Maybe Someday(21)

I pull the rag from her hand and wipe the rest

of the blood off my face, then grab a ziplock bag

out of the cabinet, go to the freezer, and fill it

with ice. I take her hand and press the ice onto it,

letting her know she needs to keep it there. I lean

against the counter next to her and pull my phone

out.

Me: You hit her good. Your hand is

already swelling.

She texts me with one hand, keeping the ice on

top of the other as she rests it on the counter.

Sydney: It could be because that wasn’t

the first time I’ve punched her today. Or it

could also be swollen because you aren’t

the first one to punch Hunter today.

Me: Wow. I’m impressed. Or terrified. Is

three punches your daily average?

120/692

Sydney: Three punches is now my lifetime

average.

I laugh.

She shrugs and sets her phone down, then pulls

the ice off her hand and brings it back up to my

mouth. “Your lip is swelling,” she says.

My hands are clenching the countertop behind

me. I become increasingly uneasy with how com-

fortable she is with all this. Thoughts of Maggie

flash through my head, and I can’t help but won-

der if she’d be okay with this scenario if she were

to walk through the front door right now.

I need a distraction.

Me: You want birthday cake?

She smiles and nods.

Me: I probably shouldn’t drive, since

you’ve turned me into a raging alcoholic

tonight, but if you feel like walking, Park’s

Diner makes a damn good dessert, and

121/692

it’s less than a mile from here. Pretty sure

the rain is over.

“Let me change,” she says, motioning to her

clothes. She pulls clothes from her suitcase, then

heads to the bathroom. I put the top on the Pine-

Sol and hide it back under the cabinet.

Chapter Five

Sydney

We don’t interact much while we eat. We’re both

sitting in the booth with our backs to the wall and

our legs stretched out in front of us on the seats.

We’re quietly watching the restaurant crowd, and

I can’t stop wondering what it’s like for him, not

being able to hear anything going on around us.

I’m probably too blunt for my own good, but I

have to ask him what’s on my mind.

Me: What’s being deaf like? Do you feel

like you’re in on a secret that no one else

knows about? Like you have a leg up on

everyone because the fact that you can’t

hear has magnified all your other senses

and you’ve got superhuman powers and

no one can tell just by looking at you?

123/692

He almost spits out his drink while reading my

text. He laughs, and it occurs to me that his laugh

is the only sound I’ve heard him make. I know

that some people who can’t hear can still talk, but

I haven’t heard him say a single word all night.

Not even to the waitress. He either points to what

he wants on the menu or writes it down.

Ridge: I can honestly say I’ve never

thought about it like that before. I kind of

like it that you think of it that way,

though. To be honest, I don’t think about

it at all. It’s normal to me. I have nothing

to compare it to, because it’s all I’ve ever

known.

Me: I’m sorry. I’m being one of those

people again, aren’t I? I guess me asking

you to compare being deaf to not being

deaf is like you asking me to compare be-

ing a girl to being a boy.

124/692

Ridge: Don’t apologize. I like that you’re

interested enough to ask me about it.

Most people are a little weirded out by it,

so they don’t say anything at all. I’ve no-

ticed it’s kind of hard to make friends, but

that’s also a good thing. The few friends I

do have are genuine, so I look at it as an

easy way of weeding out all the shallow,

ignorant *s.

Me: Good to know I’m not a shallow, ig-

norant *.

Ridge: Wish I could say the same about

your ex.

I sigh. Ridge is right, but damn if it doesn’t

sting to know I couldn’t see through Hunter’s

bullshit.

I put my phone down and eat the last of my

cake. “Thank you,” I say as I put my fork down. I

honestly forgot for a while that today was my

birthday until he offered to take me out for cake.

125/692

He shrugs as if it isn’t a big deal, but it is a big deal. I can’t believe after the day I’ve had that

I’m actually in a semidecent mood. Ridge can

take credit for that, because if it weren’t for him,

I don’t know where I’d be tonight or what kind of

emotional state I’d be in.