My Neighbor Kept Dumping Her Trash by My House Because She Didn’t Want to Pay for Garbage Pickup – But She Wasn’t Ready for What I Did Next
“I canceled our pickup.”
“You canceled it?”
“It’s ridiculously expensive.”
“But you still have garbage.”
Helen smiled as if I were being deliberately slow. “And you already have a truck coming.”
“Because I pay for it.”
“Exactly. Why should both of us pay?”
“I canceled our pickup.”
For a second, I genuinely didn’t know how to answer that logic.
“Helen, that’s not how anything works.”
“Oh, please.” She held up one perfectly manicured hand. “I’d rather spend that money on another manicure than on something I don’t need.”
I looked at her pale-pink nails, then at the mountain of bags beside my lawn.
“You clearly need it.”
“No. You need it.” Her smile widened. “I just need you.”
“I’d rather spend that money on another manicure.”
That sentence did what George’s warnings hadn’t.
Suddenly I saw the pattern.
- My flowerpot.
- My garage.
- My tools.
- Her children running through my flowers.
Every time I’d said, “It’s fine,” Helen had apparently heard, “Go ahead.”
“Take them back.”
Suddenly I saw the pattern.
Her smile disappeared. “I’m not carrying nine bags home.”
“Then call your garbage company.”
Helen rolled her eyes and turned away.
The old me would have followed her, explaining why this was unfair, until I somehow ended up feeling rude for mentioning it. Instead, I looked at the bags and came up with a better idea.
“Helen.”
She turned impatiently. “What?”
“Fine. Leave them.”
I looked at the bags and came up with a better idea.
Her expression brightened immediately. “I knew you’d come around.”
“Under one condition. Anything you leave on my property becomes mine.”
Helen stared at me for a second before laughing. “You want my trash?”
“I want us to understand each other.”
“Absolutely.” She waved toward the pile. “Keep whatever treasures you find.”
“Perfect.”
