Under the Table(22)
He texted her every day. Usually nothing more than a hello, or wishing her a nice day. Sometimes she would start a conversation. Other times she would thank him and wish him the same. But she made sure to text him something worth learning daily. It was usually an often-used acronym, though he was too proper and set in his ways to use them, preferring to spell out each word in its entirety.
With the distance, Zoey was able to regain some of her equilibrium. Tristan was out of sight, but not quite out of mind. She suffered through Ruth’s uninvited half-hour diatribe about how men and women are incapable of being just friends. It was all the more disconcerting because Zoey had made no mention to her sister about the way she fled his apartment when her thoughts turned to departing the friend zone. But Zoey had to be careful. Getting too defensive would only give Ruth more ammunition.
“That’s ridiculous,” Zoey argued.
“No matter what anybody says, one side or the other is in it for the attraction.” Ruth did everything short of pointing her finger at Zoey in accusation.
“What about gay people?”
“That’s a nonissue. A gay man being friends with a woman is different because there’s no chance of sex. The same applies to gay women being friends with straight men.”
“Okay, so then by your theory all the lesbians you’re friends with are really wanting to hit on you?”
That stumped Ruth enough to make her drop the argument. But it also gave Zoey a lot of food for thought. In the end, Zoey laid the blame on the wine for her reaction to Tristan.
That didn’t stop Zoey from feeling a mixture of panic and thrill when Tristan texted her early Friday morning.
I THINK I’M READY TO GO OUT AND EXPERIENCE THE NIGHTLIFE. WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN ME?
Zoey doubted he would follow through if she declined. Or maybe not. He was known for jumping right into the deep end. Maybe it was time to get him out there. The sooner he embraced all New York City had to offer, the sooner she would be able to get back to her own agenda. The clock was ticking, and she wanted to make sure she had enough to afford a lawyer if Derek tried to fight simple mediation. Besides, it was common knowledge that once somebody found a significant other, all their other playmates were slowly left in the dust. What’s the worst that could happen, he would begin to develop a network of friends?
“Okay, Ruth, now’s your chance.” Zoey looked up from her phone after responding to Tristan that it sounded like a great idea. “Tristan wants to go out and party. Not only can you meet him, but I can also prove to you that my motives are pure and his are innocent.”
Ruth immediately started making plans for Saturday night.
*
Saturday afternoon Zoey took her first long look in the mirror. She’d just survived another hectic kid’s birthday party. It was easy money menu-wise, but murder having to listen to a bunch of kids screaming up and down the stairs of a Brooklyn brownstone all while keeping a smile plastered on her face. After a much-needed shower, Zoey gave her reflection a long-overdue assessment and was not thrilled with the final analysis. She always wore the same clothes for working, black pants and a white shirt. Her hair was always tied back for sanitary reasons. She avoided makeup—it was a total waste once she started sweating over the stove. When she wasn’t working, it was jeans or yoga pants and whatever shirt she put a hand on first. She stared at herself in the mirror. She had the nerve to think Tristan needed a makeover? Well, charity begins at home. With a heavy sigh, she began opening vanity drawers and shuffling stuff around, not sure what she was looking for.
At the back of one drawer, she spied teeth-whitening strips. It was as good a place to start as any. Who doesn’t appreciate a bright white smile? Zoey read the instructions on the box and pulled out a package for both her upper and lower teeth. They seemed so large, even after folding them in and anchoring them to the back of her teeth. They had a slimy feel and a faint aftertaste. She double-checked the package. She needed to wear them for thirty minutes. Sigh. She checked her phone for the time and left the bathroom. She turned on the television and sat down on her futon to wait. Clamping her jaw shut was increasing the slight pounding at her temple. Before long, she was leaning her head back against the futon. The next thing she knew, Ruth was gently shaking her awake.
“Hey,” Ruth said. “What time do you have to meet Mr. Manners?”
“What time is it now?” was Zoey’s still-drowsy and mumbled response. Her mouth was dry as a bone, and her lips felt chapped.
“Almost five thirty.”
“FIVE THIRTY?!?” Zoey jumped up and made a run for the bathroom, stubbing her toe on the coffee table in the process. She hopped down the hall, making random grabs at her pulsating foot with one hand and ripping the film out of her mouth with the other. There was no time to check for blood or broken bones. She’d kept the teeth-whitening strips in her mouth for nearly four hours.
She didn’t need to turn on the light in the bathroom to get a good look, but Zoey did it anyway. With her mouth still tightly shut, she stood in front of the mirror and took a deep breath. She gave her reflection a shaky smile.
Zoey had often thought she showed too much of her gums when she smiled. That problem had been solved. Zoey’s teeth didn’t look all that much different. Her gums, however, were bleached completely white. From where her teeth met the gum line all the way to where it attached to her lips. It was impossible to tell where her teeth ended and her gums began, making her mouth look like it was all teeth. Even her tongue had spots of discoloration.