She straightened with a big grin. “That is close! He is a plumber, and how fun it was to read that book about sewage and ocean water.”
“Is that for real?” Kenya scrunched up her nose and leaned close to Solomon, her shoulder making contact with his arm. Another mistake. There was no time for her to get twitterpated over his rock-solid arm when she was supposed to pretend she could share a coherent story with these children. What was up with her today? It was like she had been dragging her feet all over the carpet and Solomon was the metal object zapping her with each touch.
Solomon cleared his throat. “It’s a very interactive experience. Molly”—Ah, the young librarian had a name!—“tries to tie in books with the careers so that the kids can attach what they read to someone tangible.”
That was why he invited her. So thoughtful. But still not so much appreciated.
“Now I would like to introduce a doctor of physical therapy to you and an event planner. Is that right?”
Kenya nodded.
“What’s an event planner?” one brave child piped up.
Molly clasped her hands in front of her. “An event planner is responsible for the coordination and details of different types of events, like weddings, conferences, concerts, and so much more. Is that correct?”
Leave it to the librarian to have the dictionary answer.
Kenya affirmed and gave a small wave to the elementary audience. Molly gestured to a padded chair and another one that looked like it belonged in a high school classroom.
Solomon graciously offered her the comfy seat and then perched on the hard chair.
He lifted the book and read the title—Katie,Clyde and the Ambulance Ride. By the title, Kenya assumed it was going to be just that, uneventful. But that showed how much experience she had with this sort of thing.
As Solomon read, she jumped from one facial expression and hand movement to another. She kept her ankle out of the equation as much as possible, but the kids still seemed to get a kick out of the ways she acted out Katie and Clyde’s ultra-adventurous, albeit dangerous, day.
True to the title, the book related to the medical field. The kids collectively gasped when the story turned from a walk to feed ducks and a party in a park to a trip to the hospital. What started as trepidation over the turn of events unfolded into a poignant G-rated peek inside the inner workings of a hospital and the people who made it run.
As Solomon continued to read, Kenya lowered herself to her chair, as caught up in the story as the kids were. Solomon’s voice flowed over every word, stringing phrases and sentences together like a melody. His voice soothed and soared, drawing all of them into the story, cultivating a soundtrack of honor and gratitude that strummed in the background of the narrative. It evoked aReading Rainbowlevel of nostalgia. How did a man who spent most of his time stretching and strengthening limbs evoke such emotion with his words?
Enraptured was an understatement. This was what reading was meant to be.That’s whatit has never been for me.As soon as the thought popped up, she snapped out of her reverie. A sudden waking from a dream. So much for acting out more of the motions. But the kids didn’t seem to care. And neither did the librarian nor some of the lingering parents, as their soft smiles indicated what a pleasure it was to be in the presence of such an orator.
Thank God all this was not supposed to last. Because how did she ever think someone like him would settle for someone like her?
21
KENYA CAMEaround the corner from the therapy room with her usual energy on Monday, but Solomon could see that something was bothering her. She’d been hesitant, almost scared, when he invited her to read with him last Saturday, but those feelings shouldn’t have lasted this long. Then he remembered the date. Yeah, she probably had good reason to feel nervous.
“So...” He patted the seat next to him.
“So...” She set down her tote bag and pulled out a couple packs of fruit snacks. She handed one to him before sitting down and ripping hers open.
“So...” He drummed a light beat on his lap. “Beautiful day today, isn’t it?”
Kenya sighed. “These are comments that you say at the beginning of the day when you are talking to someone new or when you don’t want to talk at all.”
She popped the fruit-shaped bite into her mouth, chewed for a few seconds, and swallowed. “Either you seem to have forgotten that we’ve been doing this for a couple weeks, or there is something awkward that you do or don’t want to say,” she added.
He bit back a grin and popped a piece into his mouth.
Kenya crossed her arms. “To save us both embarrassment orjust time wasted, why don’t you go ahead and say what it is that you need to say. Because you can obviously see that I am about to lose it over here.”
He chuckled. The whiny tone of her voice made her particularly endearing. He loved the way she could vacillate between emotions and tones and expressions, her eyes wide and searching, laced with innocence.
Unlike anyone he’d ever known, Kenya could turn any moment or conversation into a vivid experience of laughter, thought-provoking opinions, and pure delight.
He could learn a lot from her. Over the years he’d grown accustomed to bracing himself, determining outcomes by trying to control every variable. As if that would actually give him more capacity to do what he wanted to do instead of what was expected of him. Like moving to New York.
He swallowed and removed another piece from the wrapper. “Are you perhaps referring to the meeting at the café you have with a certain older Nigerian woman?”
