“It’s not serious,” I say. “But I like her a lot.” That part’s true, anyway. For some reason, I can’t help launching this next dagger. “She doesn’t think she wants kids.”
“What?” Mom’s consternation almost makes me feel guilty, but I stand firm.
“I don’t know. How come you only wanted one?”
“Well, yes, I guess I just thought . . .” Her nose scrunches. “I mean, I figuredyouwould want them. That it would be important to you.”
Dad finally weighs in. “She’ll change her mind.”
I chuckle. He doesn’t know Kendall. If she heard him say that she would never get pregnant just to spite him.
“Do we have to do this? I really just want to go to lunch.” I shift my weight from one foot to the other.
Mom’s face drops a little. “Okay,” she says. “Yeah, let’s go.”
I exhale. These people who raised me are going to be the death of me.
Kendall was right about how early I usually work out, but it’s Sunday afternoon and I have the day off, so I’m relishing doing what I want. I am at the gym, yes, but I slept in this morning, and I feel almost refreshed.
Adam spots me at the bench press. It’s about a hundred times more crowded in here than usual. Chatter reaches me from all directions, and the scent of stale sweat permeates the air. The place is huge, two stories high, and it’s the only gym near me that’s open twenty-four hours.
“Was that your last set?” Adam peers down at me.
I grab my towel and wipe the sweat off my forehead. “I’m done, yeah. You need me to spot you again?”
“Nah.” Adam chugs from his water bottle. “I think I’m ready to go.”
I stand up and stretch. As I’m about to walk back to the locker room, I spot a woman across the gym. She’s got a thick bronze braid hanging down her back, and she’s wearing a tight workout tank top. Her hips sway with her movement on the elliptical machine, where she’s chatting animatedly with a petite Black woman who works out next to her. They appear to be friends, with an easy familiarity between them.
Of course it’s Kendall. She did tell me she was busy this afternoon, but I never dreamed she would be here. There’s a word for seeing something everywhere—I can’t think of it, but it refers to a frequency illusion—and I wonder if there’s a similar word for feeling like you see the same person every time you leave the house.
Adam nudges me. “You coming?”
I don’t take my eyes off Kendall when I respond. “You go on ahead.”
He glances the direction I’m looking. I hear the grin in his voice when I start to walk in Kendall’s direction. “Good luck, man.”
Kendall doesn’t see me until I’m right next to her. She jumps, then falters a bit on the machine so that I end up steadying her with my hand on her back.
“Jesus.” Her hand is on her chest. “Jump scare, dude.”
My lips turn down. I don’t love being called dude by her.
“Sorry.” I smile at her, but her eyes are wary. “I didn’t know you came here.”
“I don’t, usually. I came with my friend. As a guest.” She gestures to her friend, who has also stopped moving on her own elliptical. “This is Maria. Maria, this is Dr. Wyndham. He’s one of the residents I work with.”
What the hell?
“Grant,” I say. “Nice to meet you.”
Maria lifts her hand. “Likewise,” she says. She’s soft spoken,but her subsequent frown is louder than anything she could say.
A few things are clear to me. Kendall hasn’t told her friends that she and I have something going on. This lady clearly knows who I am, though, and she’s not a fan.
Kendall’s cheeks are pink, and her eyes dart around. She’s embarrassed to see me here. I’m intruding on her real life, and I’m not welcome. I turn to go.
I’m several strides toward the locker room when Kendall catches up to me.
