Chapter 15
Haddy
Daniel Ito is my counterpart in Japan. We’ve never met in person, and we don’t really know each other. We were assigned to work together by our graduate advisors.
Mine is Dr. Vera Cross. She works closely with a researcher at the Japanese Society of Kawasaki Disease, and the two of them are the leaders of this study.
Daniel and I are simply two of the many graduate students contributing to their work.
He doesn’t speak English very well, and I know zero Japanese, which means we communicate mostly in smiles and nods and Google Translate.
We both look forward to helping save many lives. As it is, we’re mostly tracking wind currents and noting timelines and directions on spreadsheets until something major happens or a pattern appears.
Despite all my excitement talking about the potential of my studies, for the most part, it’s pretty boring work.
It reminds me of the astronomers who sit out and listen to space noise. We’re the true believers. I think of Jodi Foster in that movie about aliens, Contact. I have always related deeply to the scene of her putting on headphones and leaning back on the hood of that car.
Maybe one day all of this watching on our part will lead to us cracking the code. Until then, we’re documenting the trade winds.
Glancing down, I see a text on my screen.
Gavin
You have a tattoo on your hip. What is it?
My brow wrinkles, and I quickly send a reply.
Haddy
Aren’t you supposed to be practicing?
Gavin
We have a break, and quit stalling. What’re you trying to hide?
Haddy
IPWs are not supposed to have tattoos.
Gavin
I always knew you were a rebel. What is it?
Haddy
An axolotl.
Gavin
WTF is that?
Haddy
Only the cutest little sea creature ever to live! Google it. I’ll wait.
I do wait.
Gray dots float across the screen.
I wait a little longer, then his answer appears.
Gavin
It’s smiling… Is that for real? That’s the cutest little thing I’ve ever seen. Is it a lizard? What is it?
Warmth floods my insides, and I’m grinning as I reply.
Haddy
It’s a paedomorphic salamander.
Gavin
Okay, smarty pants, WTF does that mean?
Haddy
Paedomorphic means it retains juvenile features. Basically, it’s a cute little salamander that never grows up.
Gavin
Is that bad? It seems really cute.
Haddy
I don’t think it minds being a Peter Pan lizard
Gavin
Are those little things around its head whiskers?
Haddy
They’re gills. It never grows out of them.
Gavin
And you got this because…
Haddy
It was my favorite stuffed animal as a baby, my aunt Mimi made them for me, and I’ve always loved them. They’re very good at regenerating limbs, they symbolize immortality…
Gavin
I don’t think I’d want to live forever. After a while, you’re all alone. All your friends have died.
Haddy
So no vampirism for you—got it. What’s the word you have on your ribs? Kombucha? Big fan of the fermented tea?
Gavin
Komorebi. It’s a Japanese word… kind of hard to describe. It’s the way sunbeams filter through the leaves on the trees. Serenity, beauty…
Haddy
Unexpected.
Gavin
My mom Kenny’s a tattoo artist. She said it’s the way you feel when you find the person you’ll spend the rest of your life with.
My brow furrows, and I tilt my head at the words on the screen as emotion warms my chest
Haddy
You’re very romantic.
Gavin
Only with you, Princess. Gotta run—they’re calling us onto the ice.
Gavin
What’s your nickname?
I’m curled up in my bed, Patsy is secure in her crate, and I’m just drifting to sleep when my phone screen lights up with his question. Twisting my lips, I reply.
Haddy
Did Maverick tell you to ask me that?
Gavin
No…
Haddy
My nickname is Haddy.
Gavin
Why do I feel like it’s also something else?
Haddy
Do you have a nickname?
Gavin
When we played in ATL, fans started calling me Boomer, but it was because Maverick would yell Boom every time we made a big play.
Haddy
He called you Boomer when you first got here. When did you pick up Gavin? You were Lane in college.
Gavin
After all that stuff with Karen, I wanted a break from the past.
Haddy
But why Gavin?
Gavin
I was in this play in elementary school where I was Sir Gavin the Gray, a fictional Knight of the Round Table. He seemed like a good guy, so when I arrived in ATL, I went with it.
Haddy
I like it, Sir Gavin.
Gavin
Your turn… you’re clearly hiding something. Out with it.
Haddy
It’s not a nickname. It’s more an inside, family joke about my dad.
Gavin
Quit stalling, Princess.
Haddy
Super pooper.
Gray dots float…
More gray dots…
I feel my throat tightening with embarrassment. Why did I tell him that? I guess he could’ve gotten it out of Maverick. Mav loves telling that story.
Gavin
Haddy
Stop.
More minutes pass, and my cheeks heat with embarrassment. I’m ready to put my phone away when his reply appears.
Gavin
Do you break toilets or something?
Haddy
When I was a baby my dad couldn’t change poopy diapers without gagging, and I think they exaggerated my baby poops because he was such a drama king.
Gavin
It’s okay, Princess, I’ve been known to break a toilet in my day.
Haddy
I don’t break toilets! My bowel movements are as normal as anybody’s!
Gavin
I don’t know how I feel about you checking out other people’s BMs. Have you ever been kicked off a flight because of excessive bodily functions?
Haddy
Goodnight, Gavin.
Gavin
Favorite TV show as a kid… I’ll go first, The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. I thought living in a suite looked so cool.
Haddy
Did you ever live in one?
Gavin
Yep—when I was in ATL, I had my own penthouse suite.
Haddy
Fancy. Was it everything you dreamed it would be?
Gavin
Pretty much. But I like living in a house with my best friend, two beautiful smart women, and a couple of dogs. Hell, that sounds like a show right there.
Haddy
Sometimes it is
Gavin
What was yours?
Haddy
Hannah Montana
Gavin
That show was funny as shit. Dolly Parton was on it once.
Haddy
A lot of people were on it. I liked how she could be a pop star and a regular kid at the same time.
Gavin
Kind of like you—a princess and a scientist. What got you interested in pageants? You said your mom isn’t a fan.
Haddy
My mom hates pageants. She was forced to be in them as a girl, and she couldn’t believe I wanted to do it. It was like I’d betrayed her.
Gavin
But someone took you to those competitions, bought your dresses, paid your admission fees…
Haddy
She doesn’t need your help. She already has Dad
Gavin
So what was it? Besides the fact that you’re naturally beautiful… and you have really good posture.
Haddy
We train for that. Ever heard of books on the head?
Taking a second, I inhale, looking around the science lab to where my poster of Heddy Lamar and Natalie Portman is hanging.
Nowhere is it written that you can’t be a beauty queen and a scientist.
Haddy
My grandmother was Miss Georgia World. When I was little, I found a box filled with all her old pageant pictures, and she seemed so confident and controlled. I wanted to be like that.
Gavin
She must be really proud of you.
Haddy
She died before I was born. I never knew her, but my mom said she would’ve been thrilled. The way she said it… I got the impression they didn’t get along.
Gavin
I’m sorry.
Haddy
It’s family stuff. You know. Kind of how your parents didn’t want you to play hockey.
Gavin
They’re just over-protective, but they support me. I think it’s really cool that you’re a beauty queen. Especially when you turn around and start explaining paedomorphic salamanders. Hot.
Haddy
Thanks, Gav
Hesitating a moment, I study my phone screen. I think about a video I watched earlier of the team getting off the bus that transported them from their hotel to the arena.
My interest grew as each of the massive players filed off dressed in designer suits, smiling at the camera, occasionally winking or pointing.
Maverick looked really good, but when Gavin stepped out, my mouth went dry.
His expression was so focused. His dark brows were lowered over his ice blue eyes, and he looked like a runway model in a gray suit with his dark hair slicked away from his face. I couldn’t take my eyes off him.
My core grows hot and slippery at the memory, and I decide just to tell him.
Haddy
I miss you guys. When will you be back?
Gavin
Friday. Then we’ll be back for a while. You’ll probably be wishing we were gone again.
Haddy
I don’t think so.
Gavin
See you soon, Princess.
Gavin
Another win! I think Mav’s finally forgiven me for my post-Halloween meltdown.
Haddy
You melted down? Why?
Gray dots float, and I snuggle deeper into my blankets. The weather is getting cooler, and Thanksgiving is fast approaching.
Gavin
My head wasn’t in the game. We’d just had our night, and then when we saw you on the street, you wouldn’t look at me. I couldn’t stop thinking about it… wondering why.
Haddy
I’m sorry. I guess I was kind of freaked out.
Gavin
Don’t apologize. It was pretty earth-shaking.
Haddy
Things were definitely shaking.
My legs for starters. The memory sends heat from my chest to my stomach to my core, and I might need a visit with my battery-operated boyfriend, a.k.a., Bob tonight.
Gavin
Would you say I shook you all night long?
Haddy
Or did I shake you
Gavin
Sassy. I like it. I think we’re a good match, like puzzle pieces fitting together.
Haddy
Are you implying I have a Gavin-shaped hole?
Gavin
You do now, Princess. Perhaps I can fill it for you.
Haddy
Night, Gav.
Yep. I put my phone on the charger feeling all hot and flustered. Reaching into my bedside drawer, I take out the smooth purple device. It’s not as big as the gray knight’s dick, but it gets the job done.
A few well-placed vibrations, and my back arches, my legs shake, and I’ll get through another night without him.
Gavin
Boarding the plane, wondering if you have a favorite food?
Haddy
Tater tots.
I close the door to the oven, standing back and crossing my arms. They’ll be back tonight, and I can’t keep the zippy feeling out of my stomach. My throat is tight, and I can’t stop smiling.
Gavin
You’re kidding…
Haddy
Crispy tater tots with salt and ketchup are the best thing on the planet. Like God’s little gifts of deliciousness.
Gavin
Hayden Bradford, you never stop surprising me.
Haddy
Is that a bad thing?
Gavin
It’s one of my favorite things about you, Princess.