“I know that,” Dad said. “Your brother got it on seniority.” An outrage. “And you work enough.”
“Please, I’ve been cleaning since I could walk, he just played his Game Boy all the time.” I used my fork to cut off an especially cheesy bite and chewed.
“You’re forgetting your stint in theindustry,” Kate said like it was a dirty word. Like getting a job outside of Harvey Janitorial was a grave betrayal to our genes. She also poured a packet of the pregnancy powder into my water cup, grape this time, and stirred it with her fork.
I glared at them both.
“We don’t talk about the tech writing,” I said through a mouth full of pork and cheese.
“I don’t think you should be taking on more shifts,” Dad said. “You do enough hours. You’re pregnant.”
“I want to save more money before I lose all my stamina—I don’t do enough.”
“You always help your sister with the restocks,” Dad defended, but “help” was generous. I rode around with Kate, listening to podcasts or singing together as we went from building to building making sure they had supplies and toilet paper.
“And you fill in for Green Team at least three times a month. You’re at forty hours,” Kate pointed with her fork, also talkingthrough a mouth full of food. She was working on what was left of the nachos.
This was true. One of the bank teams was notoriously bad about showing up for shifts on Friday nights.
“I can take on more,” I said. “Or I could do more social media.”
“Where’s this coming from?” Dad asked. “Do you need money?”
I took a sip of the prenatal water, wincing at the artificial grape flavor. I made eye contact with Diana across the restaurant, and she nodded. She was all too familiar with my plight against Kate’s powders.
“I just think I can take on more responsibility,” I said. “You aren’t using me to my full potential.”
“Is this about the guy?” Kate said.
“What guy?” Dad asked.
“No guy,” I said at the same time Kate said, “Hannah’s guy.”
I thought we’d covered this with our eye-contact conversation, but she obviously hadn’t been listening.
Traitor, traitor, traitor.
“What guy?” Dad repeated.
“It’s nothing—” I gave Kate my most pleading, venomous glare, but she’d already looked meaningfully at my stomach. Dad followed her gaze.
“No way,” Dad said. Of the whole family, these two were the most alike—organized, anxious, constantly trying to manage things, and they gossiped to each other relentlessly.
“Way,” Kate said.
“Okay, enough—” I tried, but there would be no stopping them now.
“A professional hockey player?—”
“Kate!” I put my fork and knife down with a clack on the table. Diana filled Kate’s water glass over her shoulder and slid a new glass by me.
“Thanks, Diana,” we all said, and Kate moved my new glassas soon as Diana walked away. Diana and I had tried this trick before, but Kate caught on. She looked pointedly at the purple drink. As a rule, I don’t love artificial grape things, but Kate got these on sale and said if I wanted a healthy baby and body, I should be taking all the help I could get.
“What position?” Dad asked.
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Defense,” Kate said because she literally couldn’t help herself—I was eating with two thirteen-year-olds. I threw my hands up and leaned back in my chair.
