Page 120 of Three Not-So-Little Words
But nothing.
No fear. No regret. No anxiety.
It’s more like this is just how it is now. Surprisingly, I’m pretty happy about it. Don’t get me wrong–I still have no idea what I’m doing, and I’ll probably end up fucking everything up. But I am trying my damndest to make it work. Drew is the first guy that I’vewantedto try with since Aaron, and I think that says a lot.
I think that means he’s worth keeping around.
“Ronnie,” Colton says.
“Yeah, Colton?”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Uh, sure.” I worry about where this is going.
“Who do you think is cooler, Iron Man or Hulk?”
That’s it? That’s what he wanted to ask me? Kids are wild.
“Iron Man,” I answer definitively.
“Why?”
Would I have had an answer to this question a couple of days ago? Hell no. But we have watched half of the Marvel Universe in a very short span of time, so I feel uniquely qualified to answer this.
“One, he’s rich, which means he has all the coolest toys. Two, when Tony Stark is Iron Man, he’s really not that different. He just puts on a suit and does his thing. Hulk goes all green and scary and turns into a whole different person. Plus, Iron Man just screamscool.”
“Yeah,” he says before getting back to watching the movie.
Yeah? That’s all I get. That was a pretty badass answer, and I was hoping for a little more of a reaction. Earlier, the kid told mea twenty-minute-long story about how he thought about killing a bug, decided to save it instead, but accidentally stepped on it, killing it anyway. With his story, I asked follow-up questions and gave a much more enthusiastic response.
Am I really getting offended that a six-year-old didn’t like my presentation of why Iron Man is better than Hulk?
My phone goes off next to me, forcing me to calm down and get over myself.
I see it’s a text from Liz.
Hey bitch, what are you doing?
Some may get offended by the seemingly-rude pet name, but Liz and I are always busting each other’s balls, so I think nothing of it.
Just hanging out with Colton because Drew is sick.
How’s that going?
Fine. It’s a lot of superhero movies and playing.
Glad neither one of you has killed the other.
Yeah, his dad would probably frown upon that.
Wanted to talk to you about two things. One, did you want to come to the inn this week and start getting photos? The knitting grannies will be gone, and aside from a couple of regulars, the place should be pretty empty.
Yeah, I can do that. Let’s shoot for Monday. I’ll spend a few days taking pictures, and then, I’ll get to work on the marketing stuff.
We should probably talk about pay. I don’t think we discussed that in our original conversation.
One thing I have learned over the years is that money and family just don’t mix well. It doesn’t matter if you are borrowing it, loaning it out, or just taking money for a job. Things tend to get weird and awkward.
