Page 12 of The Big Race
Leo sank back onto the stool, his expression cycling through confusion, anger, and then something harder to read. “You’re going to use a reality show to decide if you stay married or not?”
When he put it that way, it sounded absurd.
“We thought it might help us...” I searched for the right words. “See if we can still function as a team. If there’s enough left between us to rebuild.”
Ray said, “I know how it sounds. But it’s more than that. The race strips everything away—comfort, routine, distractions. All that’s left is how you communicate, how you solve problems together.” He glanced at me. “Whether you still want to be on the same team when things get tough.”
Leo was quiet for a long moment, studying us both. Then, to my surprise, he stood up and opened the hard-sided case.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Getting out my camera so we can get this video going. Duh.”
“Leo, we just told you something huge,” Ray said, clearly thrown by this response. “Don’t you want to... I don’t know, yell at me or something?”
Leo looked up, serious beyond his years. “Oh, I’m pissed. Really pissed. But I’m also not blind. I’ve seen how you two have been the last couple years—living in the same house but hardly connecting. Like two planets in different orbits.” He tapped at the camera. “And I’m not a kid anymore. I know relationships are complicated.”
“We didn’t want to burden you with this,” I said.
“I’m not a burden to be managed,” Leo replied sharply. “I’m your son. Your family.” He softened slightly. “Which is why I want to help. If this race is your Hail Mary pass, then let’s make sure you get on the show. I already put together a storyboard. We’ll just have to adjust it. We’ll do all the stuff I have in mind, and then we’ll sit you down for an interview. That’s where you’ll drop the bombshell about why you’re really applying.”
“You think we should tell them about the affair?” I asked, shocked.
“Absolutely.” Leo’s tone was matter-of-fact. “Reality TV lives for that kind of drama. And it makes you different from all the other middle-aged couples applying.” He closed his laptop decisively. “Trust me, this is my world.”
“When did you get so grown up?” Ray asked, a mixture of pride and sadness in his voice.
“Probably around the time you guys stopped noticing,” Leo replied, but there was no real heat in his words. “Now, if you don’t mind, I need some time to process the fact that my parents’ marriage is hanging by a thread. I’ll be in my room working on shot concepts.”
Chapter 6
Lights, Camera, Honesty
After he left, Ray and I stood in silence for a long moment.
“That went... not how I expected,” I said finally.
“Nothing about this is going how I expected,” Ray replied. “But maybe that’s not entirely bad.”
That afternoon we began following Leo’s directions as he filmed us going about our daily routines. He captured Ray on his run, me with my first cup of coffee on the patio, both of us working together to trim the bougainvillea that perpetually threatened to swallow our back fence.
“Now let’s get the talking head stuff,” Leo said, setting up his camera on a tripod in the living room. He positioned two chairs side by side in front of the bookshelf where family photos chronicled our history—Ray and me on vacation in Colorado, Leo’s high school graduation, the three of us on the day his adoption was finalized.
“Just sit naturally,” Leo instructed, addressing the frame. “Don’t try to be TV personalities. The producers can spot fake from a mile away.”
Ray and I settled into the chairs, suddenly awkward under the camera’s unblinking eye.
“Okay, forget the camera exists,” Leo said from behind the viewfinder. “Look at each other, not at me. And tell me—tell the producers—why you want to be on The Big Race.”
Ray cleared his throat. “We’ve been fans of the show for years?—”
“No.” Leo interrupted. “Not the generic answer. The real one.”
I looked at Ray, saw the uncertainty in his eyes, and made a decision. “Three months ago,” I said, turning back to the camera, “I discovered that Ray was having an affair with a client.”
Behind the camera, Leo nodded encouragingly.
“It had already ended,” Ray added, his voice steady despite the slight tremor in his hands. “But the damage was done.”
