Page 9 of About That One Night
“Looking for an apartment is complicated?” He furrows his brow, confused.
“Yeah. No. It could be nine months to a year before I can move back in. And what if I just stay with my parents and save money for whatever is next?” I sigh, grabbing one of the skewers. “I have to admit, I’ve been feeling pretty lost. I’m not sure what I want from life right now.”
Max nods, his eyes serious. “That’s normal. But you can’t let fear stop you from living.”
“I am living,” I say, a little defensive.
“Really? Because it sounds like you’ve been going from work to your parents,” he calls out my bullshit.
“I go to Lily’s place,” I argue.
“Wow, you go to your little sister’s place. You party animal, you. I’m . . . impressed.”
I glare at him. “I don’t think I’m ready to explore anything right now. The unknown seems a bit . . .” I trail off, unable to finish the sentence.
“Sometimes, the best experiences come from stepping into the unknown,” Max offers.
Unknown? I don’t know if I have time for that. I’ve given so many things and people chances, and now I’m back at square one.
“Lately . . .” I start. “I’ve been feeling stuck, like I’m just going through the motions. Maybe the problem wasn’t only my relationship with Tom.”
He nods, his expression thoughtful. “I get that. Sometimes, you need to shake things up to find out what you really want.”
His words hit me harder than I expected. “You make it sound so easy. Just shake things up, right? But what if I don’t know how to do that? What if I don’t even know what I want to shake up?”
He leans forward, his gaze intense. “You start by trying new things. Stepping out of your comfort zone, even if it scares you. Especially if it scares you.”
I swallow, feeling a lump form in my throat. “I’m not like that, Max. I can’t just dive intothe unknown. I need a plan, a sense of direction.”
He smiles gently, reaching across the table to take my hand. “You don’t have to have it all figured out, Zoe. Sometimes, the best things in life come when you least expect them. You just have to be open to the possibility—like Lily did when she went backpacking looking for herself.”
“Um, she wasn’t backpacking, and it was more like . . .” I trail off again, suddenly grasping what he’s saying. She stepped out of her comfort zone to search for the one thing she wanted.
But what do I want?
I think for a moment, letting his words sink in. “Travel to places that are . . . different. Not your typical Paris, Rome, and touristy spots. Or maybe go there but really see the country from the locals’ perspective. Just have dinner with a stranger because it feels right or . . . I don’t know, be a lot more carefree.”
Max nods thoughtfully. “That sounds amazing. And you know, you don’t have to make all these changes alone. We could do this together.”
I blink, surprised. “Together? You mean, like travel buddies? Life explorers? You know what you want from life, why join me?”
“Yeah, but I do like a good adventure,” he says, leaning back with a grin. “Plus, not sure if you’ve noticed, but my best friends are in a weird place in their lives.”
“Weird?”
“In love, married—organizing weddings.” He lets out a loud groan. “Everything that’s boring.”
“What about Caleb?”
He shrugs. “The guy lives between San Diego and here, it’s hard to know if we’ll do something over the weekend or not. With you, I’ll know there’ll be a plan to be carefree.”
I laugh at the contradiction. He doesn’t believe I can do things without a schedule. I can show him it’s possible—even if it scares me.
“What if we just take it day by day, no pressure, no expectations?” he offers, as if he’s negotiating and about to lose some kind of deal. “We’ll see where things go.”
“Are you offering me a friendship, McCallister?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah, we’ll be friends who explore some of that carefree living you’re talking about.”
