Page 95 of Happiness for Beginners

“Has Duncan known all along?”

“Yup. And he really did have genuine plans to be the best dog-sitter ever,” Jake said.

“But then he had the best party ever, instead.”

“My fault,” Jake said. “I should have helped him stay focused.”

“See, now,” I said, “that’s not your job. He should be able to handle his own shit.”

“Yeah, but he’d had a rough week,” Jake said, as if we both knew what that meant.

But I didn’t. I shook my head at him, likeWhat?

“Because of Florida,” Jake said, like that ought to jog my memory.

I shook my head again. Had Duncan gone to Florida? What would he be doing there?

Jake frowned. “Florida,” he said, slower.

Another shake.

“You never met Florida? Duncan’s girlfriend? Of two years?”

“Duncan went out with a girl namedFlorida?”

“How is it possible you don’t know this?”

I shrugged.

“He was crazy in love. He thought she was The One.”

“He thought a girl named Florida was the one?”

“You would have liked her,” Jake said. “She was a Fulbright scholar.”

“NamedFlorida?”

“But she dumped him. He asked her to move in, and she was like:Nope. Shut it down. That was three days before the party.”

“Why did she dump him?”

“Standard Duncan stuff. Too juvenile. Too messy. Too forgetful. Girls really hate all that.”

“Yeah,” I said, in defense of my gender. “Because it’s super annoying.”

“I don’t see why they can’t look for the good stuff,” Jake said. “He’s loyal. He’s good-hearted. He’s funny as hell.”

I continued Jake’s list. “He’s filthy. He’s disorganized. He smells like a gym sock.”

Jake studied my face for a minute. “You’re going to start seeing him with kinder eyes. I know you are.”

“I am?”

“Yep,” Jake said, nodding. “Once I show you how to see him the way I do, you won’t go back.” He nestled down into his bag. “Especially when I can’t see at all anymore. You’ll have to see all his goodness for both of us.”

It was kind of a low blow, but maybe he’d earned it. I let the notion sink in for a minute. Then something occurred to me. “Is that why you’re going off after this? To go see all those sights?”

“Yep. I have a master list of things I want to see.”

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