Page 96 of The Princess and the Paparazzi
He didn’t kick me to the curb.
Smiley face. Flames. Troll. Princess. Eggplant.
Ok then. I hope you had a nice time
We had a *dice* time.
???
I’ll explain later. See you in two hours.
lorelei
I parkin the cell phone lot at the airport and close my eyes for fifteen minutes, going back over the past twenty-four hours in my head.
My entire body is deliciously sore. I could probably skip my workout for three days. I won’t, but I could. I’ve convinced Noah to start working out with me as soon as his doctor approves it. There may be dice involved. And lots of lunges. For sure, there will be lunges.
Noah and I lay awake till the wee small hours, talking about everything under the sun. What it was like to grow up on a TV show. His theories about artificial intelligence. The high school theater program. How he feels about his parents retiring to Washington State. Aliens.
I even told him a little bit about the conversation I had with my mom.
“I think you should give her another chance,” he said, without hesitation.
“But she screwed up. She screwed me up.”
“You seem pretty okay to me, actually,” Noah argued.
“Yeah, well, years of therapy. That’s how I originally got into gaming. My therapist suggested role playing games as a safe way to act out and track my own emotions. It’s a thing, gaming therapy.” I felt a little awkward sharing this, yet I wanted him to know.
“I’ve heard about that.” Noah had rolled on his side and looked at me. The rain had settled into a gentle pattern against the windows of his bedroom. He’d insisted I spend the night with him in his massive, four-poster bed. Honestly, I was grateful not to have to sleep on the futon. “The thing is, no parents are perfect. They all screw up. Yours did, mine did, and I’m sure we would if we were ever in that position.”
“No thanks.” I shook my head vehemently. “The buck stops here. I don’t want to screw any more kids up.”
“Me either.” Noah pulled me closer and wrapped me in his arms. “Maybe I’m selfish. I already feel kind of like my students are all my kids, and that’s enough. I like having my summers off to travel and do stuff, and having the extra cash to pay for it.”
“I get that,” I said, doing an internal fist pump.Noah Greenberg is not going to ask me to settle down and play wifeymom with him? Could this get any better?
“But the point is, you’re only going to have so many people in your life who know you and share your history. And sometimes, you gotta take it from whence it comes. Accept that they are flawed, and so are you. Particularly when you’re all adults. I say set some clear boundaries, but give her another chance. Seems like her heart is in the right place, and she’d really like to reconnect with you.”
“I invited her to the opening ofAMidsummer Night’s Dream, and…” I said, suddenly feeling a bit shy about inviting him, despite the fact that we are both stark naked, lying spent together.
“And?” He drew his fingers along the ridges of my ribs.
“And I’d love it if you were there, too,” I breathed out.
“You couldn’t keep me away.”
We fell asleep shortly after that, but I hadn’t slept for very long. I had to be out of there super early to make it to the airport in time to get Kenna.
Now that I’m here in the lot, ready to swap back, I can’t stop thinking about the test results. I’ve already pulled up the DNA testing service’s user portal in a browser on my phone. All I have to do is log in and I’ll know. But I can’t do that until I show Kenna the photos I’ve taken from her album.
The lot is getting busier and busier, and normally, I’d be worried about getting caught sleeping in a car in a public place—especially an old beater like Kenna’s—but I don’t feel like anyone is looking at me. And even if they are, I don’t care. I don’t have that hunted, haunted feeling anymore. I’ve made up my mind.
I’m done with wearing a wig and listening to the advisory board. If I want to playDNDwith a bunch of freaks and geeks, I will.
Then I get another idea. I pull up the invitation to the Nomad Games this fall and send a link to Noah.
Would you ever consider taking time off to travel?
