Page 71 of Nerdplay
I’m also not ready to leave.
“I apologize,” I tell her. “I was being an asshat. It won’t happen again.”
To my surprise, she smiles. “I like a man who can admit when he’s wrong.”
I clutch my chest over my heart. “Did I hear you right? Did you admit that you like me?”
“Don’t get too excited.” She pauses. “Why did you cry?”
“Excuse me?”
“You told me the last time you cried was when you were a kid. I’m wondering what happened.”
“I have no idea.”
“But if you remember the last time you cried, you must remember the reason for it.”
“No. I don’t even know how old I was. I only know that I haven’t cried since then.”
“What do you do when you get upset? You’re not one of those rage-induced men, are you?” She seems genuinely horrified at the prospect.
“No, I tend to take everything in stride.”
“So if someone cuts you off on the highway, you shrug it off?”
“I might mutter a string of curse words.”
“What about when you lose a client?”
“Hasn’t happened.”
“When your dog died?”
“No pets.”
“When your favorite sportsball team loses their big game?”
“I say they’ll get ’em next year and move on.”
She regards me. “Huh.”
“What?”
“That all sounds healthy.”
“But…?”
“But not crying isn’t healthy. It’s important to feel negative emotions.”
“I feel them. I just don’t do anything about them.”
“Then you’re repressed, like a Jane Austen character.”
“Am I the heroine or the hero in this scenario?”
“Does it matter?”
“Just curious. For the record, I’m not repressed. If the right emotion came along, I’d express it.”
