“I forgot you were famous for a second,” Gracie says.
“Yeah, um, around these parts at least.” I shift uncomfortably in my seat.
She smiles at the boy. “You should go say hi to him.”
I shake my head, entirely focused on her. “I don’t have to; I’m here with you.”
She nods. “It would make his whole night.”
“Are you sure?”
“It’ll be fun for me to watch. I always thought this would be a cool part of your job. Being a hero to kids.”
“Hero is too big of a word, but I’ll venture over there and say hi to the little guy.” Giving Gracie one last look, I get up and make my way over to the table.
I always wondered what it would’ve been like to have Gracie by my side for the last ten years. I’d try to convince myself it was for the best.Maybe she’d have been frustrated by all the interruptions, the picture requests, the downsides of fame.She deserves a life of privacy. It’s probably good that she’s out of the public eye. Not with me.
I should’ve known my Gracie girl would only see the silver linings, the happy kids, the grateful families.
“DT!” The kid jumps up and hugs me around my waist.
“I’m so sorry about this,” his mom apologizes. “You’re his favorite player.”
I give his head a couple of pats, mussing his hair a little. “Really? That’s awesome, dude! Are you an athlete yourself?”
The kid nods shyly now, winding down from his initial overexcitement.
“I could tell, on account of all the muscles you have. What’s your name, big dog?”
Shaking his head, the kid blushes and keeps his mouth closed.
“It’s Charlie,” his mom interjects. “Your poster is on his wall. He plays the wide receiver position at his school.”
“Oh, man. I’m lucky I’ll be out of the league by the time you get there. You’re probably gonna break all my records, huh?”
That pulls a smile out of Charlie as he throws his mom anare you seeing this right nowlook (my favorite kind).
“Listen, I have to get back to my…my girlfriend over there, but I’d love to get a picture with you, if you wouldn’t mind? Just so I can say I knew you before you were famous?”
“That’s very kind of you.” His mom smiles and pulls out her phone, snapping a photo of us.
I fist bump Charlie and walk back to a beaming Gracie. “That was so cool. You’ve always been good with kids. With Tessa.”
“Yeah. She’s all grown up now, though. I’d love to, um, have kids of my own one day. If that was something that my partner was into.”
It’s barely audible, but I hear a soft, “Me too,” from her.
The air is thick between us, but before anything else can be said, a loudspeaker voice cuts through.
“Welcome to Trivia Night!” An MC, dressed in all black, with a septum ring and dark lipstick, walks up to the front of the room.
“Tonight is all about animals! The questions will cover all different types of animal-related topics. There’s a buzzer on each table. If you know it, press the button to answer. Whoever buzzes in first will get the first shot at answering. Each question is worth one point, except the final question, which is worth five. We’ll tally the points up here.” She points to the dry erase board on the wall. “Everyone ready to get started?”
A few half-hearted “woos” join the sound of tepid applause in response.
“Okay! First question: What is the largest living species of lizard?”
Gracie buzzes in immediately. The MC points to us. “Table two?”
