Page 8 of Fun Together
I turn back to Evie. “Okay, he gets a pass. I still think you should do it.”
“Tennis match for it?” she asks. “Whoever loses has to give a speech.”
“That’s not fair and you know it.” She’s really fucking good at tennis. And I haven’t picked up a racket since high school, when I was on the tennis team for a season my junior year.
She shrugs. “Take it or leave it.”
My odds aren’t the best, but they aren’t zero. “Okay, deal.”
“Meet me at the park courts tomorrow morning at ten?”
“Sure, sounds good.”
She grabs her keys from the kitchen island. “I’m out. Got to meet Daniel for a workout.”
“Tell him I said hello,” Mom says.
Emmett stretches with a yawn. “We need to head out too. Ready to go, Flo?”
“I guess.” Flo reluctantly gets out of her chair. She’s been quiet, but you can still feel her excitement from being around everyone. Even if she’s not part of the conversation, she likes feeling included. I remember feeling that way too, as a kid.
Fifteen minutes of goodbyes and hugs ensue, until it’s only me and my parents left at the table. I feel a little left out, with everyone else off to continue their Friday night plans, and here I am at home with Mom and Dad. Andrew is packing for his trip, so I’d be in his way if I went over there. I guess I can call some other friends to see what they’re up to, but I don’t really feel like doing that either.
I think about Faye and our conversation earlier, wondering if she’s at home watchingSurvivorright now. I pick up my phone and scroll to her contact. It’s been so long since we’ve texted, I don’t know if she has the same number.
I thought about reaching out to her when I got the job at her company, but since we haven’t seen each other in years and after the breakup with Andrew, it didn’t seem like something I should do.
Part of me was hoping I’d see her again and would only feel excited to reconnect with an old friend. But when those elevator doors opened and I saw her big, blue eyes shocked to see me standing there, I felt the swirl in my stomach I’d been fearing.
Because the thing is, I’ve had a tiny crush on my best friend’s girlfriend since I first met her. And as it turns out, five years apart didn’t eradicate it as much as I hoped. She’s still so pretty, with her curly dark hair wrangled into a bun on top of her head. The peachy-pink glow of her skin, and that little gap between her two front teeth you can only catch a glimpse of when she laughs.
I forgot how much I like to make her laugh.
I open a new text thread and my fingers float over the keys, trying to think of something to say to her.
What are you up to?
How’s the show?
Used that vibrator yet?
I set my phone down on the table and move to get up. Maybe I’ll go for a run or for a drive—anything other than thinking about Faye’s shiny new toy.
“Just a second, Eli. There’s something your dad and I want to talk to you about.” Mom’s voice is serious, and Mom isn’t ever this serious about anything. I run through possible scenarios. Cancer. Death. Food Lion was out of stock on the slightly salted cashews she eats like candy.
“We are so proud of you for getting this new job at such a good company. You’ve not had an easy time of it lately, and we are so happy for you.”
“Is there a ‘but’ coming next?” I ask.
“We just wanted to check in to see how the search for a place to live was going.”
Oh yeah, did I mention that I’m twenty-seven years old, and have been living with my parents for the past five months? Or that I’ve been sleeping on a fold-out couch in the basement next to a treadmill that hasn’t run in over a decade because my old bedroom has been converted into a home office?
“But you said I could stay however long I needed,” I say.
Mom sighs, but she has a soft smile on her face. “You will always have a place to stay here. But we need our basement back.”
Realistically, I know I can’t live with my parents forever. And I do miss having my own space. The time has gotten away from me and I haven’t gotten around to apartment hunting.
