by Dodd, Lauren
“I don’t know but I’m pretty sure my dad is fucking around,” she says, not looking up.
My jaw drops in surprise and I rush over to where she is sitting. “Are you serious?” Natalie has joked about her dad having a girlfriend in the past, but I knew she was just joking. This is different.
Tears drip down her face faster than she can wipe them angrily away. “I was just about to when you found out about your mom. It’s not that big of a deal anyway, not compared to what you’re dealing with.”
“Nat, don’t blow this off. It’s your parents, of course it’s a big deal. What makes you think he’s cheating?” I ask, rubbing her arm tenderly.
“It sounds stupid but he was so happy all the sudden. Like smiling really big and not just faking it. Whistling at work and acting like he used to and stuff. I felt like I had my dad back but now he’s worse than ever. And my mom acts like she doesn’t even notice. I don’t know how she lives with her head in the fucking sand like that. I don’t even blame him for cheating. She was a miserable asshole the entire time that Knox was gone, but now that he’s back, she’s finally normal again. But it’s too late, Daddy’s already gone. What the fuck is wrong with these women that don’t know how to keep their men? I think I was more upset that if they got divorced I’d have to live with her than the fact that they might actually split up.”
She is just rambling now and I just try and comfort her. I still don’t really believe that Chad is cheating on Bea, it’s just too weird. That would be like my dad cheating on my mom when she was still alive. There’s no way. But I feel so shitty that all this stuff was going on with my best friend and I never had a clue. As much as I hate that Natalie’s family might be imploding, it feels good to focus on someone else’s problems instead of just my own.
“Should we figure out who the home wrecking bitch is?” I tease, knowing it will cheer Natalie up.
She perks up immediately, just like I anticipated. “If I could just get my hands on his phone, but he guards that thing like the Hope Diamond.”
“Maybe I could distract him one night. And I bet she comes in there for pizza all the time so we could start a list of suspects.” I wonder if it is twisted that I feel a little excited about our endeavor. There is no way that the teddy-bear cute, Kevin James look-a-like Mr. Parsons would even be capable of sneaking around having some illicit affair but this little game will make Natalie feel better and maybe distract me at work.
“Knox thinks I’m crazy, but I know my dad.”
“You told Knox?”
She nods her head while firing off a text at lightning speed. “Connor just asked me to prom,” she says, doing a 180 in our conversation.
“So, you’ve been texting Connor?” I ask, hating to turn the subject from Knox but hoping that I’ve been wrong about Natalie texting Cale.
“Yep. It took him decades to finally ask,” she whines.
I squeal with glee not because Connor is Tate’s best friend and now we will double date making the whole night more bearable but because now I know Natalie hasn’t become a home wrecking bitch herself.
“Should we get some lunch where someone has to wait on us for a change?” Nat asks, both of us struggling to carry our dress bags heavy with our prom dresses and our shopping bags full of shoes, makeup, jewelry, and the fancy underwear she insisted we buy.
“That sounds like a great idea,” I agree, even though I’m dying to get away from her so I can track down Knox. I have to know that he isn’t mad at me and that he understands that Tate is just a friend.
“How about Redbirds?” she asks, darting through the double doors before I can disagree. I hurry after her, catching up in the lobby as I overhear her ask for a high-topped table in the bar. It seems like a strange choice, especially since we can’t drink, but sometimes I forget that Nat enjoys watching sports on the big screens.
A girl from school guides us to a table where we carefully drape our dress bags over the empty chairs. Once we get settled, she hands us each a menu. “I heard you’re going to prom with Tate Boyd,” she gushes at me.
I nod my head up and down, wishing I could return her enthusiasm.
“Oh my God, you’re so lucky,” she squeals. A split second later a cloud descends over her features. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean that. I just…I forgot about your mom.”
The girl looks near tears and I feel so bad for her because I know she didn’t mean anything by what she said.
“Awkward,” Natalie says in a very condescending tone.
“It’s fine,” I reassure her, reaching out to touch her arm. She rushes back to her podium, upset.
“Am I destined to be a half-orphan that people feel sorry for the rest of my life?” I ask, my mood dampened considerably.
“Hi. I’m Misty and I’ll be taking care of you today. I see dress bags. You girls must be out shopping for prom dresses. That’s brings back some memories,” a bubbly voice says, interrupting us.
I look up to see a pretty brunette smiling at me.
“What did your prom dress look like?” Natalie asks her. I’m so stunned that I nearly drop my menu. Natalie doesn’t chit chat with people she doesn’t know. She finds it a complete waste of time.
The brunette doesn’t skip a beat at the question and goes into intricate detail of the teal silk tea-length dress she wore to her senior prom. “Everything is so much more glamorous these days than they were twenty years ago. Boy, I’d love to go back and do it all over just once.”
“But your wedding must have been like prom on steroids, right?” Natalie says, encouraging her. I’m still trying to figure out how Natalie knew she was married when I spot the huge sparkler on Misty’s left ring finger.
“Weddings aren’t nearly as much fun. Everybody’s stressed out and you spend most of the night wondering if you just tied yourself down for life to a jerk,” she says, the smile never leaving her face. “If I can give you girls any advice, it’s never get married right out of high school.”
“I’m never getting married,” Natalie reveals, which is news to me.
“I really just want a Coke,” I say, knowing I’m probably being rude but this whole waitress-customer dynamic has turned a little weird.
Misty starts laughing. “I’m sorry, girls. Don’t listen to me, I’m just an old married lady who is sad that she can’t relive her glory days. One Coke coming up and what can I get for the spinster cat lady to drink?”
Natalie and I both start laughing but Natalie manages to mumble her drink order.
“She’s funny,” Natalie says in a weird tone.
“We’ll have to tip her good. We both know how hard this job is,” I remind her.
Misty comes back with our drinks and a basket of their specially seasoned French fries. “These are for humoring me. I’m sorry I babbled on like that,” she apologizes. I watch her walk away and hope I look as good as she does when I’m in my mid-thirties.
“Isn’t it weird when you picture somebody in your head and then they don’t look or act anything like that?” Nat asks, sipping her Mountain Dew.
“Um, sure,” I reply, not having a clue what she is talking about. My phone chirps and I take it out of my purse. It’s Dad wondering if I found a dress. I assure him I did and tell him I’ll be home after lunch.
“Ho-ly shit,” Natalie whispers.
“What?” I giggle. It doesn’t take much for Nat to drop a holy shit bomb.
She narrows her eyes evilly, glancing over in a corner of the noisy sports bar. “I knew he was fucking her again.”
Curious, I follow her eyes to see what the fuss is all about. I can’t stop myself from gasping when I see Knox tucked away cozily in a corner with Greer Griffin, his ex-girlfriend.
“I know, right?” Natalie says, not reading anything but appropriate friend shock into my gasp.
My body feels numb. I try to look away but I can’t. She’s touching Knox’s arm, the arm that was wrapped around me yesterday making me feel things no one else ha
s ever or probably will ever again. They’re laughing between sips of draft beer, making me feel about thirteen sitting here sipping my pop. Greer looks better than I ever remember her looking back when she and Knox were dating and they would lock themselves in his bedroom when they were supposed to be keeping an eye on Nat and I.
“I swear if he knocks her up, I’m going to scream,” Nat rants.
The thought of Knox being with someone else makes bile rise in my throat. Misty picks that exact moment to bring our entrees. It might as well be dog food instead of a juicy, perfectly-cooked burger.
“Do you girls need anything else?” Misty asks sweetly.
“Misty, do you have any idea why men are so fucking stupid?” Natalie blurts out.
I nearly drop the ketchup bottle I’m holding but Misty doesn’t skip a beat. “Girl, if you figure it out, you better come back and tell me.”
“I really like her,” Nat says, digging into her club sandwich.
I can hear Natalie babbling on and on about our waitress but I can’t take my eyes off Knox. He looks amazing in tight jeans and a gray short-sleeved button-down shirt. The sleeves hug his biceps. I feel like I can almost smell him from here even though I know that isn’t possible. I know it is just a matter of time before he sees us.
“I know those two are revolting, but you should at least try to eat your lunch,” Nat encourages me.
“Has he been dating her since he got back?” I ask, needing to know how long I’ve been foolishly thinking that Knox was actually in love with me.
“I think so. He’s been really secretive since he’s been back. I thought maybe the Navy had matured him a little bit but if he is still wasting time with trash like that than it doesn’t seem like it.”
I will not cry. I will not cry. I will not cry. I dig my nails into my palms to stop myself from breaking down. All this time I thought that I was something special to Knox. How incredibly naïve could I be? How could he do this? Especially with everything that’s already happened with Mom?
I push my burger around on my plate and tear it into pieces to make it look like I’ve eaten some of it.
“Fuck this, we’re going over there,” Nat says, then proceeds to pull me off my chair and toward Knox’s table. I try to pull away but she’s on a mission.
“This is cozy,” she spouts, her voice dripping with venom, as we stand in front of their table.
“Wow, look at you two,” Greer says, sickeningly sweetly. “You almost look like grown-ups.”
“I forgot you two little pests were going to be out here shopping today,” Knox says, not making eye contact with me.
“They’re prom dress shopping,” he explains to Greer.
“Oh, how sweet.” With just three words she reduces us to the emotional maturity of toddlers. I instantly hate her and a vicious part of me wants to tell her how sweet the orgasm Knox gave me yesterday was but that just reminds me of how much of an idiot I was to think that I was anything but another conquest to him.
“Remember our senior prom?” Knox asks, putting his arm around her shoulders. I realize that he is more upset about Tate than I realized and he’s fighting dirty.
“The hotel room?” she remembers, giggling uncontrollably and rage floods through my body. I can’t let him think that he ruined me. I have to make him think that he didn’t mean anything to me, either.
“Natalie and I would love to get a hotel room for prom to surprise our dates,” I gush. Knox glances at me for the first time since I’ve been standing here.
“Um, sure,” Natalie plays along, not having a clue what I’m talking about.
“Knox, would you be super cool and rent it for us since we aren’t old enough?” I beg.
“Oh my God, that would be sick,” Natalie says, getting excited.
I know this is going to backfire on me big time but I don’t care. Fire is practically shooting from Knox’s eyes.
“Come on, Foxy Knoxy, help your little sister and her pathetic friend get laid,” Greer teases, leaning back into Knox’s chest. I want to stab her with the steak knife that is on their table but instead I just smile.
“If you’re going to be lame about it, just forget it. We can find somebody else,” Natalie says.
“I don’t really give a shit what she does,” he says, pointing at me. “But you’re my sister and it feels pretty fucking creepy to be renting out a hotel room so some dude can fuck you.”
His words feel like a dull knife to the chest and I struggle to remain upright. I meet his eyes and he seems to flinch a bit. I know I must be imagining it but he almost seems as sick over this conversation as I am. But that must just be wishful thinking on my part because he obviously never gave two shits about me. My phone chirps. I pull it from my pocket to see a text from my grandma.
“Hey, it’s Tate. He wants to come over. Let’s go,” I lie. Knox’s jaw stiffens and he turns away.
“Tate? Tate Boyd?” Greer asks.
“He’s her boyfriend,” Nat answers back.
I nod, silently confirming this fact even though we haven’t actually done any official dating yet and if my answer got back to Tate I would probably die of embarrassment, but I don’t care right now.
“My little sister is a sophomore and he is all she talks about. She showed me a picture of him. He’s a little hottie.”
“Now you see why I want a hotel room so I can do unmentionable things to him,” I tease, knowing I just sucker punched Knox. I don’t care though, he preyed on me after my mother died. Who does shit like that?
“Jesus, Ripley, I had no idea you were such a slut,” Knox says, laughing, but it sounds hollow and I know I got to him. I smile wickedly, letting his comment roll off me.
“Don’t fucking talk to her like that, Knox. What the hell is wrong with you?” Natalie shrieks. Panic crosses Knox’s features for a split second after he realizes that he reacted too strongly to my comment. I know I shouldn’t feel happy because this is dangerous territory but I can’t help it, I do.
“He was just teasing, Nat,” I defend him to defuse the situation.
“For real, sis. Can’t anybody take a joke?” he asks, looking anywhere but at my face.
“It’s been a real treat, as usual,” Natalie smarts off, dragging me back to our table. I let her, laughing and playing it up the whole time like Knox’s nasty comment didn’t penetrate me down to the bone.
Our bill is waiting for us at the table and we each divvy up our portion. I notice that Natalie doesn’t tip anything over what she owes which is so strange because she always tips well for good service. I realize she must be distracted by our disturbing interaction with Knox and Greer. I slip another five dollars onto our stack of cash without saying a word.
We grab our dresses and packages without as much as a glance toward Knox and Greer. The heat from his eyes burning through my back does little to warm the ice forming over my heart.
Chapter Nine
It’s the night before prom. Mozzarella is slammed, as usual. I rush out two pizzas, praying for this night to be over soon. Greer walks through the door and takes her usual spot at the counter to wait for Knox to get off work. She’s been a regular since our run-in at the mall and the only good thing about her being here is that it means this night is almost over.
Knox and I have avoided each other as much as humanly possible this week at work. I hate the fact that my body still feels these tiny electric charges anytime I have to move too close to him which in the confined quarters of the kitchen is much too often.
“Natalie, table two wants refills,” I tell Nat, making my way back with empty pizza trays. I prep some salads and refill bottles of dressing while waiting for my next order to come up. I’m pretty proud of myself for not screwing anything up at work even with all this internal drama going on.
The door opens and my dad and Karen walk through it. I’m confused at first, seeing them together, then realize how happy I am just to see my dad in the outside world for something other than wor
k.
“What are you two doing here?” I ask, leading them to a small table.
“I’ll be doing the questioning tonight, young lady,” Karen says forcefully, but I can tell by the look on her face that she’s joking. “Just how long were you going to let me keep bringing you food that wasn’t edible for a dog?”
I double over with laughter as she and Dad join in laughing.
“Haven’t you ever tasted your own food?” I ask.
“Not really. Greg always did the cooking before we got divorced. I eat out a lot with my crazy hours. I just found an old cookbook and followed the instructions, mostly. I might have made a few substitutions, but I never realized that I was dragging over disgusting food.”
“It was sweet of you and we only had to go to the hospital once,” Dad teases. Karen play slaps him and my stomach flips uncontrollably. She’s flirting with him. The realization hits me, hard.
“I’ll get you guys some drinks,” I mumble, not bothering to ask what they want. I rush back to the kitchen. Natalie is finishing up restocking pizza boxes. “Can you please wait on my dad and Karen?”
She gives me a puzzled look, glances toward the dining area, squeezes my arm comfortingly then heads out toward them.
“Heading out on deliveries,” Mr. Parsons calls out to no one in particular. Knox doesn’t look up from the countertop he is wiping down. As soon as Mr. Parsons bumbles out the door with twenty pizza boxes in his arms, I bolt into the walk-in refrigerator.
It’s the only place in this restaurant where you can get a tiny amount of solitude. I just need a second to regroup after seeing Dad and Karen together. I pace back and forth around the pizza crusts, sauce, and crates of fresh lettuce trying to wrap my mind around it. Could my dad be dating already? Mom has only been gone for three weeks. I don’t know what the acceptable amount of grieving time is but it seems a little quick.