Page 1 of Just Another Meet Cute
Three hours and twenty-six minutes. That was exactly how long it took for this family reunion to make me go running into the woods like Bigfoot being chased off by the villagers. Although instead of running, I requested an Uber to Flint Rock Loop.
Squinting up at the beaming sun, I fumbled in my bag for my sunglasses. Luckily, it was still cool enough that I didn’t instantly melt into a Nina puddle on the trail. Which was pretty rare for this time in the summer. Thank God for the freak cold front that blew through this past weekend.
Being a native Austinite, I knew that anything below ninety degrees was pretty much a miracle. This past year in Houston wasn’t much different though. I pretty much traded in tangerines for mandarins when I moved.
Despite the nice weather, the park wasn’t too crowded today. There were just a few lone hikers here and there—the hardcore ones with actual climbing boots and metal insulated water bottles hanging off their leather belts. They made my tiny cross-body purse and juice box look pathetic in comparison. At least I was wearing sneakers though. Thank goodness I left behind a pair in myaunt’s hall coat closet before we moved from her house to Houston. They were a little dusty, but they still worked for my escape.
I felt kinda bad hiding out here. I mean, I love my family. I waited all year to see Aunt Sarah and my cousin, Linh, again. Being with them made me warm and happy. Finally, our family could be together again. The way it’s supposed to be.
Too bad it never lasts. Once my aunt started complaining about David—I mean, Dad—she kept going. And going and going.
And going, like a bitter Energizer bunny.
Until finally, I had to leave before I accidentally blurted out something that wouldreallyget me grounded. Not to mention embarrassing the hell out of Mom.
So really, I was doing us both a favor for bolting.You’re welcome, Mom.
I glanced at the map on my phone. A mile and a half in forty-five minutes with only another mile left in the trail. Not too bad. I could probably make it up there and back before grabbing a bubble tea at Tea Cafébefore it closed. Maybe I’d even get the winter melon one for Mom so she wouldn’t be too mad at me for ditching her.
With the extra boba and herbal jelly just in case she wasreallymad.
Resting one hand on the leaning tree, I took in a deep breath and soaked in the silence. All I could hear was the water rippling below me. An occasional bird chirping or squirrel rustling in the trees next to me, or at least what I hoped was just a squirrel and nothing bigger. Whatever it was, at least it was relatively quiet.
Finally.
My phone buzzed in my pocket interrupting my serene moment. I swallowed my groan. “Hey, Mom.”
“Nina? Where are you?”
“Just—” I glanced around the empty trail. “Walking around. Getting some fresh air.”
“Are you doing anything in an hour and a half?”
“Not really.” Digging into my shorts pocket, a tube of Chapstick fell onto the ground and I had to stop it with my foot before it rolled down the path into the bushes. “Do you need something from the store?”
“Uh …” Mom cleared her throat loudly for so long that I instantly tensed up. “Your dad finished his seminar at Ole Miss, and he caught an early flight. Do you think you can pick him up from the airport in two hours?”
“Uh …” When I needed it the most, my brain drew a blank as I scrambled for an excusenotto pick Dad up.
“Nina …” Her warning tone was low but effective. “If you don’t pick up your dad, then I’m going to tell your aunt the mysterious ‘stomachache’ you had that made you miss her murder mystery dinner last year was really binge-watchingGame of Thronesfor the fifth time.”
Betrayal from my own flesh and blood.
“Fine, I’ll get him. Text me his flight info.”
“Thank you,” she said brightly, like she didn’t just blackmail me. “Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
And then there were a few more seconds of silence before she hung up. Like she wanted to say something else. Or maybe I wanted her to say she was jokingand thatshecould pick him up herself after all. That this was a test and I passed with flying colors.
My relationship with Dad has always been … rocky. Like the steep cliffs on Rocky Mountain. Rocky like the old rocking chair in Bá’s room that always felt like it’s about to collapse beneath you. Rocky like … well, Rocky Balboa in theRockymovies. Like he says,The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows.
Báhad been a huge fan of ol’ Sly. I spent every Sunday watching his movie marathons with her. I could pretty much recite all his movies by heart from the time I was thirteen. Sometimes I turned on one of his movies in the background just to feel like my grandma was still around.
In a lot of ways, Stallone was considered family more than Dad was. Then again, Dad’s only been around the last two years or so. And Mom and I may have moved to Houston a year ago to be closer to him, but that didn’t mean I was anycloser to him.
Which was why thelastthing I wanted to do right now was to pick him up from the airport and spend the next twenty-five excruciating minutes making small talk about my summer reading or what movies were in theaters. I mean, it’s not like we ever talked about anything important—like why he ditched Mom before I was born. Or why the hell he decidednowto come back into our lives instead of staying with his other family. And, most importantly, whether he was planning to do that to us.
