Life In Reverse(37)

I chuckle at the still terrified expression on her face. “Roller coasters don’t bother me. The craziest thing I’ve ever done is bungee jumping.”

Her eyes widen. “Oh my God. I can’t even imagine doing that. I’m afraid the cord would snap.”

“Nah. It’s actually pretty secure.” I gesture with my hands, crisscrossing them over my chest. “You’re wearing a harness so it’s not too bad. Skydiving on the other hand, that might freak me the f*ck out.”

She stares down at the table then back to me. “Zack was supposed to do his first skydive the weekend after….” Her thoughts taper off, shoulders dropping on a sigh. “He would’ve done it, too. He was fearless, you know? Whereas me… I’d be afraid to fall.” She shakes her head as if she still can’t believe he’s gone. “He thought he was invincible. I think I did, too.”

“He was obviously very brave. Not me, I’ll stick to more wimpy things on the ground. Like martial arts.”

“What kind?” Another piece of pastry gets shoved in her mouth, her cheek puffing out as she chews.

“Karate.” I flex my arms out in front of me. “I actually haven’t kept up with it, but I got my Black Belt years ago.”

“That’s really impressive. I guess I better not do anything to piss you off.”

I shoot her a nonchalant grin, shrugging my shoulders for extra effect. “I think at this point you’re pretty much exonerated from my wrath.”

Her face lights up. “I feel pretty special then, considering….” She circles her hands in the air like she’s wiping down a window. “You’ve got that whole broody thing going on.”

For the briefest of moments, I consider telling her that she is special. Because a part of me is whispering she is. But it seems too personal, too close to crossing a boundary I have to be sure to stay behind.

“Yoohoo.” She wiggles her fingers in front of my face. “Earth to Vance?” I refocus on her, those riveting eyes trying to find me. “Where’d you go?”

“Just zoning out.”

High-pitched screams from outside force our attention to the window and the small park across the street. Two little boys are racing from the grass to a low wooden fence overlooking the road.

“Julian and I used to race like that when we were kids, too,” I explain, smiling at the memory. “He always used to win. That little f*cker.” One of the boys punches the air when he makes it to the fence first. “He’s always been a lot more athletic than me. His legs are also longer so that helps.”

“He sounds competitive like Avery. She was always trying to one-up me. It bothered me when we were kids because I felt like she could master things I couldn’t. And that she was doing it to annoy me.” She laughs. “Which she probably was.”

“So wait,” I pick at the crumbs on my napkin, “Are you guys close then?”

Her cheeks hollow as she sucks coffee through the straw, trying not to smile. “We are now. She’s like the Yin to my Yang.” She rests an elbow on the table, her fist tucked under her chin. “We weren’t as close before though. But after Zack died we clung to each other and became inseparable in ways.”

Our conversation veers off then into everything from family quirks, to politics, art, and our mutual love for zombie movies and The Walking Dead. However, our serious bone of contention arises when she tells me her favorite movie is Pretty Woman.

“Pretty Woman?” I hiss out an annoyed laugh. “Come on. That movie is as far from reality as you’re ever gonna get.”

“And so what?” She throws her hands up in the air. “It’s a movie. It’s no different from the books you read. Those are fiction,” she emphasizes, curling her fingers into air quotes.

“Yes,” I toss back. “But those aren’t fluffy, bullshit, never gonna happen happy endings.”

There are no happy endings in the cards for me. But I’m not getting into that with her.

“It could happen,” she retorts, her mouth a straight line.

“So you want some rich prince to climb up a fire escape with an umbrella and flowers to save you?”

“Aha!” She jabs her finger in the air at me. “You have seen it. And I already told you I don’t need to be saved.” She holds her chin high. “I’ll save myself, thank you very much.”

My grin goes wide at her stubborn and self-assured nature. “I have no doubt you will, Mickey. And FYI, I would never watch that garbage by choice. I was coerced to watch the DVD by Julian and a date.” I smirk. “It wasn’t a pleasurable experience.” Reaching for my cup, I happen to glance at my watch. “Holy shit. Do you realize we’ve been talking for almost three hours?”

“Not surprising.” She lobs her balled-up napkin at me. “You kind of have a big mouth.”

“Nice.” I push my chair back, the screech echoing in the empty café. “I’ve got to get back to my job search. You ready?”

“Yeah.” She snags our empty cups and the leftover cinnamon rolls and throws them in the garbage. When we reach the door, she unlocks it and flips me a sideways glance. “Thank you for….” Her throat works on a soft swallow and that shy smile of hers is back. “…Saving me. Because today, I really did need saving.”