His face scrunched up. “A salad? Aid, you have to eat. You have four hours of practice ahead of you.” He had a point, I was running on fumes, but my lack of appetite was due to reasons he was unaware of.
“Honestly, Hayden, I’m just too stressed out to eat right now.”
Hayden pulled into a shopping plaza and parked in front. “Gotta eat to keep up that stamina.” He winked, and jumped out of his car.
When we walked in, I was instantly reminded of Whole Foods. That place always has a strange odor. The smell assaulted me and I started giggling thinking of something Avery said once.
“What’s so funny?”
“It’s nothing.”
Hayden paused, grinning. “Tell me.”
“This place reminds me of Whole Foods. It has the same smell.”
He looked confused. “And that’s funny to you?”
“Avery swears Whole Foods uses natural cleaning products that are supposed to be orange scented but they actually smell like dirty jock straps. That’s why when you walk into one it always has the same gross smell. I agree with her, not that I know what jock straps smell like, it’s just a wild guess.”
Hayden’s eyes were gleaming with laughter.
“What? Don’t look at me like that!”
“I didn’t say anything,” he laughed, putting his hands up.
“You have a look in your eyes. I’m going to punch you!” I raised my fist playfully and he didn’t even flinch.
Before I could say anything else, the urge to pee sliced through me. “Can you order me a turkey lettuce wrap please? I need to use the restroom.”
“No bread or cheese?”
“Are you insane? Of course not! Just turkey and lettuce. Nothing else.”
He knew how strict our diets were. Carbs and dairy were out. I allowed myself carbs once a week, but it sure as hell wasn’t from a wrap. Those little flat pieces of nothing were loaded with shit I couldn’t afford to put in my body.
Finding the bathrooms, I reached to yank the door open only to find it locked. Dammit! I leaned against the opposite wall, counting the seconds and trying desperately not to do the pee dance. My mother would give me the evil eye all the way from Palm Beach if I did. From all the years of being obedient under my mother’s watchful eye, I just stood with my legs crossed like a lady, and praying to God this person hurried the hell up.
After what felt like an eternity, a mother holding her son’s hand exited the bathroom. As soon as their bodies cleared the doorframe, I dashed in. My bladder burned as I shifted from foot to foot trying to unbutton and unzip my jeans. I tightened my abdomen, feeling ready to explode while I hovered over the toilet.
Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and let it trickle out slowly like last time…and felt the burn. I stopped, my teeth biting into my bottom lip as tears threatened behind my eyes.
I hated this pain.
I tried again, but my urine was hot, so it stung even more this time. I expelled a gush of air from my lungs at the little bit I was capable of releasing and then zipped up my pants. I’d much rather straddle the beam than deal with this sort of pain right now.
I flushed, washed my hands, and was out of the bathroom to find Hayden paying for our lunch. I reached into my pocket, but he stopped me.
“Nah, don’t worry about it.”
I pushed the
twenty at him. “Take it.”
“No, no,” he said, turning around and heading for a table. “I asked you to come to lunch, I can pay for it.”
I stood there, dumbfounded with the money in my hand. “I’m not used to people paying for me. I almost don’t know what to do.”
Hayden whipped his head in my direction and stared at me. “You just stick it back in your pocket and say, ‘Gee, Hayden, that was so sweet of you. Thanks,’ and sit down and eat.”