Page 128 of June

“Why couldn’t you come home for your birthday? We wanted to plan something for you.”

“Mom, it’s my twenty-first birthday. I wanted to spend it with my friends,” she replied.

“Well, you could have gone out with them tomorrow. Your father and I wanted to invite the family over. Grandma and Grandpa wanted to tell you Happy Birthday.”

“I know. I’ll be there for a weekend soon,” she replied, lying a little because she didn’t want to give up any weekends with Enid while she was still here.

Her interview was probably going on right now. They’d woken up together, and after Enid had wiped the sleep from her eyes, she had smiled wide at Caroline, and she’d told her Happy Birthday. Unfortunately, Enid couldn’t give her the birthday gift Caroline had wanted, which was Enid on top of her, touching her, because Viv had walked in earlier and had been packing up her stuff to go to class or something. She knew that what she really wanted was for Enid to stay. That would’ve been the best birthday gift, but Caroline couldn’t ask her to do that. Instead, they had shared a quick kiss, and Enid had gone home to shower and get ready for her video interview.

Jodie had stopped by to pick Viv up and walk her out, which had been adorable. Caroline had watched them kiss at the door and had also seen Jodie’s blushing cheeks. She’d get the details later, but things seemed to be going well after their first date and night together. Caroline’s parents had called to wish her Happy Birthday not long after Viv and Jodie had left, and now, her mother was trying to make her feel guilty for spending an important milestone birthday with her girlfriend and friends instead of making the short trip home to have dinner with her family, where her mom would likely pour her a glass of red or white wine and stare at her while she drank it. Of course, her mom didn’t know about Enid yet, and Caroline wasn’t planning on telling her, either, until she knew what would happen with Enid’s job. So, that only gave her the friends and turning twenty-one excuse.

“We sent your gift this morning. It should be in your account.”

“Thanks, Mom,” she said, knowing that they sent her money and added it to her bank account.

Caroline was already mentally picking out the art supplies she’d get with it. She’d probably tell her mom that she bought a few books on finding her life’s purpose, though. It would help them avoid an unnecessary argument.

“Well, I’ll let you go, I suppose. Your father says that he’s comfortable with the rent amount you asked for and that he’ll give you a food allowance that’s the same as what you would’ve gotten with the dorm.”

“Really? Thanks, Mom. That’s great!”

She sat up in her bed.

“Furniture and everything else will be your responsibility, Caroline. Maybe use some of your birthday money for that.”

Her parents had sent her two hundred dollars for her previous birthday. If they had done the same this year, thatwouldn’t be enough to cover furniture for an apartment and everything else they would need, so Caroline put the phone on speaker and checked her banking app, trying to figure out if her mom had any idea how much furniture cost these days, even the cheap stuff. When she opened her account, though, there was an extra twothousanddollars in there.

“Um… Mom? Did youmeanto add that extra zero?”

Her mom laughed and replied, “Your dad gave you the two hundred. I gave you the rest. It should be enough for that cheap furniture store all college kids use for their first apartments. Make sure you remember you need kitchen stuff, too, Caroline. Pots and pans and utensils. Everyone always forgets that.”

“Mom, thank you,” she said, smiling because her mom could be a pain, but every now and then, she did something like this, and Caroline was grateful.

“I’ve had my own first apartment. I know how it is. Just be frugal and smart with your money.”

“I will. Thank you,” she said.

“Have a great birthday, honey. Your father and I both love you.”

“I love you both, too,” she replied.

They hung up, and Caroline lay back on her bed. She could get a lot of art supplies for two-thousand dollars, but she wouldn’t. She’d go over with Jodie what they’d need to buy and how they could split things up first. If she had any money left over after that, she’d use it for the supplies she wanted. It was her twenty-first birthday, and she really only wanted a night in with Enid. It would have to be in a dorm room or Enid’s parents’ house, but it would just be the two of them. As much as Caroline also wanted to go out with her friends to have that first legal drink, with Enid about to move to another state, she thought the drink thing could wait. She wanted to make lovewith her girlfriend and spend the night holding her while silently pleading for Enid to never go.

???

“Babe, can we just stay in tonight?” she asked when she called Enid after Enid had texted her that she was taking her out tonight.

“You don’t want to go out?” Enid asked.

“Not really. I’d rather be alone with you. It’s my birthday, so I can ask Viv and Jodie to stay in Jodie’s room. They’ll understand. Or, we can stay at your place, if you want.”

“I wanted to take you out to celebrate and buy your first drink.”

“We can do that another night.”

“Care?”

“Yeah?”

---