Me
Do you need anything?
Willa
Again, no.
Me
You sure?
Willa
Holy hell. You doing this for 9 months?
I’m going to be a dad. It’s a title I’ve always looked forward to, but I’ve wanted to make sure I was ready. Growing up in foster care puts a different perspective on the whole parent-child relationship. I know all too well how things go when you don’t get it right the first time, and I’d never wish that on anyone.
It’s been less than a week, and despite the initial shock, cold feet never crossed my mind. I won’t fail this childor Willa.Especially Willa. The only thing I’m worried about is how she’s handling everything. The woman is a steel vault; I can’t get any information out of her. She’s been vague about how she’s feeling, but after days of checking in on her, I finally annoyed her enough to get appointment details.
“Any questions?” Marla stands in front of the glowing projector screen. The EdTechU office complex in LA has several instructional rooms. This one is set up like a university lecture hall—tiered seating with elongated tabletops anchored into the navy carpeted floor. Today, we’re bombarded with fresh sales tactics by the harbinger of headaches. This Wednesday morning meeting has dragged on into lunch hour, her voice grating on everysingleone of my nerves. Avoiding eye contact with someone for three hours isn’t easy, but I’ve coasted through training without so much as a glance.
Chase lounges in his chair next to me, switching between taking notes and playing games on his tablet. I’ve resorted to shading in the empty space inside my tattoos with my pen. Distraction at its finest. “Okay then, we’ll break for lunch and pick this all up at two,” Marla calls over the sound of folding chair seats banging closed.
As much as I’ve hated sitting in this meeting, the timing worked out perfectly. We got the call to come down to the LA offices for the week on Monday. This is something we do a few times a year as guest trainers, but this time, they asked me and Chase to present our streamlined process for gathering sales reports. I jumped at the opportunity to be closer to Willa. Now I won’t have to request any time off for her appointment tomorrow, and I’ll have the chance to take care of some of her needs before I have to leave too.
“You ready?” Chase tucks his tablet under his arm and pulls out his phone. “Hunter’s meeting us in the lobby.”
I shake my head to clear the post-meeting haze and smile. “Yeah. Get me out of here.”
As we near the door, I try to slip by unnoticed, but a hand onmy arm stops me. I’m forced to make the eye contact I’ve been avoiding, if only to look good in front of the suits in the back of the room. Between my size and the color of my skin, I’m always trying to keep it professional in corporate spaces. But she’s really testing that resolve. “Trevor, hey,” Marla says. Her caramel-colored curls are pulled back, olive skin peeking through her black blouse. “Can I grab you for a sec?”
Chase pauses at the door, waiting for my nod before he steps into the hallway. “Uh, I kind of have somewhere to be,” I say.
“This’ll be quick. Promise.”
Like her promises hold any weight with me. Still, I let out a long sigh and step over to her. “What do you need, Marla?”
“How are you, Trevy?”
Nope. Not doing this here. Or now. Or ever, for that matter. “I really have to get going…”
“I don’t want this to be awkward, working together.” She takes a step toward me, and I step back on instinct.
“Don’t call me that, and it won’t be.”
“Okay, yeah…sorry… I just wanted to let you know that we have a flex position opening soon, and your name has come up several times for it.” Her hand reaches toward me but stops midair. “I know how much you like to travel. Just thought I would pass on the information in case you’re interested.”
Blinking at her, my mind battles the excitement of a possible promotion with the dread of welcoming a whole lot of instability into my life. Even without knowing it, Marla’s already trying to blow up my life again. I’m in the direct path of destruction and need to escape this walking tornado. “Uh, okay. I have to go…” I give her a tight-lipped grin and walk right out the door, trying to shake the immediate pounding in my head. It only took her five minutes to ruin my day.
We pile into Hunter’s car and head to lunch, rapid-fire logistics spinning in my head the entire way.Diapers,medical bills,a college fund.Working in San Francisco while Willa’s in LA.Inserting myself into the life of a less than enthusiasticco-parent.
As much as I’ve entertained this promotion at work in the past, adding interstate travel most days of the week doesn’t sit well with me right now. The money will be there when all of this settles, but it isn’t a huge concern for me, anyway. I’ve done well for myself between savings, investments, and having all my education paid for from my time in the Coast Guard, so I don’t have any debt. That’s all before taking the trust fund from my grandparents into consideration. Promotion or not, Willa will want for nothing, if I can get her to communicate with me.
“Is Ash meeting us for lunch?” Chase asks Hunter as we sit on the Lunch-a-Bunch patio. I barely remember getting out of the car and walking into the red-brick restaurant. Enclosed in a black steel lattice fence, the elongated patio is peppered with round bistro tables. Water glasses and a bread basket sit atop the green tablecloth next to vinyl menus. The fall breeze feels nice after being stuffed up in that conference room all morning, but my mind is still reeling.
“Naw. She went to check on Willa.”
That snaps me out of it. “Wait. What’s wrong with Willa?”
