Dot nods.“Yep, he knew.”
“No, he didn’t.There’s no getting back with Venus.”I take a puff on my inhaler to fight the tight ache in my chest.“I never had her to begin with, and I don’t want to talk about it.”
Again, my words are stern and very unlike me.
But I’m bothered by Mr.Massie’s persistence and inside knowledge.He’s highlighting my pre-existing guilt over not being there for my uncle and, at the same time, rubbing it in that my uncle wasn’t so oblivious about me.Jay not only noticed my loneliness, something I thought I hid well, but also worried about me, enough to mention it tothisguy.
“Mr.Massie, may I show you what we have planned for the museum?”Marnie says with her usual chipperness, deflecting attention from my bad mood.
“Sure thing,” he says, following Marnie to some of the more finished displays.
Dot’s boots thud on the hardwood floor, and her wallet chain slaps against her dark jeans as she closes in on me.Her hair always makes me think of black licorice, which mirrors her personality—sweet but tough, and maybe not for everyone.But like Marnie, she understands people, and she’s quickly become a good friend.“Henry, you okay?Your tension scale is registering about an eight.”
“More like a nine,” I admit.
She plants a hard slap on my back and says, “Your boxer briefs must be stuck high up there, huh?What’s gotten in your craw?”
Marigold winces at the question, and, finding such talk distasteful, she retreats to Marnie’s side.
“Don’t know if I like that guy,” I whisper.
“Marnie’ll keep an eye on him.Let’s chat in my office.”
Her office is the back of her tricked-out work van, where she swings the doors open, sits, and pats the metal beside her.I follow suit because why not let this day get weirder?I’ve already unloaded my internal drama on Marnie.Why not do the same with my contractor?
Overhead, gray clouds circulate, and the humidity is near stifling.When I FaceTimed Olly this morning, he shared that his mom and Gregory, the fellow doctor she’s seeing, were taking him out on Gregory’s boat.I wonder if they took the impending weather into account.If he’s wearing his life jacket.Ifs, all the ifs.
“So, you came to a truce with Venus?”
“I misunderstood the entire situation.I wasn’t there for her, didn’tseeher,” I breathe out.“And this guy shows up, reminding me that I didn’t see Jay either.”
“You saw whathewanted you to see,” she says, surely.“I expect the same is true with Venus.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you’re a sweet dude.You’re a great dad, always ten steps ahead of Olly, your students rave about you, and, whenever we’re here, you pamper us with drinks and treats.You like taking care of people.I can’t speak for Venus, but… ” she says with a shrug, “Sometimes, people just want to be loved, Henry.Not helped.Not talked to or advised.Not taken care of.Loved.”
Her words mix with Venus’s from last night.“She left because she didn’t want to be my burden.She didn’t want me taking care of her.I get that now.But I don’t think she wants love, either.”
Dot scoffs.“Everyone wants love.Everyone, Henry.Anyone who says otherwise probably needs it more than most.”
“I just spent the best night of my life with her.That’swhat we agreed to.It was her idea—one night together to let go and move on.”
She laughs, like she’s fully aware of the folly of our plan.“How’s that working out for you?”
“She’s been gone six hours, and I can’t think of anything else.There’s no future for us.I’m here.I have Olly.She’ll leave at the end of the summer.There’s no point in it.In us.”
“No point?Dude!As smart as you are, you can be really dense, my guy.Fuck the agreement.Fuck what happened when you were kids.And fuck broken hearts—you already have those, anyway.You care about this woman, and she cares about you.Why not love her while you have the chance and let the future take care of itself?”
Pelicans squawk overhead.Tourists line up for the river cruises on the Riverwalk, and the tiki boat bobs hopefully in the water.It’s another beautiful, though gray day in Wilmington.As I muddle through Dot’s direct advice, she rises from the space beside me and stretches like she’s crossed an invisible finish line.
“Thanks, Dot,” I say sheepishly.“Maybe you’re?—”
The door pushes open, and Marnie ushers Mr.Massie outside.“We’ll be in touch,” she calls weakly down the sidewalk.
She turns, looking uncharacteristically bothered.“He volunteered an unsavory opinion about our new color scheme.I told him he had to go.”
Dot snort-laughs.“Don’t mess with Marnie’s color scheme.”
