Me
I had friends in high school, too, remember? We were all just beneath your notice.
Grant
touché
Me
It’s true, though. There were other nerdy kids. Lots of other poor kids. I have more in common with most people from our hometown than you do.
I stretch my arm out and study my bracelet as I wait for his reply. It glints when it catches the light. I’m at my kitchen counter now, savoring the brush of the ceiling fan’s current on my warm skin.
Grant
You were better than me. That’s why.
Me
So it wouldn’t have mattered that I was from the wrong side of the tracks if I hadn’t beat you on everything?
Grant
Wrong side of the tracks? Is this West Side Story?
Me
I bet your mother would use that exact language to describe me.
Grant
Nah, she wouldn’t use those words. She fancies herself a genteel lady.
I laugh as I head toward the shower and turn it on. I peel off my clothes, then lean my hip against the counter as the bathroom starts to steam a little. That has to be part of his family’s problem—his mother thinks she’s some kind of Southern society woman, and that’s just not what our hometown is all about. We have too many pictures on our walls and junk in our yards. Our strength is in our ability to survive. I once witnessed someone from home using a saw attached to a broom handle to cut off tree limbs, which is ridiculous but also kind of innovative. It’s a proud place, where Grant and I are from, one that has lots of problems and has tried to solve them with the wrong solutions. But it’s also a little embarrassing.
You can be king there if you have money, sure, but it’s a kingdomno one else wants.
Grant and I live in a big city now, complete with all the trappings of city life, and it’s so different from my home a few hours away that it might as well be Narnia.
Me
No offense, but that’s hysterical. That was the other thing I always found funny. We’re from Blacksburg. It’s not like any of us are aristocracy.
Grant
Well, self-awareness isn’t my family’s strong suit.
Grant
What are you up to now that you’re home?
Me
Can I send you something a little risqué?
Grant
fuck yeah
