began to beat faster. Destiny? If I’m the father, then fine. I’ll do my part. I don’t walk away from stuff.
“We talked about it, though, and she preferred Spring.”
“She did?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure she talks?”
Spring smirked.
She was an attractive kid, as far as kids were concerned. I had no idea what having a kid would really be like. The closest thing I could compare it to was having a dog. And at least when you got a dog, you could choose the breed you’ve always wanted like a sheepdog or a rare Macedonian Furry Chihuahua. You could select the coat and color to match your décor and the size of the dog based on your square footage.
I watched the kid, as she stared at me from behind her orange juice.
“It’s still so hard to believe that you sold everything to move here.”
“Why?”
“You do realize that most people would consider this to be a tiny bit impetuous, don’t you?”
“People who lack imagination, yes. My parents are both dead now and I don’t have any other family. There was no reason not to come.”
“What about…” I nodded at the kid.
Diane looked at me, confused.
“Spring? Her uh, d-a-d?”
“Oh, him.” She took a sip of her coffee and then watched her daughter negotiate the oversized beer cup. “He s gone.”
I waited for more but nothing came. After a colossal build at least in my own mind that was all she said. As much as I really didn’t want to press, I had to continue. “He walked out on you?”
“Who did what to whom isn’t really the issue. He was B.S.”
“… Bullshit?” I whispered.
“No.” She chuckled. “Before Spring.”
“How long before Spring?”
“Well, obviously there’s a limit to how far before he could be, right?” She sipped her coffee. “I met a guy I thought was the perfect man, Dylan, and thought I fell in love. Then he left. When he did, I didn’t know I was pregnant. Not like that would have made a difference. I wanted the baby, as soon as I found out.” Diane followed the steam wisp from her mug. “You know, it took two months to figure out it wasn’t some viral thing making me throw up?”
“More coffee?” I said. Coming to the realization that Diane’s visit wasn’t about foisting paternity on me was a much bigger kick than if we’d made the Kona instead of the hazelnut.
“Yes, please.”
I took her cup, and our fingers touched again. Her glance felt warm, soothing.
“Now it’s Spring every day!” She said. She looked at her daughter, who was sitting in the corner and beginning to drift off to sleep.
“She must be exhausted,” I said. “I have a second bedroom in the back, if you’d like her to lay her down. And tomorrow, I know these headhunters who…”
“Not tomorrow. Tomorrow, I promised Spring that we would go to the park and see the ducks.”
“Quack, quack, quack…” Spring barely managed to open her eyes.
Diane smiled at her daughter with the kind of smile no one ever saw at the office or a bar. Then, she glanced back in my direction. “You’re welcome to come with us, if you’d like.”
Feeling as though I’d dodged the fatherhood bullet, going to the park seemed like a nice way to mix things up. “What the hell,” I said and then looked at the kid. “Can I say that?”
After Diane and Spring went to sleep in the back bedroom, I picked up the place, checked for any more surprises like panties on the ceiling fan or lip prints on the mirrors, then went to bed. As tired as I felt, I couldn’t sleep and must have stared at the ceiling for at least another hour. It wasn’t the decaf and it wasn’t the scare I had about having a daughter. The thing that really rattled me was that in the bedroom next to me were two people who had abandoned everything to start over. Sure, I could appreciate this in theory, but I couldn’t possibly imagine chucking a successful career for the sake of a fresh beginning. Wasn’t the point to get past the beginning like the salad
“We talked about it, though, and she preferred Spring.”
“She did?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure she talks?”
Spring smirked.
She was an attractive kid, as far as kids were concerned. I had no idea what having a kid would really be like. The closest thing I could compare it to was having a dog. And at least when you got a dog, you could choose the breed you’ve always wanted like a sheepdog or a rare Macedonian Furry Chihuahua. You could select the coat and color to match your décor and the size of the dog based on your square footage.
I watched the kid, as she stared at me from behind her orange juice.
“It’s still so hard to believe that you sold everything to move here.”
“Why?”
“You do realize that most people would consider this to be a tiny bit impetuous, don’t you?”
“People who lack imagination, yes. My parents are both dead now and I don’t have any other family. There was no reason not to come.”
“What about…” I nodded at the kid.
Diane looked at me, confused.
“Spring? Her uh, d-a-d?”
“Oh, him.” She took a sip of her coffee and then watched her daughter negotiate the oversized beer cup. “He s gone.”
I waited for more but nothing came. After a colossal build at least in my own mind that was all she said. As much as I really didn’t want to press, I had to continue. “He walked out on you?”
“Who did what to whom isn’t really the issue. He was B.S.”
“… Bullshit?” I whispered.
“No.” She chuckled. “Before Spring.”
“How long before Spring?”
“Well, obviously there’s a limit to how far before he could be, right?” She sipped her coffee. “I met a guy I thought was the perfect man, Dylan, and thought I fell in love. Then he left. When he did, I didn’t know I was pregnant. Not like that would have made a difference. I wanted the baby, as soon as I found out.” Diane followed the steam wisp from her mug. “You know, it took two months to figure out it wasn’t some viral thing making me throw up?”
“More coffee?” I said. Coming to the realization that Diane’s visit wasn’t about foisting paternity on me was a much bigger kick than if we’d made the Kona instead of the hazelnut.
“Yes, please.”
I took her cup, and our fingers touched again. Her glance felt warm, soothing.
“Now it’s Spring every day!” She said. She looked at her daughter, who was sitting in the corner and beginning to drift off to sleep.
“She must be exhausted,” I said. “I have a second bedroom in the back, if you’d like her to lay her down. And tomorrow, I know these headhunters who…”
“Not tomorrow. Tomorrow, I promised Spring that we would go to the park and see the ducks.”
“Quack, quack, quack…” Spring barely managed to open her eyes.
Diane smiled at her daughter with the kind of smile no one ever saw at the office or a bar. Then, she glanced back in my direction. “You’re welcome to come with us, if you’d like.”
Feeling as though I’d dodged the fatherhood bullet, going to the park seemed like a nice way to mix things up. “What the hell,” I said and then looked at the kid. “Can I say that?”
After Diane and Spring went to sleep in the back bedroom, I picked up the place, checked for any more surprises like panties on the ceiling fan or lip prints on the mirrors, then went to bed. As tired as I felt, I couldn’t sleep and must have stared at the ceiling for at least another hour. It wasn’t the decaf and it wasn’t the scare I had about having a daughter. The thing that really rattled me was that in the bedroom next to me were two people who had abandoned everything to start over. Sure, I could appreciate this in theory, but I couldn’t possibly imagine chucking a successful career for the sake of a fresh beginning. Wasn’t the point to get past the beginning like the salad
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