Darius checked his Timex again. He was going to be late. “I’m sorry you’re bored. But there are other things you can do.” Things that don’t involve me.
“Like what?”
“I don’t know.” Darius shrugged, spreading his arms wide. “Get a part-time job. Take up a hobby.”
“I want to work on the fundraiser.”
“Why?”
“You said I never got to know my family, that I was just a boarder in the house with you and your mother. I spent a lot of time this weekend thinking over what you said. I want a chance to correct that. This would give me that opportunity.”
Trapped by his own words. But was Simon sincere about making amends for past mistakes?
“All right.” Darius took a leap of faith. “You can be on the committee.”
With luck, he wouldn’t regret this decision.
Darius found Peyton sitting with Ms. Helen in the Guiding Light Community Center lobby. Her expression was warm and relaxed as she laughed at something the older woman had said. His heart squeezed.
She looked cool and professional in an orange sweater and dark green slacks. Minimal makeup accented her high cheekbones and her caramel eyes. Her mass of bright copper curls framed her heart-shaped face.
Peyton smiled as he approached. “Hi.”
“Sorry I’m late.” Darius kissed Ms. Helen’s cheek, then offered his arm to assist her to her feet.
He turned to Peyton. Should he kiss her, too? Perhaps not yet, not here. Their last night together came back in heated detail. Darius pushed his fists into the pockets of his black winter coat.
“I’ve only just arrived myself.” Peyton stood.
“We’ve been getting to know each other better.” Ms. Helen smiled at Peyton. “But in the interest of time, we should get started on the tour.” She led them across the lobby. “The first thing you should know about the center is that it opened January tenth, 1975.”
Darius and Peyton followed Ms. Helen into the activity room. Darius had been eighteen the last time he’d been in the center. Over the past sixteen years, the facilities had grown worn and much worse for wear. But otherwise the center was clean and cared for, and seemed more or less the same.
The large, rectangular activity room was the size of a ballroom but resembled a high school gym. Darius, Ean, Quincy, Jackson, and Vaughn used to play basketball here in the winter. The hardwood floor gleamed. The air was bloated with wood polish and antiseptic. At the front end of the room, four basketball hoops were suspended from the ceiling. Bins full of basketballs and volleyballs lined the near wall. Across the room were Ping-Pong and gaming tables as well as exercise equipment.
Peyton led them along the perimeter, pausing occasionally to skim the bulletin boards, check the locked supply cabinets, and test the water fountains. “What did the town do before the community center was built?”
Ms. Helen took them across the activity room to an exit door on the other side. “What most communities do—we relied on our churches and schools for our programs. But as Trinity Falls grew, the community had greater needs.”
“Such as what?” Peyton smiled her thanks as Darius held the door open for her and Ms. Helen to precede him into the study hall.
“Reemployment training.” Ms. Helen stopped in the middle of the study hall.
Darius stood beside Peyton. “The center allowed the town to provide technology training for adults and students. It also provides an opportunity for youth sports and senior programming.”
“And health and wellness programs for all ages,” Ms. Helen added.
Peyton adjusted her bag on her shoulder. “The center is even more critical to the community than I originally thought.”
Considering he’d directly benefited from the center, Darius regretted that he hadn’t paid more attention to its needs. He’d rectify that in the future, starting with his participation in the fundraiser.
Ms. Helen concluded the tour by introducing Peyton and Darius to the center’s director and some of its volunteers. They were thrilled about the fundraiser and anxious to help in any way they could.
Darius followed Peyton and Ms. Helen back to the lobby. He turned to Ms. Helen. “Are you sure you won’t join us for lunch at Books and Bakery?”
Ms. Helen looked from him to Peyton and back. Her brown eyes twinkled. “I’m having lunch with some friends here at the center. You two go and enjoy yourselves.”
Darius kissed the elderly lady’s cheek. “I’ll see you later.”