Page 76 of Free Heart
“Fuck being rude.They’rerude, coming up to you and asking the kinds of questions I bet your friends haven’t even been assholes enough to ask.”
“Some have,” I say, thinking of Leenie who’s still riding the “Sejin, you can do much better” train, although she’s sometimes been on the “Don’t you dare let him infect my son with his madness” train too. That’s because Dan’s offered to take Jeremiah climbing—with ropes, and a helmet, and all the gear, of course—once his leg heals, as a sort of peace offering for having stolen me away from him.
And it’s worked.
Jeremiah is now always asking when Dan’s taking him up the big rocks, and Leenie wants Dan’s balls on a silver platter. Luckily, Martin thinks it’s harmless. But I really don’t want to be at odds with Leenie. I don’t want to be at odds with anyone. Not even Papa Bear customers.
“What I’m saying, kid, is if you’re going to date a celebrity and, in this community, Dan’s becoming a celebrity like some of the other big climbing names, then you’ve got to lay down boundaries and stick to them. I won’t fire you if you tell someone to leave you alone. Don’t be nice. Be a dick.”
He leaves me in the back with some vague instructions to go into the freezer area and pull out some more of the molasses cookie dough balls for baking. I’ve just finished laying them out on the cooking sheet to put them in the oven when Celli sticks her head through the door. “You’re going to want to see this. C’mon.”
Taking the plastic gloves off, I follow her out into the store.
There I find a crowd of people around a table by the window. That’s when I see the crutch leaning against the opposite chair.
“He drove?” I ask Celli.
“Looks like that woman brought him. The one in the video.”
I approach the table and manage to squeeze through the crowd of admirers. When Dan sees me, he smiles and draws me closer. His wide-set eyes are fringed with such long lashes, they catch the sun streaming through the window. “Do you want my boyfriend’s autograph too?” he asks a middle-aged woman who’s standing there with a very embarrassed-looking teenage son.
“Do you mind?” she asks. “I love watching your videos. You’re both so cute together.”
I take the pen and the paper and sign my name next to Dan’s. Pete’s comments about boundaries and being rude circle my mind.
“You left the house,” I say.
“Sailor brought me out.”
“Alright, we’re done here,” Sailor says, smiling winningly as she shoos the group away. “Another day,” she murmurs to some grungy teens who linger. They skedaddle too.
“What time do you get off?” Sailor asks me, folding her long, calloused fingers on the table. They’re the only parts of her that aren’t beautiful. All the climbing has done a number on them. Otherwise, per the usual, she looks like she walked out of a television show, and she acts like it too.
“Half an hour.”
“Great. We’ll all head over to Tuolumne Meadow, and you two are going to set up a little tent. Oryouare, I guess, since I’ll be filming, and Dan can’t really help.”
“I’m not spending the night in a field tonight. I have Movement with the kids in the morning.”
“Oh, I know,” Sailor says, as Dan tugs me into his lap, like I’m not taller than him and impossible to dandle on his knee. He squeezes me happily. “We just want to get some shots that make it look like you are. For content.”
Boundaries, Pete had said. Boundaries.
“No, we’re not doing that,” I say with a tight smile.
“It’ll be fun,” Sailor urges.
“Dan,” I say, turning to him. “I know you’re stir-crazy, but we’re not going out into the middle of Tuolumne Meadow at this point in your recovery.” I turn back to Sailor. “You’re trying to be helpful, I know, but you don’t understand what’s at stake here. I’m not risking Dan’s leg on uneven ground for what amounts to a photo op.”
Dan grips me a little more tightly.
Sailor smiles like she thinks we’re cute, or I’m cute. I’m not sure which, or even if her expression is a compliment. It’s a little condescending. “Fair enough. I thought it’d be fun, and Dan said he was recovered enough for it.”
“Dan’s overly optimistic about his recovery in general,” I say, standing up. “I have to get back to work.”
I turn to Dan. “Do you want to drive home with me? Or do you have a different, hopefullyindoor,plan with Sailor?”
“I’ll go with you,” he says.
