Chapter 22 #2
“They also have this dress in a blush, should I try that one on?” Anika was trying to get me to shut up. To stop me from saying things I was bound to regret later.
“You’re the queen of the pick mes, and at the end of the day you fuck married men who say they’re going to leave their families for you, but they never do. Because you’re the woman men fuck, not the one they marry.”
“You are such a judgmental bitch. Sometimes I question whether they switched you at birth. Because there is no way this closed-minded prude crawled out of my cooch.”
“I wonder the same thing because I know my real mother wouldn’t have abandoned her kids for a free trip to Cabo.”
“There was food in the fridge. All you had to do was warm it up.”
“We were taken by CPS. And placed in foster care for three months. But at least you got a tan and your guts dug out. Fucking mother of the year over here.”
For once in her miserable life my mother was speechless. No witty comeback, no equally hurtful jab. “I’m going to return some messages.” Jemini left the suite, drink in hand.
“You took that shit too far.” Anika immediately scolded me. “Did you really have to bring that up? You know that was a tough time for her.”
“She doesn’t like to talk about it because when you look at it in the light it’s real suspect. On a scale of one to ten of motherhood, she was a three point five.”
Anika stepped off the pedestal and sat next to me. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m not trying to ruin your day.”
“It’s a little too late for that.” She took a sip from my glass of champagne.
“She just needs to keep his name out of her mouth. Jemini acts like he’s my golden ticket.
Not a fucking day has gone by when I didn’t regret the way I handled the breakup.
I walked away from a man who loved me, like really fucking loved me.
A man who was thoughtful and intentional with his energy and time.
And I don’t think I appreciated how rare that was. ”
“Yeah, I could’ve told you the dating scene was rough. It’s the Wild Wild West in this motherfucker.”
“He was my first everything. I just got scared because no one gets the love of their life on the first try.”
“You were too young to appreciate what you had, but now you have a second chance.”
I was so tired of those words, second chance. “What if it’s not the same?”
“I can guarantee you it won’t be. You’re not college kids anymore, but your boobs are still perky and that ass.” She made a popping sound. “If we weren’t sisters—”
“Don’t, don’t you dare.”
“You don’t even know what I was going to say.”
“I have a pretty good idea.”
“Can I finish?”
I waved my hand giving her the floor. “If we weren’t sisters … I would strap on a dildo and fuck you deeply.
“Thank you?”
“Missionary style so I could see your pretty face.”
I flashed a glance at the sales attendant who’d returned with several veils, and I was certain she’d heard all of that.
“Hooking up with your ex is a rite of passage. We’ve all done it.” She pointed to the clerk. “Am I right? But I think that’s what makes it so exciting, is the chance to fall in love all over again.”
“What if he doesn’t fall back?”
“Then he’s an idiot and we’ll TP his house, scratch his car, and post his nudes.”
“That’s illegal.”
“Which one?”
“All of them.”
“That man adores you. I’m talking drinking your bathwater after you’ve run a 10K race. Like you could call him right fucking now and tell him you wanted the Gucci Softbit maxi shoulder bag in green and it would be at your front door in under an hour. Give me your phone, let me text him.”
“No.” I clutched my phone to my chest.
How about this, after dress shopping, call Aldridge, get fucked and you’ll feel better. That post-sex clarity will kick in. Now I’m going to wrangle Mom. You’re going to apologize, and we’re turning the page.” She stood to go in search of our mother.
“Anika.”
“Yes.”
“You really look amazing. You’re going to be the most beautiful bride.”
“Thank you, Sissy.”
When she exited the suite, I reached for my phone.
Danessa: Can I come over and let you bury your face in it?
Aldridge: I was going to wipe down the baseboards but that can wait.
“The team agreed to give Coach Justus a gift for his birthday from all of us. Colin was in charge of purchasing the gift and we all gave him money. So come to find out …” Aldridge was banging his fist into his palm for emphasis. “Colin had everyone sign the card except me.”
“What?” I asked as we traveled from aisle to aisle looking for the legal section.
“Yeah, he deliberately left my name off the card. So now Coach probably thinks I’m cheap or worse, that I hate him.”
“Maybe it was an oversight.”
“No this was a blatant power move. So now I have to either bitch slap him in front of everybody or take the L.”
“I don’t think those are your only options.”
“He’s trying to son me.”
“Okay then just go up to your coach and ask him how he liked the gift the team got him.”
“That feels desperate.”
“What was the gift anyway?”
“The fuck if I know. Colin’s wife handled that.”
“Sounds like maybe leaving your name off the card was a good idea,” I teased.
“No, this is just how it works. The wives and girlfriends take care of shit like that. They help keep the peace and host the parties and come up with cute dances in the stands.” Aldridge broke out into the latest trendy social media dance.
“Sounds horrible.”
“What, supporting their husbands?”
“Being a glorified event planner.”
“I think athlete’s spouses get a bad rep.”
“How so?”
“They are the backbone of the family. Without them nothing moves. They make sure the kids are taken care of and their partner’s needs are met.
And they’re forced to take on a lot of the hidden responsibilities of doctor’s appointments, little league games, PTA meetings, Ramblers’ charity events.
And some women have full-time jobs or run small businesses. ”
“It just sounds like a ton of work with very little reward.”
“I guess it just depends on what you prioritize.”
“I mean you could just marry your assistant, Nori, if you were looking for someone to organize your life.”
“Nori’s way out of my league.”
“I just don’t think everyone is interested in being a tradwife.”
“Okay.” Aldridge chuckled. “You know the funny thing about relationships is you and your partner can curate a life that works for you both.”
“A lot of men say that but—”
Aldridge stepped closer and was now towering over me. “I’m not these other men. So can we stop with the generalizations? If you want to know how I feel about a specific topic, just ask me.”
“I wasn’t referring to us. We’re not even a couple. We’re just …” I scanned the vicinity to confirm no one was in earshot. “Fucking.”
“Wow, you’re really good at making things awkward.”
“I wasn’t trying to. But let’s be real, we don’t have titles.”
“Right, because we’re just fuck buddies.”
“Yeah FUBU.”
“I don’t typically go to bookstores with my fuck buddies.”
“Who knows, maybe you have a dark academia fetish.”
Aldridge grabbed a random book from the shelf, cracked it open and started to finger fuck it. “I mean I do love the way the pages slide against my skin.”
God I’d never wanted to be a piece of literature more in my entire life. There was a summer where I went through a whole cottagecore era and walked around with a well-loved copy of Jane Eyre. “You’ve gotten to second base with that book, so you’re going to have to buy it.”
Aldridge slammed the book shut. “The legal section is over there.” He was taller than the bookshelves and could survey the entire store with little effort.
“Do you think I’m funny?”
“You make me laugh.”
“But when you describe me to other people do you say ‘You have to meet Danessa, she’s hilarious. You’re going to love her’?”
“No, I usually lead with how smart you are.”
“I can be funny though?”
“I mean you’re not a laugh riot, but you have your moments. I think we kind of balance one another out. I’m funny and you’re funny to a lesser degree.”
“So you think you’re the comedic genius that holds everything together?”
“I mean my timing is impeccable, I allow space for the inevitable laugh. People tend to leave conversations with me with a smile on their face.”
Pointing to my chest I declared, “I leave people smiling.”
“Yes, you leave people smiling because you’re warm and thoughtful. You’re an amazing listener. You have the ability to read people and say the right thing to make them feel better.”
“So I’m not funny?”
“Any fuck buddy dynamic …” I laughed at his use of the term in relation to us. “has to have a ying and a yang. I’m funny, you’re smart. I’m athletic, you can act and sing the entire Dreamgirls musical.”
My entire body lit up as I enthusiastically delivered my favorite line. “Turn your wigs around. It’s sophisticated looking.”
“See, balance, symmetry. Who said you’re not funny?”
“Jemini.”
“Ouch.”
“Yeah, we kind of got into a fight at Anika’s dress fitting.”
“About what?”
“About you.”
“How’d I get into it?”
“Jemini has very strong feelings about our …” I waved my hand searching for the right word.
“Situationship.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Didn’t you explain it was a mutually beneficial fuck buddy arrangement? I get to see you naked and you get to ride my dick.”
“I think you’re getting the short end of the stick.”
“That … that was funny.”
“Yeah?”
“Yes.” He leaned in placing a soft kiss on my lips. I don’t know if it was the campus bookstore or being with my college sweetheart but something about him made me feel soft and girly, like coquette bows and almond-shaped nails. “How do you do that?”
“Do what?”
“Make the world stop and shit.”
“Because I only have eyes for you. Everything else, everyone else is just set dressing.”
“More kisses. I need more kisses.”
He obliged with pecks to my neck, forehead and lips. “You know the only opinions that matter when it comes to you and me are you and me.”
“Mhmm?”
“So if we want to keep it casual or transition to something more. Or if we want to go off the grid and make oat milk, that’s our business.”
“Oat milk?”
“Have you never had ice cream made with oat milk?”
“No.”
Aldridge’s face lit up. “It’s going to change your life. And it’s going to ruin you for all other ice creams.”
I feel like that could be a metaphor for our relationship. “Really?”
“It’s my only vice. I gave up alcohol and all that other stuff and it’s just this. My decadent, creamy, little secret.”
“I need a man to talk about me the way you do your oat milk ice cream.”
“Listen, I have two loves. One is oat milk ice cream.”
“What’s the other?”
“I can’t say because right now she thinks this is a situationship.”
I smushed his face playfully, “Shut up.” Grabbing a six-hundred-page textbook from the shelf, I handed it to him.
I didn’t want to hear the love word, this was too new and Aldridge was a serial dater.
He was the type who loved being in love and maybe what we had was more about nostalgia than anything else, and he’d quickly lose interest.
It’s like Bubble Charm Babies, they were a popular toy when I was growing up.
I had like ten of these charms hanging from my backpack.
I thought I was so cool. I mean I was because all the popular girls had them.
And the more charms you had, the more social credit you earned.
But like with all trends, it quickly fizzled out and I wouldn’t be caught dead with one of those charms. “I refuse to be a Bubble Charm Baby.”
“Not following.”
“Bubble Charm Babies, trendy, elusive, flying off the shelf. My mother punched a woman once to get the last two Twinkle Baby charms.”
“I love how you just dropped me into the middle of the story, no background, no foreshadowing, just action.”
“I’m not a trend. And I won’t be thrown into a dark drawer never to be heard from again.” I shoved another book into his hands.
“Okay, I won’t put Twinkle Baby in a corner.”
“Damnit, you are funnier than me.”
At the register the clerk scanned my items. “Your total is eight hundred seventy-two dollars and sixty-eight cents.”
“Here you go.” Aldridge handed the clerk his card.
“Hold up. Aldridge, I’m paying for my own books.”
“The hell you are.”
“I don’t need you to buy my books, that’s not why I let you tag along.”
“It makes my skin itch having my girl come out of pocket for anything.”
We’re just going to pin the fact he called me his girl. “I appreciate that but—”
“If you don’t let this man buy them expensive ass books for you and be grateful,” an older woman holding two thick textbooks with rings on every finger instructed me.
“Yeah, what she said,” Aldridge chimed in like a child.
“Cause if you don’t, honey I could use some help.”
I wasn’t trying to be ungrateful, I just didn’t want to take advantage.
Aldridge scanned the books in the lady’s arm. “I got you.”
“What?” she and I said in unison. Aldridge was generous to a fault and that could be a gift and a curse.
Aldridge emptied her arms, “Can you add these to the total?” He asked the clerk.
“I was just joking you don’t have to.” She was just as shocked as me.
“Don’t block your blessing.”
“Thank you. That’s really very nice of you.” She glanced at me and nodded in Aldridge’s direction.
“Thank you, Aldridge.” I walked into his chest and wrapped my arms around him.
“I got you Danessa. I always got you.”