Page 42 of Grave Misgivings
I can’t even bring myself to finish the sentence.
Why is it so hard to ask?
Why do I care?
I stare at the screen and she texts me back with a question mark.
Did he call you?
Yes.
I chew my lip, and the phone rings.
“Hey,” I say.
Her voice is raspy, but there is no mistaking the shock in her voice.
“He fucking called you? What did he say?”
No greeting, no transition. Complete and utter shock.
I pull my knees up to my chest. “He was mad I didn’t call him back,” I say quietly.
“You guys are talking again?” she asks.
“Sort of.”
Her laugh is sarcastic, but there is also a hint of shock in it as well.
“Oh, shit. No wonder he was downing those fucking martinis.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” I snap.
Katy sighs. “Not my place to tell you, Geo.”
What the fuck does that mean?
“He said you guys go out drinking when, and I quote ‘the men in our life fuck us over’.”
I don’t miss the bitterness in my voice.
The jealousy.
I wish it was me throwing back sour apple martinis with him, laughing with him. But I made a choice to leave, so I know I shouldn’t be jealous that Katy gets to do what I can’t.
She groans dramatically. “You haven’t changed a bit in the last ten years, have you, G? You still don’t know.”
Don’t know what?
“What are you talking about, of course I’ve changed,” I gripe.
Katy breathes out an exasperated sigh. “The fact you’re calling me at one in the morning becauseZebgot your briefs in a fucking twist askingmewhy, proves you haven’t.”
“He’s the one who hasn’t changed!” I argue. “He’s the one who... who fucking calledme?—”
Katy’s voice softens. “No, Geo. He’schanged.You haven’t.”
“How? How hashechanged? Tell me Katy, because I don’t see it.”
