“Sure, Mom,” he said around a mouthful of sandwich. “Are you makin’ cookies? Can you make good ones this time?”
“I’m making breakfast bars,” she said. “You’ll love them.” Calvin shot her a look that suggested doubt in her ability and/or her integrity.
After the fourth interruption, she was desperate and running out of time. Her mom was still out of town, so she called the moms of two of Calvin’s preschool friends, but no one was available to watch him. That left only one option—a long shot.
“Hi, Alex. It’s Julia. I have a huge,hugefavor to ask.”
“Sure. What’s up?” Alex said.
“I’m under a really tight deadline to finish a video for my new sponsor. I’m behind on taping, and Calvin is making it impossible to work. I can’t find anyone to watch him, and I’m closing in on wit’s end. Is there any way you could hang out with him for an hour or two?”
“Oh…um…sure,” he said.
“No, never mind.” What was she thinking? This was a stupid idea. “I’ll make it work. I’m sorry to have bothered you.”
“Julia, I haven’t been to work in three weeks. I’ve got so much time on my hands that I actually cleaned and went grocery shopping. I’m bored out of my gourd. Send him over.”
“Are you sure? I really hate to ask, but I’m desperate.”
“I’ll meet him in the hall in five. Have him bring his coat, and maybe we’ll go to the roof to play.”
“Oh, he would love that. You are a lifesaver. Really. Thank you so much.”
She hung up and raced to get Calvin ready. He was more than excited, which she knew he would be. “Take your coat. You might need it.” She didn’t want to promise him an outing in case Alex changed his mind. Disappointed Calvin could be grumpy.
When she opened the door, Alex waited in the hall. “Hey, little dude,” he said.
Calvin ran out with barely a wave. “Bye, Mom.”
Alex smiled, assured her they’d be fine, and told her to text when she finished.
She returned to the condo, shot the twenty-minute video in one take, and then sat down to edit it. It was mostly just splicing around the time she had to wait for things to bake and the kitchen clean up between segments. After typing out the recipe and adding the links that would go under the video, she sent it all off to Ellie.
Taking advantage of the quiet, she clicked over to her banking app. Her income came from sponsor payments, kickbacks from sponsors, and royalties from a cookbook she’d self-published two years ago. Cookbook sales had stalled. It cost money to market it. Money she didn’t have. She plugged it casually during or at the end of each video, but the followers who were interested had most likely already purchased it. She needed to reach a broader audience.
A soft chime indicated a message from the online dating site. She opened it, hoping this was The One.
“Hello. My name is Kevin. I saw your profile and thought I’d reach out. This is my first time on a site like this…” Julia laughed out loud. Though everyone said that, it was probably true point zero five percent of the time. She continued to read anyway. “I recently lost my wife to cancer and am a single dad of a three-year-old girl. I have no time to date, but my sister forced me to create a profile.”
As Julia read on, she decided this guy didn’t sound half bad. She crafted a message in response to his invitation, saying she was available to meet for dinner on the Saturday after next. Her mom would be back, and she could return to her weekend schedule of dating and taping while Calvin stayed the night with her.
Just as she went to close the app, a reply popped up. The person admitted to actually being the sister, pretending to be her brother. She explained that Kevin worked full time and had his daughter in daycare. He was interested in dating but thought it was too indulgent to take time away from his child. Julia could relate. Job and a good dad? He sounded perfect.
They messaged back and forth a little before the sister told Julia that come hell or high water, she would get her brother to that dinner date.
Julia slipped on her shoes and walked over to Alex’s. She’d taken up enough of his time. When no one answered, she headed to the roof.
After stopping for a jacket, she rode the elevator up four more floors. When she opened the outside door, a wind gust blasted her in the face. It was freezing, and patches of snow from the week before still lingered. Calvin wore a bright red coat—purchased to make him easy to find in a crowd—and she spotted him in seconds. Cal and Alex were also the only two on the roof.
“I can’t do it,” Calvin said. “It’s too high.” He was halfway up a short, kid-friendly rock wall.
“Sure you can,” Alex said. “You’re almost there.” Calvin had climbed to about Alex’s height, so they were basically face-to-face. Well, face-to-butt. Calvin was clinging to the wall for dear life.
Alex touched Calvin’s back. “See, I’m right here. Just a little farther. You can do it. Grab that blue one there.”
Cal inched a hand up to the next jug and followed it with another step up. Two more with Alex’s encouragement, and he was at the top. Julia approached slowly so she wouldn’t scare Calvin into falling.
“Hey, buddy,” Alex said, seeing her and waving. “Your mom’s here. Show her how high you climbed.”
