Page 25 of Better Than Gelato
I tell her everything starting with his text on Sunday night and ending with his soft cheek kisses on Monday evening.
“Well, I’m really excited for you,” she says. But it sounds more dutiful than genuine.
“Thanks,” I say. “I mean, I’m not like planning on dating him seriously or making this a big thing…”
“Of course you won’t date him seriously. It’s you.” Maggie laughs. “I just think it's funny that you move to an exotic country filled with gorgeous men and then find the only American within a hundred miles to date.”
Well, it sounds real stupid when you put it like that.I make an angry noise.
“You’re making your mad beaver sound again,” Maggie says. “I can hear it. Look, I’m sorry. I’m being lame. It’s the middle of the night, I don’t even have my head on straight. You meet a great guy, you have fun together, that’s great news. Maybe this one will even make it past the three-month mark.”
“Maybe,” I say. But just thinking about it makes me anxious.
Maggie tells me about all our friends back in Cali, and I crawl back into bed and let waves of homesickness wash over me. “I better let you get some sleep,” I finally say.
“Yeah, I do have a chem exam today,” she says.
“Good luck.”
“And hey, I’m sorry about before. Do whatever you want with your last hurrah. I just want you to be happy.”
“Thanks,” I say. “Love you for life.”
“Love you for life,” she repeats.
I shower to wash off the homesickness and think about what Maggie said. She’s right, dating Jake is ridiculous. Sure, he’s sweet and smart and smells amazing, but I’m not going to seriously date him. Yesterday was a fluke, a combination of a romantic setting and delicious food. This is my hurrah year, I’m not going to waste it on Jake. I’ll make it clear tomorrow night at Calypso that I’m only interested in being friends.
ChapterFive
Isa is on the rampage again.
“I want that toy!” she yells, stomping around the living room and pointing at the TV where a neon-clad girl plays with a flying unicorn.
“Of course my sweet cabbage,” Sofia says. “You have that toy. I bought it for you.”
“Well, where is it?” Isa demands.
“I’ll go get it from your room,” Sofia says and scurries down the hall.
Isa picks up the remote and turns up the volume on the TV until the frenetic sounds of Fiona the Magic Unicorn fill the living room. Marco is home tonight and looks like he wishes he wasn’t.
“Isa, why don’t we turn the volume down just a little?” he asks. He takes a step toward Isa, but she gives him a look of such rage that he takes two steps back.
I watch the whole scene from the kitchen, out of Isa’s view. Does hiding in the kitchen make me a coward? Maybe. Would I rather be a coward than a victim of that child’s death glare? Definitely.
Sofia comes back to the living room empty-handed. I can’t hear what she says because the commercial is too loud, but Isa shrieks “You can’t find it?!”
Probably because your room looks like a hurricane hit every toy store in the country and dumped the debris on your floor,I silently tell Isa.
The shrieking continues so I devise a plan and sneak out of the kitchen to my room. It’s too early to leave for Calypso, but I put on a pair of sweatpants, my sneakers, and my favorite 49ers T-shirt. It has a bluish stain on one shoulder, but it’s so comfortable I’ll never get rid of it. I grab my purse and head out to the living room where Isa has pulled all the cushions off the couch. But she didn’t throw them off the balcony, so that’s something to feel good about.
“Have a good night guys,” I call, breezing past them to the door. “I’m heading out.”
Isa stops screaming and looks at me. “Where are you going?” she demands.
“I’m going dancing with some friends.”
She gives my outfit a once-over. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
