Page 19 of Fun Together
He looks down at the drink in his hand, like he forgot he’d even made it. “Just nervous about my trip.”
“You seemed excited before. Why are you so nervous?” He’s always been so hyper-focused on work and moving up the corporate ladder that he’s probably on edge because he doesn’t know how to take a vacation.
“Yeah, but something’s changed,” he mumbles.
“What do you mean?”
He sighs and looks out the window above his sink. “You’ll question my sanity if I tell you.”
I lean forward, eager now to hear what’s going on. “Well now you have to tell me.”
“I don’t want to be late for my flight,” he says as he dumps the protein shake down the drain.
I check the time on my phone. “Your flight isn’t for five hours. What’s going on?”
“I’m meeting someone.”
“In Amsterdam?”
He nods his head. “Yeah, she’s from a town just outside of there.”
“Who isshe?” This is even more exciting than I thought. A secret girlfriend. I didn’t know he had it him.
“Her name is Emma.”
“How did you meet her?”
He shakes his head and adjusts his glasses. “You’re going to laugh.”
“Let me guess. You accidentally ordered the wrong tulip bulbs, and she was the customer service rep you reached out to online, but now you’re scared because you’re going to get there and find out you’ve fallen in love with a chat bot.”
“How do you come up with this stuff? No, I didn’t fall in love with a chat bot.” He taps his fingertips on the countertop. “We met on the houseplants subreddit.”
“Wooing the ladies with your knowledge of rare moss varieties.”
He snorts. “Something like that.”
“I think that’s cool. Getting back on the horse. Taking the bull by the horns. Other animal-related motivational stuff.”
“Please, shut up.”
“Do you know what she looks like?” Not that looks are super important, but I’m sort of curious about this woman because since I’ve known him he’s only ever dated Faye. I wonder if she looks like Faye.
“Yeah, we’ve FaceTimed each other.”
“So, she’s pretty?”
“Yes, she’s pretty,” he says, exasperated.
“And she has a good personality?”
“Yes, she’s really smart and we have a lot in common.”
“So, if she’s pretty and cool, then why are you acting like you’re being forced to visit her against your will?”
“Because I feel ridiculous. Flying to a foreign country for someone I’ve only been talking to for a few months.”
“I think it sounds romantic, like something out of a movie.” Maybe I should take a page out of his book and forget the dating apps and scout outr/bakedgoodsinstead.
