“Oscar? Are you listening to me?”
“What? Oh, is it raining?”
Confused, I turned to the window but the weather outside was perfect.
“No?” I said, the confusion coloring my voice. “Is it supposed to?”
“Why are you asking me? You’re the one who mentioned falling water.”
I laughed. “No, Fallingwater. You know, Frank Lloyd Wright.”
He nodded, still not looking away from his phone.
“I was thinking we should go,” I said. “We could go for a long weekend. Just you and me.”
“Mmm-hmm.”
“Or not,” I said.
I waited a couple of minutes for Oscar to respond, but he didn’t. I really didn’t expect him to.
Shifting in my seat, I turned to look out the window again at the twinkling Manhattan skyline.
I picked up my phone.
Me: You up for a road trip with your mom over break?
Jeremy: Just the two of us? That’ll be fun.
Smiling, I set the phone down and turned to Oscar. My mind was racing with plans for the Fallingwater trip.
“Jeremy and I are going to do a road trip during break to see Fallingwater,” I said, curious how he’d react.
“Mmm-hmm.”
“Do you want to join us?”
Nothing. No answer, no reaction.
“Are you even listening?”
Silence.
“We’re going to go skydiving, and then maybe rob a bank. All in the same day,” I said, looking for any reaction, any clue that he heard me. “Oscar!”
“Mmm-hmm? What? I’m catching up on the news.”
“I’m trying to talk to you,” I said.
“Oh, sorry. Is everything okay with Jeremy?”
“Yes, he’s fine.” The limo slowed as it turned onto Wall Street. Cipriani Wall Street glowed dramatically. Hidden lights swept over the Corinthian columns, turning this small part of New York City into ancient Greece. It was one of my favorite places for events in the city, so we booked it far in advance every year.
“Did you say something before?” Oscar asked.
“Fallingwater is opening soon. You know I’ve always wanted to see it.”
“That old house with the waterfall going through it? You’ve seen it. Everyone’s seen it.”
