nineteen
Gia
Peering out Dad’s window for the third time in the last five minutes, I crane my neck.
Still no car in the driveway.
I wonder what North is doing. Going out on a Monday night is against his normal routine, but it’s a little too soon in our situationship for me to demand he tell me what he’s up to.
He was awfully vague.
What if he’s on a date?
Nah—I cut my thoughts off, and then immediately remember he was the one who rushed to say we don’t need a label for our relationship. At the time, I assumed he was being shy, but maybe that was to cover up something else?
Would he really date someone else?
He also didn’t kiss me when he had the chance.
Again, I thought he was being shy.
What if he really isn’t interested, and I’ve been misreading him the whole time? He said he went out of his way to be a friend to Rocco when he got in trouble. What if he’s just a nice guy, trying to be a friend to me, because he saw my dad get stuck.
To be honest, he hasn’t ever asked me out on a proper date. We’ve only grabbed coffee and tea from the Coffee Loft and cleaned. If he is truly interested, he’d take me to dinner or a movie. Right?
“Gia!” Dad calls as he walks through the front door, pizza in his arms. “I’m so sorry to hear about your day.”
“It’s okay. Just a job. It’s probably time I move on anyway. I was at a bit of standstill with my career.” Closing the window curtain, I hang my head, sulk into the kitchen, and pull up a chair at the table while I wait for dad to bring over the pizza.
He drops the box in the center of the table and flips open the lid. Pepperoni and jalapeño—my favorite. Not waiting for a plate, I dig right in, help myself to a nice cheesy slice and take a giant bite.
Dad mirrors me, plopping in the chair across from me, and grabs a slice. “I was thinking,” he says while he chews down his food. “You can help me in the pizzeria.”
“Dad.” I sigh, as I really don’t need him to offer me a pity job.
“No, hear me out.” He places his hand on mine. “I’ve been enjoying my house being so clean. It’s so freeing, and in a way it feels like I’ve gotten a new chance at life.” His voice cracks, and I stop mid-chew. I knew he was dealing with heavy emotions, but he hasn’t opened up to me about it yet, other than the arguments we’ve had about not throwing out his stuff. “After your mom died, and Rocco got in all that trouble, I just sort of wanted to hide.”
“I know, Dad.” I match my gaze with his. “I’ve never faulted you for any of this mess. We were all doing the best we could.”
“Well, but I do think I’m better now.” His eyes are bright and clear, clueing me in to his honesty. “But, I’m tired, and I want a break. When North’s parents sold that house to him, they retired to Mexico City. They invited me to visit, and you know, I think it sounds nice.”
“Oh.” Tipping my head to the side, I let that sink in. “I had no idea you needed a break. Of course, I can cover for you. How long are we talking about?” I take another bite, and chew.
“I’m awfully sick of the cold. My bones don’t handle it like they used to. I’ve been thinking about it for a while, but never had a way to swing it. If you think you can cover for me, I’d like to leave soon. Maybe give you a week to train you back in as it’s been years since you covered a shift, and I’ll make the arrangements. I’d love to stay until spring.” He jerks a thumb over his shoulder, pointing down the hall. “You can stay here in your old bedroom. I know you have a couple of months left on your lease, but by all means, if you want to let it go at the end of the year, you’re more than welcome to crash until you get settled into a new job.”
I swallow the last of my pizza, but really, I’m swallowing more than that. I’m so overly touched that Dad thought this all out before I had a chance to get worried about my bills.
“And,” Dad cuts into my thoughts. “If you find a job you want to take before spring, just holler and I’ll be right back.”
“I love you, Dad,” I say, the words spilling out as tears fall. Tears that I hadn’t even realized were hiding back here, but these last two weeks have been such a whirlwind. Swiping my eyes with the back of my hand, I lean over and wrap my arms around his neck. He hugs me back, and I inhale the scent of fresh oregano and pepper—the scent he’s always worn since he works at the pizza shop. I bite back a smile, knowing this is going to be my new scent.
“Say,” Dad says while finishing his pizza and brushing off the last of the crusts into the open box. “I want to show yousomething.” He stands and starts walking down the hall. “You’ll never guess what I found . . .” His voice trickles off as he enters into Rocco’s room. When he pops back out with a toddler sized, pink stuffed amphibian, I jump to my feet.
“Rosie!” I hold my arms out, waiting to receive my axolotl. “I looked everywhere for her. I swore I lost it. Where did you find her?”
“It was in Rocco’s room. I was cleaning up the last of everything and wanted to pull the bed back so I could shampoo the carpets. She was stuffed between the wall and his headboard. It looks like it was intentionally hidden.” His voice lowers, but I still make out the last of his mutter, “stupid kid was always so jealous of you.”
“Wow.” I hug Rosie, remembering how it felt the first time North gave her to me, and I could have sworn that night he was going to ask me out.
