After my firsttwo classes of the morning, I made my way to the study room, where I’d been assigned a table.
I found two fellow students sitting at the end, gossiping about some reality show. They were both friendly and open about their lives.
Tanya had dark circles under her eyes that she didn’t try to hide. She flashed me a picture of her new baby that she shared with her baby daddy. The baby daddy in question was with some other girl now, so Tanya was living back with her mom. Her mom had told her she’d babysit if Tanya got her GED.
Selena wore large glasses that kept slipping down her nose. She told us that she was currently living with her older sister. She’d dropped out of school when her mom got sick, but she had promised her mom that she’d go back.
“What about you?” Selena asked.
“I moved to Russia in grade eleven and never graduated. Now that I’m back in Canada, I decided to get my diploma.”
For some reason, I omitted that I was married.
“You got a boyfriend?”
I hesitated, trying not to lie. “I wouldn’t call him my boyfriend.”
Tanya laughed. “We call that a situationship.”
Selena added, “We’re both well versed in the joys and hell of situationships.”
“Do you both have situationships?”
Tanya checked her lipstick in a compact mirror. “My situationship is allergic to commitment.”
“Mine is good for one thing and one thing only.” Selena shrugged. “But he’s really good at that one thing.”
I found this conversation both enthralling and educational. “So you just get together to hook up?”
Selena’s smile widened. “Yeah, that’s the only point. Men aren’t the only ones who just want a good time.”
“My situation hasn’t happened yet. He’s resisting.”
They both shared amused glances.
Tanya. “Let’s see how long that lasts.”
Selena. “Just wear something tight and low cut. It’ll happen.”
I wasn’t sure if I wanted anything to happen, but still, I tucked that piece of advice away. Both Selena and Tanya seemed to have a lot more experience than me when it came to men. I had a feeling I’d be learning more than math at school.
A full week passed,and I was starting to love school. The teachers were okay and the facilities were nice, but my favorite part was chatting with Selena and Tanya. We instantly became a trio that ate our lunches together, studied during study hall and shared our snacks. I couldn’t remember the last time I had enjoyed two friendships more.
I hadn’t seen Axel. I accepted that he was actively avoiding me. I knew he came home occasionally to shower or change, because I’d check his shower and find it wet or see new clothes tossed in his laundry basket. But he only seemed to show up when I was at school or asleep.
There was a strong possibility that he was seeing someone else. Before we were married, I had hoped that he’d just disappear and leave me alone. I would have been overjoyed to discover that he had found an affair partner. I didn’t understand why I felt suddenly bothered that he might be with another woman.
“I can’t wait for dinner,”I told Jordan from the corner of the island. Beef stew was simmering in the oven, and now Jordan was mixing up ingredients for some homemade butter biscuits.The meal suited the weather outside. It had been raining all day, a typical Vancouver fall.
“The stew is my nan’s recipe,” Jordan told me. “She had a secret ingredient that she passed down only to me. Not even my sister.”
I grinned at him. “Why only you?”
“Because growing up, I was the only one who willingly helped her in the kitchen. When my sister found out, she was big mad, but my nan made me promise to keep it to myself.”
“Does your sister love to cook too?”
“That’s the weird thing. She hates cooking, but she’s obsessed with my secret.”
