Page 28 of The Infiniteness of Yesterday
“Fine.” She removes her hands from his eyes and lets them dangle, her body held securely by his hands on her legs. “Ooh, let’s go in there.”
Of course she’s pointing to the only toy store on the street.
“You got it, Monster.”
Jameson starts running, Monroe laughing her ass off from his shoulders, while they leave me behind in their dust.
I continue at my leisurely pace, window shopping as I go. When I get to the toy store, I find Jae and Roe looking at the dolls.
“Look at that one.” Monroe points excitedly at the blond doll in a doctor’s coat. “She’s a doctor like Aunt Willa. Well, she’s not a doctor yet but she will be soon.”
“What do you think you’re going to be when you grow up?” He ruffles her hair playfully.
She picks up a doll, looking at it closely before returning it to the shelf. “I don’t know. A singer. Ooh or a dog doctor. I like dogs a lot.”
He chuckles, smiling down at my daughter like she’s the most amazing thing ever. Which, I mean, she is to me but it’s more than nice that my boyfriend thinks so too.
“You’ve got time, kid. You’ll figure it out.”
She looks up at him. “Why did you want to be an … um … what are you again?”
He grins, picking up one of the dolls himself and flipping the box around to read the back. “I’m a software engineer and honestly, I don’t know. I’m good with computers and I figured I’d make decent money.”
I like that he answers her honestly, he doesn’t evade the question or dumb down his answer for her.
“But shouldn’t you do something you love?” She rolls the word around her tongue.
He bends down to her height, taking her much smaller hands in his larger ones. “Sometimes it’s not that simple. Being an adult is a complicated thing.”
She blows a raspberry. “I think I want to stay a kid forever then.”
He laughs and squeezes her hands before standing again. “Smart idea. Enjoy it for as long as you can.” Looking over his shoulder he spots me and the smile that lights up his face makes my tummy dip. “Hey, you found us.”
“Mom!” Roe cries, running over to me and grabbing my hand so she can tug me to where her and Jameson have been standing. “Look at this doll. It’s like Willa. We should get it for her.”
“Or”—I tap her nose— “you could get it and play with it.”
She looks down at it. “Eh, not really my thing.” She puts it back and picks up a doll in a bedazzled outfit with a microphone. “Now this one I like.”
“That one, huh?” I try to hold back my smile.
“Look, Mom, she has teal and pink in her hair. I wish you’d let me dye my hair.”
I glide my fingers through her blond hair with the barest hint of strawberry from her father. “We’ll talk about it when you’re thirteen.”
“Really?” Her blue eyes grow bigger and rounder and somehow even brighter.
“Sure, why not.”
“How far away is thirteen?” She’s already counting on her fingers before I can answer. “Seven? Seven years? That’s too far away. I don’t like this.” Hands on her hips she shakes her head. “This is just unfair.”
“Life’s unfair, kiddo.” I kiss the top of her head. “But it’s not like I said no.”
A sigh billows out of her chest. “I guess so.”
After leaving the toy store, Roe swinging a bag with the rock star doll courtesy of Jameson, we head to one of our favorite lunch spots in Santa Monica; Monsterwiches.
“You guys grab a table.” I point to one of the few free ones outside on the patio. “I’ll get our food.”
