The Invisibles Read Online Free PDF Page A

you don’t have to worry about things like calories for at least another ten years. Forty is when it really starts to go to hell. And then fifty, well, you may as well just go ahead and burn every girdle you’ve ever bought, since the only thing they manage to do is leave unsightly indentations around yourmiddle.” She patted the front of her skirt gently, as if forgiving her body for such a thing anyway.
    â€œSpeak for yourself.” Trudy slid her finger down the side of the cake and winked at Nora. “You got any plans for tonight?”
    Nora averted her eyes. “No, not really.”
    â€œNothing at all?” Marion repeated kindly. She stuck a single gummy fish in the middle of Nora’s slice of cake, and then sprinkled a handful of them around the edges, as if they were swimming.
    Nora smiled, trying to hide her embarrassment. “You both know Alice Walker would be offended if I left her alone on my birthday. We’ll get some steaks and hang out.” She toed the leg of the table with her shoe, knowing how lame this sounded, but the truth was that an evening alone with her dog did not make her want to jump off a bridge anymore. There had been a time, maybe even as recently as a few years ago, when the idea of such a thing created such feelings of dread that she found herself staying late at the library to avoid going home, but not anymore. She’d gotten used to keeping herself company. And Alice Walker, who Nora could swear had been a therapist in a past life, always knew just when to climb up on the couch next to her and rest her head in her lap. No, buying a steak dinner and sharing it with her dog tonight would be just fine.
    Trudy, however, did not seem to agree. Nora pursed her lips as the older woman began shaking her head across the table.
    â€œMarion and I would be more than happy to take you to dinner tonight—just the three of us—but why don’t you come with us to our salsa class instead? There’s lots of young people there; you never know.”
    Trudy had a variation of invites that she peppered Nora with,but the silent, underlying purpose behind them was always the same: It’s not healthy for a young woman like you to spend so much time alone. You need girlfriends, Nora. Women your own age you can cook with and drink wine with and go to the movies with. Girls you can gossip about sex and love with and bare your darkest secrets to, and know that afterward, they will love you just as much, if not more.
    What Trudy didn’t know was that Nora had had all that. She’d had it in spades actually, friendships that had made her feel invincible, whole, complete in a way that defied completeness. And since it had disappeared, she had never had the heart to go out and look for it again. It had been too hard to lose the first time.
    She stood up. She wasn’t about to get into any of this now. “No, thanks. But listen, thank you for my—”
    â€œOh, sit down .” Trudy put her fork down and, with a great display of irritation, reached under the table and withdrew a box wrapped in light blue tissue paper. “For you,” she said, sliding it in Nora’s direction. “Happy birthday, kid.”
    Nora sat back down, touching the side of the small box as Marion clapped her hands. “You didn’t have to get me anything,” she said. “Jeez, the cake was enough.” She pulled the tissue off and stared at the cube-shaped box. Randall’s Jewelry was etched across the top in gilded letters. She looked back up at the women, bewildered.
    â€œJust open the damn box,” Trudy said. “And before you get all weird about it, yes, it was expensive. But this is what we wanted to do. Besides, Marion and I like to spend our money, not hoard it like some people we know.” She raised a thatch of eyebrow. “Don’t we, Marion?”
    Marion reached out and patted Trudy’s hand. “Be kind,