Page 1 of The Art of Catching Feelings

ONE

The crowd erupted in a shout—obviously, something was happening—but Daphne didn’t bother to look up as she turned a page in her book. She hadn’tmeantto read at the baseball game, but she had a book in her purse and her best friend Kim was running late, so…here she was.

Not that the words were sinking in. She’d read the same paragraph three times, and still her brain pounded with the same two words over and over.

I’m divorced I’m divorced I’m divorced

She was about to put the book away—there was no point—when the people next to her stood up, allowing Kim to make her way down the aisle. “Sorry,” Kim said cheerfully to each one of them. “Excuse me, sorry.” When she got to the empty seat next to Daphne, she plopped down and said, “Are youreadingduring America’s Pastime?”

“More like America’s Snoozefest,” Daphne said, slipping the book back into her bag. “A guy throws a ball, another guy tries to hit it, and if they connect there’s running involved. Beyond that, who knows.”

“Well,that’ssacrilege, especially since we have these sick seats. Layla hooked you up.”

Daphne shrugged. Her sister-in-law Layla was the sideline reporter for the Carolina Battery, and her brother Donovan worked in Guest Services for the team. He acted like he was in the dugout from the way he carried on about all the perks their connection to the team got them. Daphne had never taken Layla up on an offer for tickets before, and she wouldn’t have this time, either, if it hadn’t been for extenuating circumstances involving her husband.

ex-husband ex-husband ex-husband

“Technically,yourticket was Justin’s.”

Kim pulled a face at the mention of Daphne’s ex. “How was that even going to work?”

The goateed man on the other side of Daphne stood up so fast he jostled her elbow, muttering something aboutcouldn’t fucking catch a cold out there. She glanced toward the field, briefly curious about whatever had happened to upset this fan so much. The pitcher was getting set to throw again, the batter was still standing with his bat, and everyone else was standing where they’d been the whole game. She could feel the tension from the crowd hanging heavy in the humid Charleston air, but out there it looked placid as a lake.

A metaphor for her short-lived marriage, if ever there was one.

“You know Donovan,” she said, trying to give a wry smile that she hoped didn’t look as painful as it felt. “Justin’s his best friend. He can’t believe we’re not going to work it out. So he gave us each a ticket to today’s game, I guess hoping we’d somehow make up in time to go? Or just show up and find our way back to each other by the end, like we’re inParent Trapand he’s Lindsay Lohan?”

“Your brother has the hair and freckles to be Lindsay, but not the gravitas.”

This time, Daphne’s smile was more natural. Unlike Donovan, her hair had turned more auburn as she’d gotten older, but Kim had a point about her family’s coloring. Freckles had been her nemesis since she was in second grade.

“So when I saw Justin on Friday, he told me to forward my ticket to him.” If he’dasked, she probably would’ve done it. She might’ve daydreamed about setting every single one of his Salt Life shirts on fire, but her spite didn’t extend to subjecting herself to baseball just to cheat him out of the experience.

“But you didn’t.” Kim’s eyes were glittering, like she knew things were about to get good.

Daphne was kind of proud of herself for this one, actually. “Nope. I said we could play rock paper scissors for them, best two out of three. He threw rock twice in a row. And I threw paper.”

You’re so predictable,he’d said after the first time.I know you.

But he didn’t. He never had.

Meanwhile, she knew him. He always threw rock on the first turn—she suspected because he was busy thinking what to throw, and didn’t get his hand out of a fist in time. And he always repeated on the second turn, trying to outbluff your bluff.

“And then I had his lawyer write it into the divorce agreement—Simultaneously herewith, Husband will transfer one (1) Carolina Battery ticket in his possession to Wife.We had to initial the change and everything.”

Kim pressed her hand over her heart. “Well, I’m honored you chose me to take that douchebag’s place.” Her eyes widened as she seemed to take in the full import of Daphne’s story. “Wait—you saw him and his lawyer? So does that mean…?”

“It’s official.”

It was rare to see her best friend speechless, but Daphne could tell that she didn’t quite know how to react. Knowing Kim, her instinct would be to give Daphne a fierce hug, to start scream-singing “freedom” through the stadium like she was Aretha, to list all the ways Justin could go fuck himself. But her friend must’ve also seen something in Daphne’s face, something fragile that saidI’m very close to losing it so please be careful with me.

They were still locked in that stalemate when the guy next to Daphne shot to his feet, beer sloshing out of the bottle he still gripped in one hand while he used the other to gesture toward the field. “That throw was a mile high! Get him outta there!”

Daphne glanced at the action, such as it was, but shestillcouldn’t tell what was happening. The guys in gray outfits were standing on the bases again? It looked like there might be more of them?

“What are you going to do now?” Kim asked.

She knew that Kim’s question was mostly about logistics. Was Daphne going to be able to move out of the crappy studio unit she was living in? (No—he’d been the one to stay in the house they’d rented together. She couldn’t afford it.) Was she going to start looking for a full-time job since her freelance copywriting work was so sporadic lately? (She wastrying.) Was she ready to start dating again? (Oof. She couldn’t even let herself think about that one.)

---