Chapter Twenty-Two
Renny
Months later, I sat in the Delta Sky Club at Detroit Metro Airport.
My laptop was open, my headphones were over my ears, and I stared out at the tarmac, waiting for my flight and on hold to be let into a Zoom room. I was on my way to San Francisco, leaving Detroit for an academic year to start a new job at California University, Bay Area.
As I waited for the Zoom meeting with Taylor to start on the other half of the screen, I scrolled through the information packet his chief of staff sent regarding my salary and benefits, position and role, directions from the San Francisco airport to campus and the university-owned condo I’d be set up in, and some of the major issues facing the C.U.
system and campus that I was being hired to help address.
I hoped my gratitude showed when the campus logo and President James popped up on the screen. This new beginning was what I needed. It didn’t hurt that I had gotten an advance to cover my moving expenses and that my medical benefits started upon signing the employment paperwork.
“Good afternoon, President James,” I said with my widest, toothiest grin.
Though I was getting good lighting by sitting in front of the lounge’s windows, I wished I’d given more thought to my background and the airport travelers walking in the background by blurring it or putting up a backdrop screen. “How are you?”
“First of all, I’ve told you to please call me Taylor,” he said. “Any friend of Dustin’s is a friend of mine.”
“If you insist. I don’t want to break campus protocol or disrespect your degrees or title.”
“I appreciate that. It’s not a problem,” he said.
“I’m technically off for vacation during the month of June, so I just wanted to come on for a few quick minutes to tell you a few things.
First, I’m so glad you’ll be joining us out here in California and at the Lake Merced campus primarily, but we’ll get you doing some things at the Oakland campus, too. ”
“For sure, President James. I mean, Taylor.”
“Two, please let Dustin or me know if you need anything once you land at SFO, getting to campus, or settling into the employee housing unit we set up for you.”
“I will. I’m at the airport now in Detroit,” I said. “Got a couple hours until departure.”
“Third, Dustin and I are throwing a little Juneteenth and Pride party at our house in Oakland later in the week,” Taylor said.
“If you’re up for it, I’d love for you to stop by.
It’ll give you and Dustin a chance to reconnect, and for me to meet you in person.
There’s a Muni train station near the Lake Merced campus.
You can connect to BART in downtown San Francisco to get to Oakland and get a rideshare from there. ”
“Thanks for the invitation. I’d be happy to stop by.”
“It’s just a group of queer grown folks in our age range. You don’t have to bring anything but yourself. We’ll be starting at three—not on CP Time either.”
“Thank you,” I said, laughing. “I’ll be there on time.”
“It’ll be a fun way to welcome you to the Bay Area.”
“I appreciate that. And thank you once again for the opportunity to join your team. I’m happy. I’m ready. I’m thankful for everything, President James.”
“I told you, just call me Taylor, but I won’t hold that against you,” he said. “Glad you’re joining us in California. I love all your books, by the way. Can’t wait to catch up with you and talk more. I got a couple more calls to make, so I won’t keep you.”
“Thanks again, Pres—Taylor. I’ll text Dustin when I land and get settled.”
“For sure. Looking forward to seeing you soon—wait, is that, uh…my athletics director in the background?”
“Athletics director?” I turned around to see who Taylor was talking about.
Lo and behold, Brent was entering the Delta Sky Club, in mirrored aviator sunglasses, wearing a long-sleeved green polo shirt that had “Proud Michigan State Dad” across the chest, his chain with the “B” emblem, black wide-leg jeans, and some chunky white sneakers.
On one shoulder he had a duffel bag, and he carried a thick jacket, which surprised me since Michigan’s June temps averaged high seventies or low eighties.
Beyond the “Notable Profiles” project, Brent and I had established a healthy texting habit with each other, though I’d slacked in the past weeks with all I needed to do to prepare for my move from Detroit to San Francisco.
It wasn’t the time for a conversation with my new supervisor about our complex past, so I just said, “Oh, wow. What a small world.”
“That’s Brent King, for sure. The profile you wrote about him was excellent. In fact, all of them were.”
“Thank you.”
“I’ll text Brent and ask him to stop and say hello,” he said with excitement in his voice.
“You don’t have to go through the trouble,” I said. “I mean, I can do the same. I’ve interviewed him. Besides, I’m sure he wants to travel in peace and watch the game before departing.”
“Okay, Renny. See you later this week at the party.”
My mental alarm went off when Taylor and I ended our call. If Brent and I were working at the same campus, and he was in the airport now, that meant that we were likely scheduled on the same flight to San Francisco.
Minutes later, I felt a tap on my shoulder and heard a familiar voice.
“Well, well, well,” Brent said as I turned around to look up into his face. “I ghost you for twenty years, you ghost me for almost two months. I guess that makes us even. Mind if I join you?” He sat down and put his carry-on bag and the jacket on the seat between us. But I did return the smile.
“This is a surprise,” I said. “What are you doing here in the Detroit airport, of all places?”
“My supervisor texted me that I might want to introduce myself to a new university coworker heading to San Francisco. Little did he know I already knew you. Congratulations.”
“Ta-da. Here I am. In the flesh.”
“It’s so good to see you again, Lar…Renny. I wish you had texted me.”
“I wish you had texted me, too,” I said, eyeing the jacket he carried. “What’s with the winter coat?”
“Summertime in San Francisco. I could ask you the same thing about the shorts and T-shirt.”
“Summertime in Michigan.”
“Just wait,” Brent said. “You’ll see.”
“What brings you to Michigan? I wish I’d known you were here.”
“Macy and I just dropped off our youngest at college in East Lansing,” he said, pointing proudly to his T-shirt.
“I’m sorry I didn’t message you, but we’ve been here for almost a week buying things and getting him settled into his residence hall room.
It’s just been a blur. I’m heading back today for work.
L.B. is on the soccer team at Michigan State. A Spartan.”
“Congratulations,” I said, as I wondered about Macy and potentially seeing her for the first time in over twenty years.
A pang of guilt washed over me about having sex with Brent.
He was still married, though separated at the time.
I may have been a slut, but I was no homewrecker. “Is Macy here? With you?”
“Nah. Last minute, she decided to stop over in Detroit for a couple days to visit a few of her sorors, and she took on a last-minute gig as a judge for the Miss Michigan pageant. A benefit of being an empty nester now. Not having to rush home to young ones.”
Relieved, I said, “I see. Well, good.”
“I can’t believe my youngest is starting college,” Brent said, pulling out his phone.
He placed the screen in between us and scrolled through pictures of him and his son, and then him, Macy, and their son in various parts of the Michigan State campus.
“Well, he’s here early for summer orientation and then the soccer team starts conditioning and practicing early, since it’s a fall sport. ”
“I see. He’s handsome, like his dad. I see traces of Macy, too. Ellby, you said?”
“L.B. As in Little Brent. I’m so proud of him,” Brent said, scrolling to a folder with the name Bracee on it. “This is Bracee, the oldest. She graduated college last year and is starting her second year of law school at LMU—that’s Loyola Marymount in L.A.”
I loved seeing the joy and pride in Brent’s face as he spoke of his kids. “She definitely favors Macy,” I said, holding back comments on her nose and looking nothing like Brent. “Your son looks just like you did back in college.”
“L.B. is so much like me, it’s scary. I just wish he wanted to follow in my footsteps and play basketball. But we let him chart his own path with soccer. That’s the California in him, I guess. He wants to be a sports journalist one day. His YouTube and TikTok following are out of this world.”
“Well, you sound super proud of both of them.”
“Of course.” I saw what looked like a hint of his eyes beginning to water. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this now, in an airport lounge, of all places.”
“I’m listening.”
“When you’re a parent, it totally changes your life in a way you can’t explain.
The love you feel is deeper than anything you can ever imagine.
It’s not just about you anymore. You figure out who you are when you see yourself mirrored in them.
Raising a family is a privilege, a joy, and exhausting at the same time. Sorry to bore you, Renny.”
I wasn’t bored. I was enamored. As a non-parent, I loved hearing Brent speak of being a father. It reminded me that he and I were grown-ups now, though with two different paths of adulting. “I appreciate your sharing.”
“Time flies and they grow up so fast,” Brent continued.
“Like every year, Macy and I took pictures of them on their first days of dropping them off at day care and then school from kindergarten to senior year of high school. The first firsts are exciting. But then when you get to the last first day and realize you’ve got just one more year with them in the house, well, it kinda breaks your heart.
Especially when you drop them off at college. ”