Now #2
After I throw my clothes on, I adjust my baseball cap, so it sits on my head with the brim facing forward. I’m too lazy to put my shoes on now, so I’ll just do it before I leave.
“Are you making breakfast?” Xander smiles at me innocently.
“I’m this close to sending you to pick up breakfast from somewhere.”
“What are you two kids arguing about now?” Noah cracks open the bathroom door as he comes out.
“I asked him if he’s making breakfast. He woke up on the sassy side of the bed this morning.”
“Why do you always ask him that every morning? You’re an adult, Xander. You can make yourself breakfast.”
“Yeah, but I’m not a chef like Grayson.”
I roll my eyes, shaking my head. “What a cop-out. You’re a great cook, man.”
“Oh, c’mon. You’re just saying that.” Xander waves me away.
“Okay, we’re wasting precious time. Do we want to order something or make something here?”
My lips lean into Xander’s ear. “Looks like I’m not the only cranky person in this room.”
Xander laughs, covering his mouth to filter out the noise. It doesn’t help much because Noah’s getting angrier with every minute that passes by. His face is crinkling, his chest is heaving, and his nostrils are flaring.
“Forget it. I need some fresh air. You two dipshits are on your own.” Noah grabs both sets of his keys and his phone, then storms out. The door slams shut behind him, leaving Xander and I to keep each other company.
We stand in silence for several minutes as we both try to figure out why Noah is so pissed off.
What the hell was that?
“Obviously something happened between now and last night. Did he get into a fight with Dani?”
“I mean, I don’t know. We didn’t talk much after we said good night to you.”
“Okay. Did they get into a fight last night at the party?”
“Um…maybe. I heard them raise their voices at each other. I think it had something to do with future living arrangements or something. I’m not really sure because it was so loud. They were cordial to each other when we left though.”
“You know that doesn’t mean shit, right?”
Whipping out my phone, I start a text conversation with Dani to get to the bottom of all this.
Me
I know this is none of my business, but did you and Noah get into a fight last night?
Dani
what happened?
Me
Your boyfriend yelled at Xander and I. He stormed out of the apartment with no explanation. I think he’s going to get breakfast somewhere
Dani
i tried to get him to come outside when we were at stingray house, so we could talk about it because it was so freaking loud inside. we could barely hear anything we were saying to each other
Me
Well, I’d call him and find out where he is because he worries me when he’s like this
Dani
he worries me when he gets like this, too. don’t worry, i’m going to find him, and we’ll resolve what’s going on between us. you don’t have to do anything. okay?
Me
Are you sure?
Dani
this isn’t your problem to fix. it’s mine. we’re going to be okay
Me
Okay, I’m sure Noah will tell me what happens, but if he doesn’t, keep me posted
Dani
i will
I knew if I tried to contact Noah that he wouldn’t answer me, and I didn’t want to piss him off more than he already is. This is why I texted Dani because I knew she’d answer me. I didn’t need to know every tiny detail because I’m not Noah or Dani. I just want Dani to know what’s going on.
When Noah gets like this, he retreats and doesn’t like being around anybody.
He’s done this since he was a kid. It’s gotten worse since his dad passed away a few months ago.
Grief isn’t something that somebody should go through alone.
I’ve told Noah this so many times, but he doesn’t want to talk about it whenever I bring it up.
Bottling things up only makes things worse in the end because everything implodes before it all explodes. I’ve learned to stop doing that because it doesn’t help me in the long run.
“What’s going on?” Xander asks.
“Dani’s going to find Noah and talk to him.”
“Okay, good.” He pats me on the back. “They’ll figure everything out. They always do.”
Noah and Dani don’t get into fights that often, but when they do, they both retreat and wallow in their negative emotions for a bit before they pass. Xander’s right though. They always resolve their disagreements through healthy communication.
When Violet and I were together, we barely fought.
The only fight I remember is the party we went to during our senior year of high school.
The one where I got a concussion from banging my head on the wall.
She got pissed at me for drinking at the party because she knew how I acted when I got drunk.
I didn’t try to argue back because I ultimately didn’t care.
I just wanted to escape and feel good about myself.
I wasn’t myself that night.
I was never myself with alcohol coursing through my veins.
“Scrambled eggs with cheese and buttered toast?” Xander holds up one of our nonstick pans.
“Sure.”
It takes Xander twenty minutes to make us breakfast. I’m sitting at the kitchen table with a fork and a knife in front of me.
My phone’s lockscreen lights up with two texts. One from Noah, and one from Dani. I click on Noah’s text first.
Noah
I’m sorry I freaked you guys out. I should’ve told you what was going on, but it was something Dani and I needed to talk about together. We’re okay
I read Dani’s text afterwards.
Dani
hey, we talked. i’m sure noah reached out to you, so i’ll spare you repetitive details. we’re extremely lucky to have you as our friend. thank you for looking out for us, and thank you for looking out for my lover boy
And I’m very lucky to have you both as my friends.
A paper plate full of fluffy, scrambled eggs, and a golden brown piece of toast with butter on it slides in front of me. I can see the steam coming from the eggs. It won’t last long because eggs cool down fast.
Taking a stab at the eggs with my fork, a small amount lands on it, and I blow on them. When they land inside my mouth, I’m met with a soft texture and buttery flavor.
Holy crap! This is good.
“And you don’t think you’re a good cook?” I ask him.
“What makes you say that?”
“Did you cook the eggs in butter?”
His eyes grow wide. “Yeah, why? Do they taste bad?”
“Why would they taste bad? They’re so good. I don’t normally use butter because I’m too lazy.”
“I don’t know. I know how you can be, so I was prepared for the worst.”
“What do you mean by how I can be?”
“You’re particular about your food. You know what you like, and that’s not a bad thing.”
“I think most people are particular about their food. We all have different palates, so we enjoy different foods. Also, didn’t your mom teach you how to cook?”
He sits down diagonally from me, placing his plate of food in front of him.
“She taught me the basics. She showed me how to make rice and beans when I was younger. I needed a step stool to reach the counter.” He chuckles.
“I still need to work on mastering picadillo because my mother’s recipe is the best. The recipe has been handed down to her from generations before her.
I think that’s why I’m so hard on myself.
The women in my family are masters at what they do, and I’m not even close. ”
“Oh yeah, your family’s picadillo is the best.” I take a bite of my toast. “Don’t be so hard on yourself.
It’s not easy to follow in the footsteps of your family.
Noah’s mom taught me all I need to know about Jewish cuisine.
It’s not that my mom didn’t know anything, but she didn’t cook that much for the Jewish holidays.
Laura taught me how to make matzo ball soup, potato latkes, challah bread, and brisket.
She may not be related to me by blood, but she’s a part of my found family. ”
“Sometimes families aren’t defined by blood or last names. Sometimes they’re just people we want to be surrounded by.”
“Wow, that was poetic and wise.”
“I have my moments.” He winks at me.
Tapping on my phone, I see the time.
It’s 11:10 a.m.
I want to leave here between 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. ideally, since it takes around a half hour to get to Sunset Cove without major traffic, and I want to get to the shelter at a reasonable hour.
This is mainly because I want to be able to spend a decent amount of time with my mom, especially since I’m bringing Violet with me.
After Xander finishes his breakfast, he takes our plates and silverware. He throws away the plates before he washes the forks we used.
“So, what are your plans today?” I ask Xander out of pure curiosity.
“After last night, I plan on having a very chill day here at the apartment. I don’t want to go anywhere if I don’t have to.”
“Yeah, that makes sense.”
“What are your plans for after you guys visit your mom?” He leans on the edge of the counter near the sink.
“I’m not sure. I threw out the idea of getting lunch, and she said she was okay with it yesterday. That could change though.”
“Interesting,” he says.
“What?”
“Oh, nothing.”
“Mm-hm. I’ll be in my room if you need me, scrolling aimlessly on my phone.”
“Don’t get trapped in the digital rabbit hole.”
Xander isn’t an avid social media user like Noah and I. For Noah, he has to be on social media to promote his book, and he enjoys scrolling like I do. For me, I like seeing what people are up to and watching random videos for entertainment purposes.
Xander is an old soul, and I aspire to be more like him in that regard.
“I’ll do my best not to.” I get up from my chair and push it in.
Once I’m inside my room, I lie down on my bed and take out my phone. Time to let the scrolling commence.