Hello, Sunshine

“What’s that?”

“It’s a way for Sammy to go to that school.”

“Maybe we should go back to you waiting outside until we fall asleep,” she said.

I looked at her. “I almost took the show, just so I could get you guys set up in a nice apartment, make it so you didn’t have to work. But I figured you wouldn’t go for that anyway.”

“You figured right.”

“The school has a special weekend program. And I have some money from the apartment. Money I could stretch. I can’t stay in Montauk anyway. What if I got a place in Harlem? Near the school? Sammy could stay with me on the weekends. That’s one night away from you a week. And she’d get to do a bunch of nerdy kid things. It’s just one night, but if it works out, we could revisit the full-time thing.”

“No fucking way.”

“Okay, we won’t revisit. But the weekend thing, it’d be good for her. And maybe for you too.”

She looked at me like she might yell. And like she might say yes. It could go either way. “I’ll think about it,” she said.

“You will? Really?”

“Yes.”

It was a nice moment. No one reaching in to hug each other, no one offering anything definitive. But nice. At least it was until two headlights interrupted us. A guy drove down the driveway. And then got out of his car.

Danny. My heart skipped a beat, even at the sight of him. His hands were in his jeans pockets, his uneven button-down, soft against his skin. He looked up and offered a small smile.

“Oh, brother,” Rain said, shaking her head.

I wrapped my sweater around my small belly as he walked over to us. And I could feel it, my sister was steeling herself.

“Hey,” Danny said.

“Hi,” I said.

Rain shot him a look.

Danny nodded at her. “It’s nice to see you, Rain,” he said.

She pointed right in his face. “You did a shitty thing, Danny,” she said. “No, you did two shitty things, because now I’m in a position of having to stick up for my sister, and you know how much that pisses me off. You’re not invited into the house.”

“I’ll stay out here,” he said.

She stood up and looked at me.

“He’s not going in the house,” she said.

“I hear you.”

She turned back to Danny. “And she’s picking up my kid in fifteen minutes, so don’t make her late,” she said.

“I’ve got it,” Danny said.

She gave him a last look.

Then she disappeared inside, and we were alone. He smiled, taking me in, not saying anything.

“You look good. Can I say that?”

I nodded. “I’m doing well.”