Four Kicks

I consider not answering, but curiosity gets the best of me. “Hello?”

“Lacy?”

“Yes?” I could let him know that I know it’s him, but I decide not to.

“It’s David.”

“Hi, David.”

“Hi, how are you?”

“I’m fine. How are you?”

He laughs a little, sounding uncomfortable. “I’m all right. Are you busy?”

“Not at the moment.” Not busy at all lately, I think to myself.

“That’s good. I just wanted to call and see how you were doing.” I’m reminded of how David never really was very good at conversation. I’d have thought he’d have gotten better over the years. “How’s your family?” he asks.

“They’re good.” I’m usually much chattier, but some part of me doesn’t want to make this awkward conversation easier for him.

“Good, good.” He clears his throat. “It was my mom who suggested I call. I guess she talked to your mom. I was wondering if you wanted to get together sometime.”

I decide to play dumb to get a tiny bit of revenge on behalf of my teenage broken heart. “Wouldn’t your wife mind?”

“Oh! Oh sorry, I thought you would have heard from your mom, or from somewhere. Rebecca and I are separated.”

I soften my tone. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Thanks. It’s fine. It’s for the best.”

There’s silence for a moment before I respond. Aside from our breakup, David always was a nice guy. Why not see him again? “I guess that would be all right, then.”

He lets out a relieved breath, and we make plans for him to pick me up on Friday. I feel a little glimmer of hope when we end our call. Maybe the timing of David’s breakup and my desire to settle down are more than a coincidence. Could fate be bringing us back together?

6

A fairy-tale love story

I’m getting ready for my date on Friday when there’s a knock at my apartment door.

“Hey, do you have a minute?” Bianca’s standing outside, wearing leggings and an old stretched-out shirt, but still looking effortlessly gorgeous.

“Sure, c’mon in.” I hold the door open wide and, after a glance behind her, she enters and flops down on the loveseat, which is the only place to sit aside from my bed or my little two-seat dining table. “What’s up?”

She eyes my outfit, a blue sundress I’ve only worn once before. “You headed out tonight?”

“Yeah.”

She arches a brow and frowns. “Rusty’s?”

“No, not Rusty’s. It just so happens that I have a date.”

Her eyes widen and her tone is mocking. “Wow, an actual date.”

“You make it sound like I never go on dates.”

“Who are you going out with?”

I busy myself looking through my tiny purse, wanting to avoid eye contact. “David.”

“Your ex David?” I detect judgment in her tone.

“Yes, he’s separated from his wife.”

She nods, looking toward the window. “I heard.”

“So what did you come up here for?”

Bianca’s brow furrows and she frowns. “I wanted to talk to you about Mom and Dad. Well, about the store, really.”

“Yeah?”

“I overheard them in the kitchen this morning. Apparently, they’re late on two different loan payments.”

Now my frown matches my sister’s.

“They were arguing about the addition of the clothing shop. Dad still thinks it’s a good idea, but Mom was saying she regretted it. They both agreed it hasn’t paid off and it added to their debt.”

“But the clothing business isn’t seasonal like the rest of the touristy stuff. I agree with Dad.”

She stands suddenly and follows me as I head toward my closet. “It doesn’t really matter who’s wrong or right. What are we going to do? Couldn’t they lose the store if they can’t make payments?”

“Yeah, they probably could. I had no idea things were that bad. I have been thinking about getting another job. You and I could cut back to part-time at the store and make extra money on the side to help out.”

“We should do that.”

“I’ll start looking tomorrow. Right now I need to finish getting ready. David will be here soon.”

Bianca nods, still frowning. When she leaves I finish putting on my makeup, taking extra care as I do. I’m not nervous about the date, but there are some little fluttery feelings in my belly that I wouldn’t have if I were getting ready for a night out at Rusty’s.

I try to remember the last time I saw David. I think it was about six months ago that I ran into him at the gas station. We had one of those brief “How are you? How’s your family?” conversations. He looked really good, and remembering his tall athletic frame sets my stomach to fluttering again.

I feel like I’m back in high school getting ready to go out with him, but I shake that thought away. We’ve both changed and grown. He’s been married, for god’s sake. He is technically still married. But wouldn’t it be a fairy-tale love story if we got back together?