Page 88 of My Merry Mistake
She gives me a look like,What was that?and I return her look with a half-shrug, shaking my head like,Yeah, weird. Poppy looks as surprised as I feel by Raya’s unexpected kindness. Maybe setting her platonic boundary made her feel safe treating me as something other than a nuisance. She made herself clear, so kindness won’t encourage me.
Or so she thinks.
Poppy wipes the sweat from her brow in the lull and looks at me. “First of all, thank you. I don’t think we would’ve gotten through that without you.”
I give her a little bow. “Always happy to help a friend.”
Her eyes narrow. “Second of all—what are you guys doing here? Together? On a Friday?” There’s an expectancy on her face that’s more hopeful than accusatory.
“We came in for breakfast,” I say.
“Together,” Poppy repeats. “On a Friday.” She moves closer to her sister. “What is going on?”
Raya reaches up and smooths her hair. “I’m taking some time off work.”
Poppy frowns. “Are you okay? Did something else happen?”
Raya holds up a hand. “I’m fine. But my doctor insists that I need time off. If you need some extra help, maybe you could give me a job here for a few weeks?”
“Absolutely not,” Poppy says without hesitation. “I would never let you work here.”
“Thanks.” Raya’s eyebrows pinch together.
“Sorry, Ray, but this is not your wheelhouse.” Poppy walks over to the sink and washes her hands. “Besides, if the doctor is saying you need to rest, don’t you think you should—I don’t know—rest?”
“I tried to tell her,” I say, folding my arms like I’m a parent with a disobedient teen.
Raya shoots me a look.
Poppy dries her hands, stopping in front of her sister. “I assume this means you lied about what they said before you left the ER the other day?” She crosses her arms and stares at Raya.
“I didn’t lie,” Raya says, but when she meets my eyes, she adds, “I just didn’t tell you the whole truth.”
Poppy shifts. “What’s going on, Ray?”
Raya looks at me, almost like she’s lost.
And that’s my cue to walk away.
Raya
I tell Poppy the whole story. The doctor, Brian telling me to take a month off, even the part about me falsely blaming Finn for this unwanted time out.
I don’t tell her, though, that I’m worried. I don’t tell her that the whole ordeal has me on edge because at the back of my mind, the low-level fear from the day of my episode is still hovering.
“Everyone wants me to relax. To take time off.” I meet her eyes. “But I don’t know how.”
“Why didn’t you say something sooner?” she asks. “I would’ve brought you dinner last night. We could’ve hung out, watched the game.”
“I didn’t want to watch the game. You know I hate hockey,” I mutter with a quick glimpse at Finn, who is now cooking bacon with Miguel, joking and laughing like they’re best friends.
How does he do that?It looks so easy.
“What is going on with you two?” Poppy asks, voice low.
I sigh. “Absolutely nothing. He showed up at my door this morning, and I can’t get him to leave.”
“Aw.” She smiles. “That’s really sweet.”
