Chapter Fifteen
Maeda
Anxiety weighed down my feet as I returned to Lucky Lanes.
I had spent the night crying in my closet of a bedroom and digging my way to the bottom of an ice cream carton.
Nikki had been hurt because of me. Again.
How had I failed so epically? She wanted to be desired.
Of course, she did. Who among us didn’t?
Somewhere along the way, I hadn’t noticed how much I had grown to lean on her.
She had become my best friend. The person I wanted to share everything with.
I was hurt, and I wanted to call my person to talk about it.
Now, I couldn’t. How had I been so blind to see that it wasn’t dependency but partnership?
I called Tilly and Danielle and explained everything to them: the arrangement, the drama with Tristan, the fight.
When the sun was in the middle of the sky, we had a plan.
By the stars, I hoped it worked. If I couldn’t win Nikki back, I wouldn’t be able to stay in this town.
Lucky Lanes was already set up for the league finals. Tilly and Danielle’s team, the Kingpin Killers, were playing against the Strike Force. I saw Nikki signing in the players and getting them registered on the automatic scorer. For this to work, I had to move quickly.
The finals match was set to start in an hour, and the plan was going to take about thirty minutes.
“Good afternoon, Lucky Lanes!” My voice echoed through the speaker system.
Nikki looked across the room at me, her brown eyes wide with surprise.
She was so beautiful. Her curly hair, her strong jaw, her tattoos under her work shirt.
I took a deep breath, and she gave me a curious look.
Like she was waiting to see where this was going.
“We are so excited for the finals of the tournament today, but first we need to settle a score!” I felt like I was shaking, but I couldn’t be sure.
Nikki was leaning against the ball return with her arms crossed over her chest. Maybe it was my imagination, but it looked like she was smiling.
Dolly came around the corner then where she had been waiting with Tilly.
She had made a card and walked it down to Nikki, who was definitely smiling now.
She bent down to take the card, which had stick figure representations of the three of us in a heart.
“Nikki Thomas, I challenge you to a matchplay!” I said, my knees felt like they might buckle at any moment. The crowd gave a collective “Oooo” and looked between us. I walked, unsteady, toward Lane 3.
“If I win,” I said to Nikki, my voice shaking, “then we give this another shot, for real and on purpose.”
Nikki contemplated. “And if I win,” she said, a glint in her eye, “you move in with me.”
The crowd erupted into chatter.
Danielle jeered, “U-haul lesbians strike again.” Tilly kissed her neck.
I looked at Dolly, who was ecstatic. “Nikki would move into our house? Forever?”
All I could think about was Nikki. Living with her would be a dream. I wanted to spend every day with her for the rest of my life. I nodded in agreement.
“Terms are set! Let the match begin!” Tilly declared.
I let Dolly pick out my ball while I tied my shoes.
The crowd had split like the Red Sea to give us access to the lane.
It went by in a blur, honestly. I had a lot of balls end up in the gutter.
Someone heckled me that I needed the rails.
Eighteen minutes later, I was stuck with a 7-10 split. My ball went right through the middle.
Nikki won.
By a landslide.
It wasn’t even close.
“Nikki wins!” Dolly cheered. Then, she came up to me and hugged my leg. “It’s okay, Mama!”
“Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!” Tilly started chanting. Soon, the whole crowd joined in.
I walked up to Nikki, who was blushing, and held both her hands. “Can I kiss you?”
She nodded.
When our lips touched, the crowed cheered.
“And with that,” Danielle said, “let’s bowl!”
Nikki and I stood in our moment for a breath longer. Then, she said, “I have to get them started.” She kissed my forehead and went to finish setting up the league finals.
I was nervous. What had I done? I was so wrapped up in the plan and losing the bowling match despite my best efforts, yet I hadn’t even considered the logistics of the terms. Nikki’s apartment was so small it had no privacy, and my “bedroom” was a closet.
How were we going to move in together? We’d have to find a new apartment and break our leases, which would be so expensive that I felt dizzy.
“Nikki,” I said when she came back to the counter as the games got started.
“I’m so sorry I made you feel like I didn’t desire you.
I was scared, and I couldn’t see that a partnership makes us stronger than when we are apart.
And, I thought that if I needed you it made me weak, but it doesn’t.
I love you. I don’t know how we are going to move in together, but I’m excited to be with you. ”
“Hold on, Mae,” Nikki said, her hands on my upper arms and interrupting my ramble, “Did you just say you love me?”
I opened my mouth to speak, my face heating.
“Oh, nothing to say now?” she teased.
“I love you, Nikki Thomas,” I said. Then, I kissed her again.
At the end, the Kingpin Killers won the tournament. Tilly hollered at us, “Let’s go get drunk at the Conneticlit!”
“Sorry, I have Dolly!” I said.
“And, we have plans,” Nikki replied before turning to me. “Come on, I’ve got something to show you.”
We loaded Dolly up in Nikki’s car and started driving. Dolly was so tired from the excitement, she fell asleep almost immediately.
“Where are we going?” This was not the road to either of our apartments.
“So first, I need you to look at this.” She handed me a manilla envelope. I opened it, and it took a few minutes to see what I was looking at.
“Is this…?”
“You’re looking at the new sole owner of Lucky Lanes!” Nikki smiled.
I grabbed her hand over the center console. “That’s amazing! You’ve been wanting this for so long.”
Nikki pulled over and kissed me. “And, I have a girlfriend. And, we are going to make a home together.”
My heart swelled. I was so excited but also nervous. “We should probably start looking for an apartment.”
“No need,” Nikki rolled down a window, turned off the car and got out.
“What are you doing?” I asked as she opened my door. We were on a random neighborhood street.
“What do you think?” She gestured behind her. There was a small two-story Victorian-style house with a for sale sign.
“I-I can’t afford a house. My credit is not the best, either. I just don’t see how this could be possible.”
“You don’t need to. I just bought it.”
“You… just… how?”
Nikki took my hand, and I got out of the car. “Mike gave me Lucky Lanes, and told my to use my savings on a house. I want to make sure Dolly has a nice home to grow up in, and I want you to feel secure. It needs a bit of fixing up, but it’s ours.”
I could have cried, but I was so overjoyed I started laughing. Bubbles of laughter spilled out of me. “How did you do all this?”
“Because I love you, Maeda. And, I want what’s best for you and Dolly.”