Puddin'(49)

When I wasn’t completely drenched in guilt from the dumb thing I said to Millie in front of Mitch, I was busy being broken up with and making a very public display of it. I suffered through school on Thursday, but my mom didn’t push it when I feigned sick on Friday morning.

I cringe whenever I think about how much time I’ve spent with Bryce, and what now? It was all just a giant waste? And yeah, I feel like shit. Bryce was my first boyfriend, but somehow I was always sure that if we ever broke up, it would be me who made that decision. If what I had with Bryce was so easily disposable, who’s to say what’s real and what’s not?

But right now, the only thing I want to focus on is revenge.

Millie drops her bag behind the counter and gets busy making her rounds around the gym, wishing all three of our members a happy afternoon while she checks out all the equipment. “Callie,” she calls while she’s got her leg propped up on a weight machine as she ties her shoes. “Can you get started on these towels?”

I groan silently. “Sure thing.” I make a circle around the gym, picking up all the towels from the various hampers and taking them all back to the utility closet where the washer and dryer are located.

“I kissed him,” says Millie, like she might explode if she doesn’t say it out loud.

She startles me so much I drop the detergent into the machine, cup and all. For a fat girl, she sure is light on her feet.

I reach down into the machine for the cup. “Kissed who?” I ask, not bothering to hide my bewilderment.

“The guy I said I liked, remember? The one who wouldn’t make a move?”

“Oh, right, okay.” I faintly recall a conversation we had before her mom picked her up for that emergency dentist appointment. Most people would probably tell Millie the best way to snag a guy would be to drop the weight. And while that might be true in certain cases, I kind of also think that there are definitely people out there who might be into what Millie’s serving.

“Well, you told me I should give him another chance. So I did! And he kissed me back.”

I turn around after dumping the towels into the machine. “You’re not mad at me?” I ask over the running water.

“About what?” she asks. And then she remembers. I can see it on her face. “Oh, the gym equipment comment?”

I nod, trying to keep my face blank.

“Well,” she says, the word coming out like a sigh, “I heard you had quite the week yourself, so I thought I’d let it slide.”

I can tell from the ways her lips are pursed together that she has more to say, and I guess the nice thing would be to encourage her to talk. But I don’t need another damn lecture. Especially about some stupid joke.

The bell at the front of the gym dings. “You want to get it?” asks Millie. “I’ve got some stuff to do back here.”

I nod and shut the lid of the washing machine. “Yeah, okay.” I wait a moment. “Be there in a sec!” I call. “Um, I’m glad for you that it worked out. With the kissing situation.”

Millie beams and bounces on her toes. “Me too.”

I head out front, where I find Mitch waiting at the counter. I’m suddenly self-conscious in a way that’s hard for me to process. There’s no telling what Patrick and Bryce probably told him about me. “Hey,” I say.

He stands up a little straighter and flips his card out between two fingers. “Mitch Lewis, Esquire.”

“Very impressive.” I’m not entertained. Or maybe I am. I don’t know.

“Real talk: I don’t even think I know what ‘esquire’ means.”

It means lawyer, but rather than saying so, I just take his card.

“Hey. I didn’t see you in school yesterday.” He coughs into his fist. “I wasn’t, like, stalking you or anything. But, like, I usually pass you in the hall between third and fourth.”

I nod. “That doesn’t sound stalkery at all,” I mumble as I sit down on the stool behind the counter and pull out the box where we keep member cards to file his away. “I was feeling kind of sick. From, like, the state of my life.”

“Um, well,” he says. “I hope your life is feeling better.”

“Things aren’t looking very good. We had to pull the plug on my social life. My reputation is basically on life support.”

He grins, pushing a hand through his curls. “I’ll have my people send flowers.”

I tap my feet against the stool and smile with my lips closed. “Finally. Something to look forward to. I love watching dead flowers wilt.”

Crickets. Nothing. I sure do know how to take a conversation a step too far.

After a long bout of silence, he knocks his fist on the counter and surveys the equipment behind me. “Cool, cool, cool.”

I watch as he heads toward the weight machines. He puts the pin in his preferred weight limit for the leg machine and studies it for a minute. Without warning, he doubles back to me and knocks his fist against the counter again.

Great. More reasons to clean the glass counter. Again.

“Hey, so are you, like, okay?” he asks.

I stare at him blankly. “Are you okay?” I ask, like it’s some great comeback. I’m unreasonably annoyed by his concern. Something about it presumes that I’m a wounded bird after my big public breakup with Bryce.