Chapter 9 Howdy! #2
I have to hold back the urge to point it out; the last thing I want to do is make this awkward situation even more awkward. Mercifully, it seems like the years of public relations have made her much better at this kind of thing than me.
“It really has been a while.” She takes a cautious step toward me. “You look good. I like the nose ring. Very chic.”
“Oh, thanks. The things we do with adult money, huh?”
I feel like I’m 14 again talking to the prettiest girl in school. All the guys wanted Daphne, and all of them were always so pissed that she was hanging out with me.
“Well, at least we dress cool.” She smirks, looking me up and down. “So, I heard you’re the Dean of… Something over at EBU. Was it Sociology?”
“That’s right.”
I wonder if she had someone on her team get her up to speed on the way here, or if she got curious and looked me up herself. She probably prepped for everyone.
“That’s really cool, Frankie. Congrats.”
A little bit of relief works its way into my chest, loosening that tight anxious feeling that had been building between my ribs.
“Thanks— and congratulations on the kid, and the Grammys. That, uh… that last album was good.”
“You listen to my albums?”
The second I see her head tilt I start getting nervous all over again. I made myself a promise this morning, and I was very clear: Say hello, tell her you’re sorry for her loss, and then go home to play Call of Duty.
I have not been following protocol.
“Oh! Um— well, my buddy does. He’s a big fan, actually. His name’s Roman.”
A sly smile creeps across her face.
“Well, tell Roman I say thank you.”
And then there’s that long, awkward silence again. Fuck, I hate this. When we were kids, the conversation flowed effortlessly, and for hours. Now? We’re pivoting back and forth between relaxed and pulling teeth.
I take a drag.
“I’m sorry about Joe, by the way.”
Her eyes mist as she sucks on her own cigarette.
“Thanks. Yeah, he… he was really special.”
“Yeah, he was. I always appreciated that he hosted mom’s wake.”
My medical bills were sky high after the accident, and I was dumping most of my inheritance into paying them off.
I could barely afford a funeral, and dad couldn’t even bring himself to come back home to say goodbye.
All mom got from him was a generic sympathy card, so Joe made sure to lighten the load wherever he could.
“Yeah, sorry, I… I heard about your mom, and the accident.” Her voice is choked, straining to stay composed. “I’m so sorry. I sent flowers, I just didn’t know—”
“I got them.” I flash her my best awkward smile. “Thank you. And I’m sorry I didn’t call, it was just—”
“You were going through it.”
“Yeah,” I chuckle. “Yeah, I was.”
She blows out a cloud of smoke, staring into the distance as her chin trembles. I want to give her a hug and tell her it’ll be okay, but at this point anything I have to offer seems painfully trite. All I can do is look at my shoes and give her a couple moments of privacy.
“Sorry… I’m still kinda processing everything.”
“Yeah, no, if you want me to go—”
“No, it’s okay. I like the company. Better than crying out here all by myself, right?”
“Or in the bathroom. But then you’d probably have to share it with Gary.”
She raises a brow.
“Who’s Gary?”
“You haven’t met The Hi-Dive’s resident mouse? He moved in last year.”
“I haven’t had the pleasure,” she snickers. “Is it a Stuart Little situation?”
“I don’t think so. We’ve had a couple of drunken chats, but I don’t get much out of him other than a few squeaks. No sweater vests either.”
She laughs even harder than before. I forgot how much I loved that sound.
I thought she’d be so different if she ever came back, like all that Hollywood glitz and glamor would have changed her somehow, but it feels like she’s still the same Daphne from across the street. I feel like I’m choking on nostalgia just staring at her.
And now we have to start over in this dingy alley that smells like piss.
“So, you’re really taking over this place?”
“Looks like it, yeah. Joe sort of left it to me? And my folks are too tired to keep running it anyway.”
It’s no secret that the place fell apart once Edith and Ken stepped in. It’s a lot to take care of a dying parent and run a bar when you were supposed to be traveling and enjoying your retirement.
“So, it’s gonna be a permanent thing? You hiring a new team, or…?”
“Not sure,” she replies. “I do know I’d like to get it back into good shape before I hand it off to a team. And then I can do the rest from New York, I guess. Owners aren’t usually super hands on, from what I’ve heard.”
Daphne smiles at me and I take a breath, awkwardly shoving my hands into my pockets.
“Look, I gotta get back inside and do some mingling, give some hugs, you know the drill, but… would you wanna go for coffee sometime soon? Catch up a little more?”
It’s probably a bad idea. There’s no way anything good comes from this, right?
“That sounds great.”
Before I can stop myself, I’m handing her my phone and watching her punch in her number. She passes it back with another warm smile, patting my shoulder and heading back inside.
Should I make plans now? Is that too awkward? Should I wait for her?
Is this even her number? She could have given me her assistant’s number, or something.
I should test it out. Something cool, something casual.
ME
Howdy.
Ugh. There are hundreds of ways to greet someone in the English language and I settled on howdy?
Just as I’m trying to figure out if there’s a way to un-send a message, my phone lights up in my hand.
DAPHNE
Yeehaw!