, he was high-risk. He had dealt with chronic pain and trauma that years of therapy had to unpack. Sometimes it felt like his body worked so hard against him, to reject any sense of humanity he so desperately wanted to have.

Those girls weren't related to him by blood, but they were still his girls. He nutured them like a biological parent should.

"Thank you, Olly," Qifrey said softly.

"No problem. Aha!" Olruggio said, changing the subject to the matter at hand. "Found the lil' fucker."

"What? What did you find?" Qifrey stepped closer to where Olruggio stood on the ladder, trying to see for himself.

"Capacitor's broken," Olruggio answered, pointing inside the air conditioner. "Needs to be replaced."

Qifrey saw that something seemed off about the AC unit, though he was confused. If only he knew what the hell he was looking at.

That didn't matter. Olruggio continued, "A capacitor's like a booster that keeps yer AC runnin'. It's busted. Luckily, I have a spare one. I can replace it for you," he looked at Qifrey, a sly look in his dark blue eye, "free of charge, 'cause you're pretty."

Qifrey blushed. "Wait," he objected. "At least allow me to compensate for the inconvenience, I had no idea there were any damages from using it so much."

Olruggio climbed down the ladder. "It's fine, happens when yer usin' it all day long. This'll take a bit." He wiped the sweat off his brow. "Jesus, me la pela y me la suda," he muttered under his breath. "They tryna prepare us for what hell feels like?"

Qifrey had the windows open. "It's going to be for the rest of the day. It might cool down a little during the night."

Olruggio groaned. "Fuckin' aye!"

"I don't have much ice, but I can get you some water," Qifrey said, gesturing for Olruggio to take a seat on the couch. "Take a break."

"I think I'm fine."

"Please do. There's a heatwave out there. I wouldn't want you to pass out."

"Seriously? Thank you," Olruggio exhaled, more than grateful. "I'm gonna need some special tools that's in me truck. The capacitor's a stubborn one. I'm dealin' with high voltage electricity here. So ye might wanna stay back for that."

"Will do." Qifrey went into the kitchen, grabbing two cups and filling them with filtered water from the sink. The ice maker had to be cleaned out, so he used whatever ice was left in the freezer, coming back to the living area and handing Olruggio his cup of water.

He thanked Qifrey again, taking a gracious sip from the cup. Qifrey drank from his cup as well, the cool air from the fan blowing directly onto them. They both moaned in relief, hoping to sweat on their skin would dry off. The fan did its job decently, but couldn't rival the heatwave cooking them alive outdoors.

"What about you?" Qifrey asked, out of simple curiosity. He sat down next to Olruggio. "Do you do this for a living?"

Olruggio set his cup down on the table.

"I'm a blacksmith." He craned his shoulders. "This is a side hustle to make extra income on the side."

"I see." Qifrey continued sipping from his cup, shamelessly eyeing Olruggio's flexing muscles, soft yet toned. "Do you like it?"

"Meh. Fifty-fifty. Some clients gimme a run for my money. Some are sweethearts, like you."

"Are you normally this flirtatious with your clients?"

"Only the ones I like, which ain't much."

Qifrey rolled his eye, a small smile splayed on his lips.

"How much is this going to cost?" He asked. "So I can be prepared. My girls are going to kill me if I don't get this fixed before they return, which will be God knows when. They're busy wasting time at the mall when I told them to get ice."

"About three fifty," Olruggio said. "It ain't as bad as most of my jobs. Like I said, the replacement capacitor would be at an extra charge, but I ain't chargin' ye for that. I don't need the money that bad when I'm doin' pretty well for meself, ya feel me?"

"Are you sure?" Qifrey was going to tip him anyway. "Coming all the way down here in this heatwave, same day as well, it must've been a hassle."

Olruggio waved his hand.

"Your hospitality is worth it," he said, winking.

"Mr. Olruggio…"

"Deal's a deal, sweetheart."

Qifrey pouted.

"Is there anything I could do to help?"

"I told ye ya can't be hangin' around when I'm dealin' with high voltage equipment."

"Emotional support, at the very least? I'm very good at that."

"Ye got any water bottles? I don't wanna get yer mug dirty while I work."

Qifrey did in fact, have cold water bottles sitting in the freezer. He put the ones they finished away in the sink and handed Olruggio one from the fridge. Their fingers brushed, sending tingles down Qifrey's spine. He masked it with a honey-sweet smile.

"Thanks," Olruggio said.

"Mhm," Qifrey hummed weakly, knowing using his words would've failed him.

"I'm gonna go get me tools, yeah?" Olruggio jerked his thumb toward the door.

"Yeah! Sure, of course!" Qifrey nodded. Olruggio stepped out for his tools. Qifrey exhaled, self-consciously aware he'd been standing around like a deer in the headlights, following Olruggio around. He should do something productive, like laundry. He should check on the laundry. Qifrey went downstairs, moving the load he'd been tending to into the dryer.

He stretched his arms above his head, working out the kinks in his shoulders. One task done. Qifrey went upstairs, heading into the kitchen.

He opened the cabinet to grab a bowl, then the fridge, deciding he would slice up some watermelons for his guest. Whatever Olruggio was doing seemed to take all of his focus. He was dead silent aside from the tinkering noises, parts being moved around in their AC unit. He had on goggles and a different pair of gloves.

Qifrey had to stop himself from drooling. He was staring, how impolite of him. He opened the fridge, reaching for a water bottle to combat the indoor heat.

His broken air conditioner was the cause of everyone's distress for the past three days. Qifrey did the reasonable thing of calling a handyman, which Qifrey couldn't stop oogling at. Qifrey drank his water bottle, squeezing it unconsciously hard, the poor thing. His eye traced the sweat rolling down Olruggio's muscles, his beautifully detailed tattoos.

Snap out of it, Qifrey! He's just working on an air conditioner! His silly brain berated him. But goddamn, that man knew how to work a drill.

The water burst from the bottle, drenching Qifrey's tank top. He shrieked, blissfully unaware until he felt the cool liquid hit his skin. Olruggio immediately stopped what he was doing, jumping down from the ladder like he'd heard someone cry for help.

"What happened?!" He asked, concerned, lifting the goggles off his head. Qifrey's face was beet red, staring at Olruggio with a single wide eye. "Are you alright? Qifrey?!" His calloused hands were gripping Qifrey's shoulders.

Qifrey felt lightheaded. Dare he say this was the most contact he'd ever recieved from anyone that wasn't family or a family friend.

"I just spilled water on myself," Qifrey said, dazed. Olruggio blinked, noticing that grabbing Qifrey's shoulders and staring at his chest was beyond inappopriate. He leapt back, taking his hands off, scarlet dusting his cheeks.

"Uh. I," Olruggio stammered. "Should I get ye a towel?" He clicked his tongue, muttering of course ye gotta get the lass a towel you fuckin' mince, heading for the linen closet that was left half-open, and fetching a towel and handing it to Qifrey. He turned his head away like a respectful gentleman.

"Thank you honey." Qifrey accepted the towel, sitting down and drying himself off. "I'm such a klutz," he sighed. The fan was positioned directly on him where he sat, hair flying in the wind.

"R-Right, 'course." Olruggio was acting weird, averting his gaze. He noticed the watermelons on the table. "Those fer me?"

Qifrey was distracted by how good the breeze felt on his skin. "Huh?"

"The watermelons," Olruggio repeated, pointing at the bowl.

"Oh!" Qifrey sat up. "Please, help yourself. They're for you. Please remember to take breaks. You've been working hard."

Olruggio laughed, bashful, taking a slice of watermelon and biting into it. Qifrey clasped his hands together, smiling.

"Good?"

Olruggio moaned. "Fuckin' hell, bury me in these."

Qifrey giggled. "Have as many as you like! You're my guest. I'll make more if you like."

Olruggio raised a hand, deciding that what he had was more than enough.

"Thank ye," he said, wiping the juices off his lips. He helped himself to more, but he didn't indulge for too long. Qifrey hid his disappointment, though, Olruggio ate a lot of them. There was only two left. He must've been hungry.

Qifrey grabbed a napkin on the table, and before he realized it, he was approaching Olruggio and wiping off what spilled on his chin.

They both froze, heat rising to their cheeks. Qifrey lowered his hand, stepping away.

"Sorry, I—" He was so used to cleaning up his girls when they made a mess eating, just motherly instinct. However, Olruggio wasn't one of his daughters. He was a stranger, that he was insanely attracted to. "Just force of habit."

"I should get to it then, yeah? Thanks for the watermelons," Olruggio said quickly. He rushed back to the ladder, climbing up and resuming his work.

Qifrey squeezed his eyes shut, pinching the bridge of his nose. Get it together Qifrey. You're going to scare him away. To make things worse, Qifrey looked down, noticing his white tank top soaked.

"Oh my," he whispered, rising up from the couch. He darted upstairs for his bedroom, looking for a new shirt to change into, opting for one of his graphic tees. Qifrey tossed his tclothes wet clothes in the hamper for next week's laundry load. He finished with the girls' laundry, spending an hour neatly folding each of their clothes and leaving it in their bedrooms. Usually, he'd leave them on the dining table, but he was feeling generous tonight. Besides, they always took longer than necessary to grab their clothes.

As Qifrey was heading back downstairs, he overheard overlapping voices outdoors. The girls must be home. They unlocked the door, and just as they did, the gentle rumbling of the air conditioner returned.

To them, it sounded like heaven. Tetia dropped the bag of ice, then she herself sunk to her knees.

"Freedom!" She raised her hands in the air.

"Oh my God!" Coco sighed, closing her eyes.

"We got the ice," Richeh announced, along with other things, as they were juggling shopping bags. Olruggio craned his head, flipping his goggles up.

"AC workin' now?" He asked, as he was merely testing it.

"Yeah," Agott replied, eyeing their guest warily, picking up Tetia's bag of ice and bringing it into the kitchen. She didn't take her eyes off Olruggio even as he descended the ladder, amused at Qifrey's daughters crying in relief that the home was back to the temperature they desired.

"Mr. Olruggio, thank you so much." Qifrey walked up to Olruggio, taking his gloved hands. "We can't thank you enough."

"Hey." Agott appeared next to Qifrey, rather shielding him protectively. "Are you the handyman?"

Olruggio struggled to divide his attention between Qifrey and Agott.

"I am, yeah."

"You didn't do anything weird to my mom while we were away, right?" Both Olruggio and Qifrey's faces turned red at her question.

"Huh?!" Olruggio gawked.

"Agott!" Qifrey shrieked.

"Why would I do that?! I got some decency!" Olruggio said in defense.

"I don't know how to feel about some guy in my house," Agott responded warily. "Are you even legit? Can I see your license?"

Olruggio blubbered, offended. "What are ye, a cop?!"

"In this house, yeah," Agott shot back.

"Agott," Qifrey started, but Olruggio stopped him.

"It's alright," Olruggio laughed. The other girls were already having their own conversation, paying no mind to the debacle. "Here ye go, sir!" He handed Agott his business card. She snatched it from him, inspecting it.

"Hm," she said, unconvinced.

Olruggio frowned. "The hell is that supposed to mean?!"

"Doesn't sound legit. Where are you from?"

"Up north. Ghodrey."

"Sounds fake."

"Why ye little—"

"You know what, honey," Qifrey placed his hands on Agott's shoulders, guiding her toward the backyard. "Maybe you can clean out the pool while I talk with Mr. Olruggio. Can you do that?"

"What? But mom—"

"—Agott, I will not tell you again."

"Okay," Agott grumbled, heading out through the sliding doors.

"Mom! Look what we got!" Tetia beamed, her, Coco, and Richeh showing all the stuff they bought at the mall earlier.

"Manners, young ladies. We have a guest over." Qifrey introduced them to Olruggio. "This Mr. Olruggio. He fixed our AC! And he will be our handyman for the time being!"

Coco and Tetia's eyes sparkled. Richeh had a blank stare. Agott was glaring from where she stood from the backyard, getting to work.

"We got new toys." Richeh showed Olruggio her collection.

"Mint," Olruggio commented. "Ye guys have fun?" The girls nodded. "Awesome!" Qifrey adored the brief interaction; they were hovering around Olruggio like superglue.

"Are these real?" Tetia asked, pointing at Olruggio's tattoos.

"Oh, yeah. They are," Olruggio said, showing them off. "A good friend of mine did 'em."

"That's so cool!" Coco awed at the full sleeve tattoos of dancing flames, all done in black ink from his shoulder blades and down his arms. "Do they hurt?"

"Kinda. It's a needle pokin' into yer skin."

Coco bristled, holding her arms. "That's scary!"

"It's worth it in the end, yeah? Ye got cool drawings on ye that ye keep for the rest of yer life."

"Why fire?"

"Son of a blacksmith. We played with fire a lot. 'Sides. It's in me last name."

"Can you fix anything?" Richeh asked.

"That's my job," Olruggio replied with a wink. "But ye youngins gotta promise yer ma that ye won't break anything else. I usually don't fix things for free."

"But it's okay if Richeh breaks things because Mr. Olruggio can fix anything."

"Uh, well."

"Go upstairs, girls." Qifrey decided that was enough interrogating. He ushered his daughters up to their rooms against their will, saying he had to discuss things with Olruggio. The sun went down after the girls had come back from their adventures. Qifrey grabbed his purse, meeting Olruggio outside by his truck and counting all the cash he had in hand.

His daughters were very subtly spying through one of the bedroom windows upstairs.

"And… here you go!" He handed Olruggio everything.

"Thank ye very much!" Olruggio smiled, a cigar in his mouth, which shouldn't be so hot. Smoking was bad for you, coming from Qifrey, who was desperately trying to quit himself. He counted the bills, and then his expression changed like he was thinking something over, coming to an abrupt stop. Qifrey, with his hands clasped in front of him, tilted his head in confusion.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Ye overpaid me, Miss Qifrey."

"I don't think so," Qifrey batted his eyelashes, twirling a lock of hair under his manicured finger. "Sounds just about right. For all of your hard work."

Olruggio sighed.

"I can't take this. I told ye I wouldn't charge for the capacitor."

"I must've missed that discussion. I figured I'd leave a gracious tip for your services."

They exchanged a heated stare, but ultimately it seemed Olruggio decided there was no use in arguing. He exhaled, smoke leaving his lips and pocketing the bills.

"Thank ye," he whispered, more earnestly. Qifrey smiled, clapping his hands.

"It was a pleasure doing business with you! Thank you so much for today!"

"My pleasure alright." Olruggio finished loading the rest of his things in the back of his truck. Qifrey folded his arms, lingering, as it was only polite to see him off. Olruggio walked back over to him, his gaze lingering shamelessly over Qifrey's frame.

"Ye got my business card, aye?" He asked, eyes meeting Qifrey's with a hidden promise. "Call me if yer kids break shit again," he stepped closer, voice dropping an octave, "or if ye wanna go out for dinner sometime."

Qifrey swooned. Oh my God. Bastard beat him to it. As if he had the courage to ask Olruggio out himself.

"Of course," He could only whisper back, pathetically. Olruggio glanced at the girls spying on them through the window. Qifrey whirled around, the tips of his ears burning at the audience they've attracted.

Olruggio winked at them, saluting. They quickly ran away, noticing they got caught.

"I'm so sorry," Qifrey apologized. "They aren't used to having company over than isn't their auntie or their grandfather."

"'S alright. They're only curious. I'm wary of the dark-haired one, though. She don't seem to like me very much," Olruggio said with a grimace.

"Agott is the man of the house," Qifrey said with a sheepish laugh. "It may take a while for her to trust you. I hope you can understand."

"I'll have to work on gainin' her approval then?" Olruggio grinned. "Sounds like a challenge."

"Perhaps," Qifrey played along, fixing Olruggio's flannel. "Goodnight, Mr. Olruggio. Drive safe."

Olruggio's gaze dropped down Qifrey's lips, then his eye. "Will do, Miss Qifrey."

He got in the truck, pulling out of the driveway and onto the road. Qifrey waved again. At the same time, Olruggio stuck his arm out of the window, waving back.

Qifrey sighed dreamily.

In Richeh and Tetia's shared bedroom, Richeh gathered the girls.

"We have to find out a way to break something so Mr. Olruggio can come back," she said to them. "And then they will fall in love and get married."

"I was thinking the exact same thing," Coco said excitedly.

"Me too!" Tetia agreed.

"You guys are unbelievable," Agott muttered, shaking her head. They all looked at her, confused. "Obviously, we should haze him."

"Haze?" Coco questioned.

Agott smirked. "Y'know, like in Home Alone?"

The girls looked at each other, pondering Agott's proposition.

"It'll be fun if we test his limits. All the other guys that tried to win mom over didn't make it, so, let's up the stakes," she declared. If Agott was in on this plan, then Olruggio must be the real deal. "If he makes it, then, he can marry mom."