7. Theo
Theo woke to his mother opening the bedroom door. Tofu followed her in.
He really needed to get his own place, pronto.
‘Mum! It feels way too early for you to be barging in like this.’
She waved a dismissive hand. ‘Nonsense. It’s seven. I’ve been up for an hour already.’
She put a mug of coffee on his bedside table, which admittedly, he was grateful for, and perched on the edge of his bed. Tofu jumped up to join her and padded about the covers until she found a spot to sit right next to his pillow.
He sighed. He knew cats were supposed to be clean, and he didn’t mind his mum’s pet, but it still felt like an invasion of personal space.
‘You obviously have something to tell me, so out with it.’
Her eyes brightened. ‘Your manager just sent through a text. I hope you don’t mind, but you left your phone out on the coffee table, and I couldn’t help seeing it…’
‘What did it say?’ He struggled to engage his brain.
‘They named you one of the top five fashion influencers for this year!’
That woke him up. ‘Seriously?’
Evelyn held up her own phone with an article sharing the news. ‘Look! You’re at number three! And you’re the only Australian.’
He skimmed the article, which pointed out he had a higher engagement rate on social media than the top two places, but the fact he was still relatively new to the scene meant he only made it to the third spot.
Still. That was a huge achievement. Theo hadn’t expected to make it at all. He wondered what this would mean for future projects.
Evelyn squeezed his arm. ‘I’m so proud of you, darling. You’re lucky you inherited my genes and not your father’s.’
Theo snorted. ‘I’ve always been grateful for that, but not because it allowed me to model.’
Evelyn frowned. ‘Honey, I know he hasn’t been the best dad?—’
‘Not to mention a decent husband or human being.’
It was one of the reasons he had problems committing to a healthy relationship. He either went too fast too soon or held back for fear of doing the wrong thing. With Sarah, it had been a little of both. At the beginning, he had hoped that if he put in enough effort, the distance between them wouldn’t matter—but as soon as he caught a hint of reluctance at her end, he’d retreated. He didn’t want to get heartbroken.
Although, he’d kind of ended up that way anyway.
‘I resent your father too at times, but I decided it was hurting me more than him to hold on to those negative feelings. I was listening to a podcast the other day, and it said even if you can’t let a past hurt go, it might be easier to just let the situation be. That way, it won’t eat up your emotional reserves.’
‘Easier said than done,’ Theo muttered.
Evelyn wrung her hands together. ‘I shouldn’t have said anything that reminded you of your dad…’
‘No, it’s fine. It’s not your fault. Thanks for telling me the influencer news.’
‘Would you like to go out for dinner tonight to celebrate?’
‘Maybe. Can we discuss it once I’ve showered?’
She looked at him pitifully. ‘Are you going to see if you can find someone better first? I know going out with your mother isn’t very exciting, but could you make an exception just this once? There’s a new place down at Eagle Street Pier I’d like to try.’
‘It’s not that I’m trying to find someone better, but I did already plan on asking someone else out tonight. Sorry, it’s just…’
‘It’s fine. Who is it? You haven’t been back long. How are you already organising dates?’
‘It’s Alexis’ friend, Sarah. Things have been a little weird between us, and I want to clear the air.’
‘Oh. I didn’t know you two were a thing.’
‘We’re not. But I hope to change that.’
‘Fine. Let me know when you can fit your frail old mother into your active social life.’
Theo laughed. ‘You are as far from frail as I am. But I promise we’ll go out sometime soon.’
Evelyn stood and made her way to the door. ‘I’ll hold you to that.’
Tofu followed her out, and Theo flopped back into his pillows, staring at the ceiling.
Number three fashion influencer of the year. That was actually pretty cool. He’d have to contact his manager later to find out more.
But first, he’d been serious about asking Sarah out. He’d felt off-balance after seeing her again, and he wanted to know how she felt about him.
Since it was a workday, he assumed she’d be awake. He sent her a text.
Theo:
Hey. Are you free tonight? I have to use the restaurant gift voucher we won at the auction before it expires.
It had two years of validity, but Sarah didn’t need to know that. She had been the technical recipient, but she’d made him hold on to it.
He sipped the coffee his mother had left on the bedside table.
A text came through from Levi.
Levi:
Just saw you’re famous now. Well done.
He grinned and shook his head. Levi was a lot more easy-going these days. Back before he met Alexis, Levi would have either pretended to know nothing about Theo’s life, or he’d tease him mercilessly. He was glad his buddy now had a woman who made him happy.
He thought about how he had felt when he saw Alexis with Sarah and realised he’d barely registered Alexis. Sarah had taken up all his attention. He was relieved. It would have been awkward for Theo to have any residual feelings for his friend’s girlfriend.
He wrote back to Levi.
Theo:
Thanks, dude. We’ll have to catch up for a drink soon. Maybe tomorrow?
Levi:
Sounds good. Will text you when I’m finishing up at work.
His phone beeped again.
Sarah.
Even just seeing her name on his phone did interesting things to his body.
Sarah:
Are you sure you want to waste that voucher on me?
He shook his head. Waste it on her?
Theo:
Yes, I want to “waste” it on you. I’ll come pick you up at seven if you text me your address.
He’d only just realised he didn’t know where she lived. He still knew almost nothing about her.
Sarah:
OK. It’s the corner of Leichardt and Henry St at Spring Hill. I’ll meet you downstairs.
Theo’s heart pounded. Why was he acting like a teenager on a first date?
He responded with a thumbs-up emoji and then internally groaned. That was so lame. He should have posted something cooler. Like a few x’s. Or a heart? No, a heart would have been too much. Maybe he could have done a different coloured heart, but he wasn’t sure if they had specific meanings. He quickly googled them.
Orange means friendship? And purple means fancy? Fancy?
He checked another site. Okay. Purple also meant amorous. This was why he needed to steer clear of the coloured hearts.
Jeez. He was a thirty-three-year-old man. Why was he googling the meaning of emojis?
He headed to the shower. He was going to have to find something distracting to do today.