JOSIE
She’s going to the movies with her friend Louise. She has a crush on Morgan Freeman and he’s in some new medical thriller. But don’t tell her I told you, she wouldn’t want you to know she’s cheating on you with another doctor.
10:41 A.M.
TY
Lips sealed. Heart broken. You home then?
10:43 A.M.
JOSIE
Should be after 5:30.
10:44 A.M.
TY
Great. I’ll swing by for a house call.
10:44 A.M.
“Oh my G.O.D. Josie, the Liu twins are in the front office with their Chineseayifor their school visit. They ARE NOT what I, you, we would expect from the ed consultant’s e-mails and from reading the twins’ applications.”
“What’s anayi?”
“That’s Chinese for nanny. I had to look it up when the consultant e-mailed to tell me the twins would be arriving with theirayiand she wanted to know where their two drivers could park.” It’s not even worth my mental energy to ask why two drivers. “I’m pretty sure their parents are back in Shanghai and didn’t see how the twins walked out of the penthouse this morning. You have to take a look at these two before I take them on the tour you pawned off on me. Plus, I have to run and grab Cindi, the new Mandarin teacher, so she can tag along and interpret for me in case I talk too fast like I tend to when I’m, um...”
“Nervous?”
“Yeah that.”
“Why would you be nervous, you’re the MC who moves the crowd.”
“You’re right. I got this.” In front of my eyes Roan grows an inch.
“Now, brush your shoulders off and do this thing.”
Before I leave, I turn to Roan to clarify: “Wait, so I understand correctly, the Lius are not here to see the school? They just sent their children?”
“And the nanny—sorry,ayi—and the two drivers. And I’m going to go out on a limb and guess theayihas very little power and sway over the twins.”
“Okay, meet you in the front office in two. I gotta check these kids out and then I’m passing the baton to you.”
I walk through the back door of the front office and spy two lumps slouched in the oversized leather wingback chairs, their phones two inches from their faces. The chairs sit directly beneath a sign that reads:NO CELL PHONE USE IN THE FRONT OFFICE, THANK YOU. Interesting, I remember on their international applications that it was marked “proficient in English.” With the intensity they are texting, I can understand the consultant’s claim that they are “focused.” I think what they are truly proficient in is surly teen.
“Hello, my name’s Josie Bordelon and I’m the director ofadmissions at Fairchild Country Day School,” I say to theayiwith what I believe is a warm and invitingWelcome to Americaface. Her eyes grow big and she bows her head and mumbles in soft Mandarin. Is this an act of servitude, reverence, lack of English, or has she never been this close to a black person before?
I move to stand in front of the tech twins, but still they don’t look up. The pearl-encrusted Hello Kitty phone case belonging to Mei is blinding me, so I take a step to the right. Mei’s legs are crossed and she’s cluelessly swinging her stiletto-clad foot at me. I can see too much leg, but it’s almost okay because it’s impossible to note the short skirt when your eyes are drawn to the diamond chain belt circling her hips. From the waist down, she looks like a Bergdorf window gone bad.
Bai has on Chanel sunglasses—indoors on the cloudiest of San Francisco days. Several thick gold chains hang from his pencil neck. I’m a bit perplexed how this pimply, skinny teen can hold his Lil Wayne jewelry up. His sneakers are a brand I’ve never seen and perfectly unblemished. I have to believe he put them on in the car and then had his driver carry him into the school and plop him in the leather chair. He looks up to sayhello, or so I think, but instead looks right through me and then bows his head again to the God of all things tech.
Mei finally looks up with a smile and a bit of life in her eyes; this feels promising. “When will we be done here? I want to go to the Apple Store and get iPads for my friends.” She doesn’t wait for my answer before reengaging with her phone. Her English is perfect.
I decide I’m no longer needed here, turn quickly on my kitten heels, and head out. Roan has handled tougher audiences than the Liu twins in my absence and I’m fully confident they won’t break him. I have more pressing concerns like cleaning the living room before Dr. Golden comes over. If Aunt Viv finds out he stepped one foot in our apartment in its current condition, I’ll be the next Bordelon to end up in the hospital.
I’m actually looking forward to Golden Boy stopping by. I don’t particularly like a quiet house when my mind has free rein to contemplate all sorts of topics buried deep in my brain. Is gravity really going to take over after forty? Am I prepared to date now that Etta’s leaving for college? How many more years can I tolerate working for Nan? Are there new trends in body hairstyling? Is the Brazilian still popular?
