Twenty-Seven
Gavin
I ’ m waiting alone for the relationship workshop to start on Sunday afternoon, trying not to feel like I stand out as the only
single person among couples who all seem to know each other from previous sessions. The convention wrapped up last night and
Mia promised she’d be here, but my stomach is in knots. We’re both under a lot of stress, and instead of letting me support
her, she pushed me away for the first time ever. I can’t help but feel it’s because we’re in a weird in-between place. Not
quite friends, not quite dating.
This couples retreat feels like the final hurdle to clear. Get through this and then we can tell our friends and family about
our relationship when the time is right. Except I don’t know if we’re being real about our relationship or faking friendship
today. Mia is coming here straight from the convention, and didn’t answer when I called her back after seeing her missed call
from last night, so I figured she was busy packing and checking out of the hotel.
The excursion is at a park near the river, and most of the people are gathered under one of the picnic shelters, snacking and chatting, but I’m too nervous to eat.
The email Sera for warded said we’re supposed to “Dress to Get Wet,” and when I see the pile of inflatable tubes, I’m glad I wore my swimsuit instead of shorts.
Hovering near the edge of the group, I finally catch sight of Mia.
Her face breaks into a huge grin when we lock eyes, and something in my chest shifts and settles into place.
She’s dressed in a belly-baring tank top and windbreaker shorts. The light colors pop against her glowing skin, and when she
throws her arms around me in a tight hug, I have to tamp down the reflex to press my lips to hers. But she surprises me by
rising on tiptoes and kissing me.
“I’m so sorry, Gavin,” she says when she pulls away. “I let stupid stuff crowd out what matters and—” She tenses, lets go,
and stares.
The move is so abrupt that I follow her line of sight and— No way. Her sister and Ted are making their way over from the parking
lot. Kim says something to him and angles off toward the park building marked Restrooms . “Did you know they’d be here?”
“Kim never mentioned it,” Mia says under her breath, stepping behind me like I’ll be able to hide her. She peeks out and whispers,
“But why would she? Not like she thought it would be something I’d want to sign up for.”
“We didn’t sign up,” I whisper out of the side of my mouth, keeping my focus ahead. “Sera and Joe set us up. We don’t have
to go through with it.” How are we supposed to act? I have a feeling she might’ve told her sister about the trope tests, but
does Kim know what’s really going on between us? Before I can ask, Ted’s voice rings out.
“Gavin?” My eyes pinch shut. Freaking Ted.
With a deep breath, I open my eyes again, ready to ask what Mia wants to do, but she’s gone. Headed over toward her sister.
Ted pulls me in for a handshake-hug. “Dude, you’re the last person I expected to see here. I didn’t realize you even had a
girlfriend.”
I have no idea what to say. The moment he sees Mia, he’s going to draw conclusions, and I doubt this is how she wants her family to find out about us. Then again, maybe this is the perfect way to break the news. Instead of an awkward conversation, they’ll see us together and guess the truth.
I need to talk to her alone, but it’s too late. Ted’s already caught sight of her. “Hey, isn’t that Mia? What are the chances...”
He turns back toward me, awareness dawning in his expression. “Hang on. You and Mia?” He jostles me good-naturedly. “No shit,
man. How long has this been a thing?”
I look toward her, willing her to give me a sign of how she wants me to play this, but she’s absorbed in conversation with
her sister, their heads bent together, telling her... What? That we’re here for book research? “Um,” I say, stalling. “It’s
not what you think.”
“You two came to this thing as friends?” He’s squinting at me like that’s suspicious, because it is. But it’s what we agreed
to back at Joe and Sera’s place. Just friends. Book research. The final trope test. Relationship-in-trouble. Except the relationship is the trouble.
“Friends of ours gifted the experience. Mia came to research a plot idea.”
“Seriously? And you’re her what, guinea pig?”
I flinch at the word. “I’m here to support her. She couldn’t very well come alone.”
“Guess you’re right,” he says. “But isn’t that a little weird? I know you two are close, but there are lines.” He raises his
brows as if expecting me to agree with him.
Ted is the last person to talk about crossing a line, and apparently he gets the picture from my stare, because he steps back,
hands up. “Whatever works for you guys. It will be cool to have some friendly faces. Kim and I have been wanting to do something
like this, but we tried couples therapy once and it was intimidating. Thought it might be easier to talk through our feelings
in a fun setting.”
That’s exactly what Mia wanted to avoid. What could be worse than a public discussion of our relationship with her sister and brother-in-law listening in?
A man with a clipboard approaches us. “Have you checked in?” he asks, dividing a look between us.
“Not yet,” Ted says. “I’m here with my wife.” He waves Kim over, and Mia follows, looking apprehensive. “Ted and Kim Wallace.
This is our first time.”
The man scans the list. “Ah, here you are.” He makes a notation. “And you are?”
“Mia Brady and Gavin Lane.” She glances at me nervously. “We weren’t originally signed up. I think my friend called to change
the booking, but if that’s a problem, we can go.”
He waves a hand. “Of course it’s not a problem. I spoke with Serafina last week. Today is definitely an activity to avoid
during pregnancy, but it’s a fun one. Grab a water from the cooler while I check everyone else in,” he says. “Gonna be a scorcher
today.”
No kidding. Mia and I are in the hot seat, with no time to get our story straight.
We’ve been making small talk with the other couples for the past ten minutes, and there’s been no polite moment to pull Mia
away. Finally, I decide to just go for it. “Could you excuse us,” I say, breaking into her conversation with a woman showing
pictures of her kids on her phone. “I need to talk to my... uh... Mia for a minute.”
The woman sizes me up, not bothering to hide the fact she thinks there’s clearly a reason why an inconsiderate guy like me
should be here, but I couldn’t care less at this point. Mia and I need to be on the same page so I know how to play this.
“Sorry.” Mia makes an apologetic grimace. “We’ll be right back.” Once we’re out of earshot, she says, “Thank you for that.
Listen—”
The man we checked in with claps his hands, cutting short whatever she was about to say. “Gather round, couples, and—” he looks at us with an indulgent smile “—friends.”
Mia and I share a look. Clearly Sera filled him in on our situation. Or what she assumed to be our situation. My heart drops.
If only Mia hadn’t wanted to hide things, we wouldn’t be in this mess. “My name is Chip, and I’ll be facilitating today. Let’s
start with introductions. Keep it simple. Your names, where you met, and if you feel comfortable, how long you’ve been together
and your current relationship status.”
Given how today is going, it’s no surprise he turns to us first. “Why don’t you two lead us off.”
“Uh, hi. I’m Gavin.” I pause, waiting to follow Mia’s cues.
“And I’m Mia,” she adds. “We met in college.”
There’s a beat of silence, like everyone is waiting for us to elaborate. When we don’t, an older woman near us puts a hand
on her heart. “College sweethearts. How darling. I didn’t know your generation was still doing that.”
“Actually,” I say, out of habit, “we weren’t together in college. Just friends.”
“Sure.” She grins at her husband, who smiles knowingly back.
“No, seriously.” I open my mouth to say more, but Mia takes my hand, squeezing it, and I’m so distracted by the unexpected
touch that I stop.
“We’ve been friends forever.” She’s still holding my hand, our fingers intertwined. “Dating is new.” Her smile is sweet and
encouraging, but wobbly. I don’t know how to interpret it. Are we going to be honest or play this up? Maybe that’s how she’s
spinning this. Her sister knows about the trope tests; Mia must want to play this off as just another trope we’re acting out.
Across from us, Ted bends to whisper in his wife’s ear, and Kim shakes her head. Is she telling him it’s a game? I can’t decide
which is worse, Ted thinking he’s in on a secret of ours, or putting on a show for Mia’s family and reducing our relationship
to pretend.
But the last time Mia dated a friend, he let her down, and I’m not going to be that guy. I’m here for her, ready to follow her lead, and trust we can sort the rest out later.
A man to the side of me mutters, “Couples therapy for a brand-new relationship? Bold.”
“Actually, that brings up a good point,” Chip says. “This is not couples therapy, nor am I a licensed therapist.” A murmur
goes through the crowd and a few confused glances are exchanged. “As stated clearly on our website and promotional materials,
our organization merely aims to foster bonds between people in relationships. We facilitate healthy strategies for conflict
resolution, but we do not aim to provide solutions to relationship issues, nor do we make any claim to provide counseling.
We simply provide a way for couples to deepen their relationship.”
He beams, but a few of the couples are whispering, and he clears his throat. “Now that the disclaimer is out of the way, let’s
finish with introductions so we can jump into the fun part.”
As the pair to the right of us introduces themselves, I bend and whisper, “Seems sketchy, but good news for us. No one’s going
to poke holes in our relationship timeline.” I’m doing my best to keep things light, but I want her to tell me this isn’t