Page 9 of Love Unexpected
“Rosie!” Marley said, laughing. “You would not say that to your boss.”
“No, but it’s a valid point.”
“Just remember that you really are funny, Rosie,” Marley said. “The next time you’re talking to Isaac, channel your inner actress and act like you’re talking to me.”
“But I don’t want toactin front of Isaac. I want to be myself.”
“I would argue that theyouyou are when you’re with me is way more real than the bumbling dummy you are when you’re talking to him.”
“Okay. That’s fair.”
“I really have to jet now,” she said. “But yes. You should absolutely do something brave. Send the message. Better yet,signthe message. Don’t hide, Rosie. Everyone needs more Rosie in their life in whatever form they can get it.”
“Tell Shiloh I’ll call him this weekend.”
“You got it,” Marley said. “Love you, Ro.”
I scrolled back to the image on my Instagram profile and saved it to my camera roll, then pulled up my direct messages; I quickly searched for and found Isaac’sRandom Iprofile. One finger tapped against my lip as I thought about what to say. But no. That’s exactly what I didn’tneed to do. No thinking. I’d beenthinkingabout Isaac for years. It was time to actuallydosomething.
Channeling Marley’s courage and optimism, I hastily typed out a message.Found this image among my old posts and thought you might like it. My own interpretation of the limited-edition album in ’83. Notice the faint outline of wings behind the clouds at the top. My personal nod to “Wings that Weep,” definitely Renegade’s most underappreciated song.
I dropped in the image, hesitating only a moment before deciding that, despite Marley’s confidence in me, I was not ready to sign my own name to the message. Before I could second-guess myself, I hit send, suddenly feeling more alive than I had in months.
I’d done it. I’d put myself out there.
Now I just had to make sure Isaac saw the message.
Chapter Four
Rosie
“So let me get this straight,” Greta said, swiveling her chair to face me. “You sent a direct message to Isaac’sRandom IInstagram account, and you want Jade to make sure he sees it?”
It had been three days since last Friday night when I’d sent the message to Isaac, and I still hadn’t mentioned it to Jade. I’d convinced myself it was a work thing and Jade would be more willing to discuss it...at work.But that was a fancy delay tactic if ever there was one. The truth was, I was terrified I’d made a colossal mistake and it was too late to undo it. It was only Marley’s continual reassurance that had given me the courage not to abandon the whole plan.
I nodded. “She can do that, right?”
“Of course she can,” Greta said. “But why didn’t you just show it to Isaac yourself? We were all together this weekend. You could have just pulled it up on your phone and said, ‘Hey, Isaac, look what I made.’”
“Oh, sure. That wouldn’t have been risky at all.”
“What would you have been risking?” Greta said.
I struggled to keep from rolling my eyes. Greta was almost as extroverted as Isaac and had a natural confidence that I couldn’t even dream of having. She was the kind of person who arrived at a party believing that everyone in attendance already wanted to be her best friend. If she caught a man staring at her, she automatically assumed it was because he found her attractive. If I caught a man staring at me, it could only be because there was something wrong with me. Spinach in my teeth or a chocolate stain on my shirt or an unzipped zipper.
“Oh, I don’t know. Embarrassment? Humiliation? Rejection?” I said. “Not to mention the fact that Isaac has a girlfriend. Who wasinattendance when we were last together. I would have just looked...desperate.”
“You would have looked like a friend who happens to like the same band he does.”
“No,youwould have looked like a friend who likes the same band he does. I would have looked ridiculous. Like I was trying too hard.”
She shook her head. “You don’t give yourself enough credit.”
I huffed. “Look, can we just celebrate the fact that I’ve donesomething?That’s a good thing, right?”
“Fine, yes,” Greta conceded. “I like the fact that you’re finally putting yourself out there. But this barely counts, Rosie. Did you even sign the message? I mean, what’s your goal here? What are you wanting to come out of this?”
I shrugged. “I want him...to respond, I guess. So we can get to know each other a little bit. So he can see there are women out there who don’t think Red Renegade sounds likenoise.”
