“I’ll write that down once you go to sleep to be sure I won’t forget.”
Once the girls drifted off, I cleaned the kitchen. Halfway through the dishes, I put on a few bouncy love songs and danced around while I wiped the counters. I could still smell Boone’s cologne on my shirt. Sniffing the fabric, I rested on the couch and closed my eyes. In my head, I could see Boone next to me, touching my body and kissing my lips.
I checked my messages, answering Dan’s question about the truck outside the house.
“Stop spying on me,” I told my brother. “You know darn well that was Boone.”
“What happened to your date tomorrow?”
“He couldn’t wait. Now, leave me alone and enjoy your beautiful wife.”
I set the “do not disturb” option on my phone, so Dan wouldn’t spend all night bugging me in his lovingly overprotective way.
I eventually took a shower and went to bed. Nuzzling my shirt with his scent on it, I recalled every moment of my first date with Boone.
Waking up to find my phone filled with messages, I frowned at how everyone already knew my business. Occasionally, this new life felt overwhelming. I couldn’t simply sit at home and eat Cheetos while watching junky dating reality shows. People were always over at the house, and I felt like I had to hide my bad habits.
This morning, Elle moseyed over after Lyric and I returned from dropping Skylar off at school. Lyric eyed the woman’s belly bump and then shouted at Zodiac nearby.
“Your baby is a monster!
“He’ll consume your soul, little girl!” Zodiac hollered back.
“I’m keeping my eye on this one,” Elle muttered and gestured at Lyric. “She’s got it bad for my man. In twenty years, she’ll try to steal him away, and I’ll be too fat to chase after his wheelchair.”
“Why is Zodiac in a wheelchair in this scenario?” I asked.
“Because your daughter would have worn out his old man pelvis. Duh, Nova, put some shit together on your own,” she mocked and waddled past me. “I’m going to sit inside your house and wait for you to entertain me with details about your date.”
I looked at Lyric, who was sticking her tongue out at Zodiac. The biker waved off her attitude.
“I think you’re making Zodiac sad,” I told Lyric.
“No, he’s not crying.”
“People can be sad without crying.”
“I can’t.”
“Well, you’re special, but not everyone is. You shouldn’t assume things about them.”
Lyric stared at me and then shook her head, so her Dumbo ears bounced. “No.”
“You can’t just say no.”
“I want to,” Lyric said as she took my hand. “I like saying no.”
“I know, but you’ll be in school soon. You can’t tell the teacher no all the time.”
“Skylar does.”
“No, she doesn’t.”
“She yells at the teacher and makes her cry.”
“You’re really into lying today,” I said as we entered the house.
“Good for her!” Elle cried out from the family room. “Lying is an important part of contributing to a functioning society!”
