Page 98 of No Such Thing as Serendipity
“Coming,” I called.
Our friends were attending the same program, but none would give away the topic. Whatever the class, I expected extra attendees since it was being held at the lodge. The last class we’d done there was emotion charades, which was surprisingly fun, so hopefully, this wouldn’t suck.
On our walk to class, Emma was still ribbing me about my Dagny Taggart answer, so I turned the tables on her. “Someone who singlehandedly lost the Villa Wars for our team shouldn’t give me shit.”
“What?” Emma put her hand against her chest. “Didn’t I help us win the trophy for sportsmanship?”
“She’s got a point,” Helena said from behind us.
I looked over my shoulder and glowered. “I’d hardly call a participation trophy a win.”
Annie, walking on the other side of me, chuckled. “Honey, I’m the Gen-Xer here. Shouldn’t I be the one mocking participation trophies?”
I laughed. “I’m an older millennial.” I pointed to Emma. “And Miss Sportsmanship has one foot on each side since she was born in early eighty-one.”
“I’m a Millenialex,” Emma said.
“Isn’t that what makes you poop?” Katlynn asked.
I burst out laughing, happy to be distracted from thinking about Robyn.
“For fuck’s sake, that’s Miralax,” Emma said through her laughter.
“And for the record, it’s a Xennial,” I said.
The rest of our walk was full of the playful camaraderie I cherished from this motley group.
As we approached the lodge, Annie said, “I can’t believe how much you all have crawled inside my heart. Is that weird?”
“No,” Emma responded before I could. “All of you have touched me in so many ways.”
“But we’ve only known each other for a couple of weeks. How does that happen?” Annie asked.
“It’s this experience,” Katlynn said. “In ourreallives, we don’t have the depths of conversations we do here. I’ve done many retreats, and one thing they don’t tell you is how colorless life seems when you return home.”
I didn’t understand what she meant by colorless, so I was glad when Helena asked Katlynn to clarify.
“Here, everything is vivid—colorful,” Katlynn said. “Everything we experience is filled with emotion, but the real world isn’t that intense.”
“But can’t it be?” Helena asked.
“I think it can,” Emma said.
“Me too,” Annie echoed.
“I hope it can be, too.” There was something in Katlynn’s tone that caused me to glance over my shoulder at her. She was looking at Helena with intensity burning in her eyes.
“I’m envious of Emma and Blake,” Annie said, not noticing the exchange between Katlynn and Helena.
“Why’s that?” I asked.
“You’re here together, so you can take it home with you,” Annie answered. “You’ve had a shared experience that’ll last a lifetime.”
I smiled at Emma, and she took my hand.
“Wouldn’t that be a great idea for a retreat?” I said. “Everyone would sign up with a loved one.”
“I think they do those,” Katlynn said.
