Kate twirled the phone cord around her fingers as she listened to the guy on the other end of the line drone on about his symptoms. Her shift at the doctor’s office was only halfway over, and the day was dragging on. Luckily, her class schedule at the community college was flexible enough that she was able to keep the majority of her day shifts at the office.
After daydreaming about the turkey club she planned to order at lunch, she turned her attention back to the caller. “If you ask me, it sounds like mono.”
“Really?” the caller asked, with dread creeping into his voice.
“Yup. I knew a girl at college who ended up making out with this foreign exchange student at a frat party. And then bam!” she exclaimed. Cradling the phone on her shoulder, she clapped her hands together for emphasis.
“Bam?” he asked uncertainly.
“She ended up with a raging case of mono a few weeks later. Have you kissed anyone new lately?”
One of the secretaries, Judith, rolled her chair over to Kate’s and whispered, “I keep telling you to stop dispensing medical advice. The doctors will fire you if they hear that.”
Kate mouthed “sorry” to her and said into the phone, “Dr. Phillips will be able to see you at two o’clock.”
After she got what information she needed from him, Kate hung up and said, “Sometimes I wonder if I should’ve gone to medical school. This diagnosing stuff doesn’t seem too hard.”
“Sometimes I feel the same way,” Judith agreed readily. She fluffed her dyed blonde hair and reapplied her lipstick, looking into a compact mirror. Judith was pushing sixty, but she was a big fan of the cosmetics that Kate’s mother sold through direct sales. She always looked immaculate, and Kate hoped she was that put together when she reached her age. She recognized the woman’s lipstick: Paradise Peach, from the Summer of Passion line.
“So Kate, that detective you were running around with was working the beat in my neighborhood …”
Kate cut her off. “I don’t think they call it a beat anymore. Besides, Jared’s a detective, he doesn’t do patrols.”
Judith ignored her. “Although he was busy, do you know he talked to me for a good twenty minutes?”
“What did you talk about?”
“I told him about that ticket I got for speeding on Third Street and how I was a good friend of yours,” Judith replied. Kate smiled at the last statement. Judith said, “I could tell he was busy, but he listened to my whole story. He even agreed to try and get the ticket downgraded to a lesser charge.”
“Jared’s a nice guy. I just hope you didn’t blow his cover if he was working an investigation.”
Judith looked distressed over the idea. “I didn’t even think of that! Please apologize for me if you talk to him. I’ll tell you something, Kate. If I were you, I’d chain that man to my bed and never let him go.”
Her cell phone ringing saved Kate from replying. “It’s my friend, Julie,” she said. “I’m going to take my lunch break now.”
“Hey Julie. How’s the blushing bride to be?” Kate asked as she grabbed her purse and jacket and headed out of the office. She planned to stop at the deli and grab the sandwich she had been envisioning before she had to return to work.
“Getting overwhelmed with how much planning there is to do! I thought we could have our wedding next summer after we both graduate, but everywhere is booked already.” Gage and Julie attended the same college and were in their senior year. Kate and Julie had met when they were assigned as roommates during their freshman year, but when Kate fell ill with meningitis, she had dropped out of school. After taking some courses online, she was continuing her degree program at the local community college. Julie said, “I’m either going to have to settle for a fall or winter wedding or wait until the next year,” and Kate could hear the disappointment in her voice.
“No matter what time of year, you’ll have a beautiful wedding,” she told her friend. “And what’s the rush, anyway? Another six months won’t make a big difference in the scheme of things.”
“I know, but my mom is pressuring me to get married before Gage and I live together. We were planning to move in together in May after we graduate, but I may have to delay shacking up together to appease her.”
Julie and her mom could never see eye to eye on anything. Kate imagined it was going to make wedding planning an interesting experience. She just hoped that as maid of honor, she wouldn’t be forced to play referee.
“That’s a tough one. I’m kind of in the camp that a couple should live together first to make sure they’re compatible before getting married. But make the best decision for you, instead of worrying about what your mom thinks.”
“As much as I can’t stand the woman, she still has the ability to get into my head,” Julie said. Then her tone changed. “Enough about my problems. What’s going on with you? Have you talked to Jared?”
Kate had filled Julie in on her trip the day before, and she’d told her about her suggestion that Jared take some time to figure out exactly what he wanted. “Not a word,” Kate said. “I’m not sure how much space I should give him. Should I take his silence as a sign that he doesn’t want a relationship with me?”
“That’s BS, Kate. You need to stop sitting on your butt waiting for him to call you and take the initiative. You know what you need to do?” Julie asked. “A big gesture that tells him exactly how you feel.”
“I think saving his aunt from a gruesome death was a big enough gesture to show him how I feel,” Kate pointed out.
Julie was getting worked up and Kate suspected she had tuned her out. “Here’s the plan. You head to his apartment wearing sexy lingerie under a trench coat.”
“I don’t own a trench coat …”
Julie kept talking. “And you say to him, ‘Listen, you can be with me for tonight and every night afterwards. Or you can have the memory that you let this go forever.’ Then, you drop the trench coat to the floor and show him your goods.”
“Um … that’s one idea,” Kate said, noncommittal. An idea she would never ever enact. “But I’m not sure if that’s the way to go at this juncture.”
“Have I ever steered you wrong?”
“Actually, you have. Remember the time you convinced me to get the peacock feather extensions?”
Julie laughed. “You did look sort of funny. Sorry about that.”
“It’s okay. But I do think you have a point about telling Jared how I feel.” She should lay everything out for him, not only how she had fallen in love with him, but also the truth surrounding her future visions. Kate had to mimic Jared’s way of thinking. He was a detective, which meant he would need to see all the evidence before coming to a final decision.
They talked a few minutes longer and then made plans to get together for manicures the following week. Julie wanted to keep her nails looking perfect, she said, since she would be flashing her ring around to everyone in their social circle for a long while.
After Kate hung up, she thought again about Jared, bemoaning the complexity of their relationship. The truth was, she was terrified about admitting her feelings to him. Over the past few months, he had become her first love — and she hoped he wouldn’t leave her with her first broken heart.
“Cricket!”
“Daddy!” The little girl ran across the park to launch her entire body into the arms of a man in his early thirties with blond hair and a lanky frame. He swooped her up and swung her small body around in a circle.
The girl looked to be about six years old and had the adorable toothless smile children that age shared. Her light brown hair was cut to her shoulders with bangs falling over her eyebrows. Once he set the girl down on the ground, she put a hand on her hips and said, “My name’s not Cricket, its Kendall.”
“But you’re my cricket because you’re always chirping in my ear when I see you,” he teased affectionately, mussing her hair. Playfully, Kendall swatted his hand away.
A petite woman with dark hair walked over to them. Her face was drawn as she took in the man’s appearance. She pulled nervously at the sleeves of her dress as she addressed him. “What did the doctor say?”
His eyes grew distant as he regarded the woman. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Let’s talk about it later.”
“Peter, I need to know. Please …”
After shooting the woman a defeated smile, he turned his attention back to his daughter. Peter kneeled in front of Kendall. “Hey Cricket, do you think you could go and play with your friends for a little bit while Mommy and me talk?”
“Yes, sir,” she said and mock-saluted him. He laughed, and she set off toward the park. Kendall looked back when she reached the jungle gym and saw her parents standing in the same place. Her father appeared to be saying something in earnest, and her mother was starting to cry. Her father engulfed her mother in a tight hug, and Kendall could hear her mother’s sobbing where she stood on the playground. Her father was gently rubbing her back.
Kendall ran back over to her parents and looked at them both in alarm. “Mommy, what’s wrong?”
In response, the woman started hyperventilating. She clutched at her husband like an anchor as her knees began to buckle out from under her.
Peter whispered, “Joann, let’s not upset our daughter.”
“But why?” Joann lamented. “We’ll do whatever it takes. We’ll spend all our savings and you’ll see the best doctors in the country. We can sell the house if we have to…”
Peter shushed her and planted a gentle kiss on Joann’s cheek. “Why don’t we go home? This isn’t the best place to talk about this.”
“Daddy?” Kendall questioned uncertainly.
“Everything is fine. We’re just going to head home from the park a little early today so your Mommy can rest. She’s not feeling very well,” Peter explained and smiled at her. His smile was strained and didn’t quite meet his eyes.
Although her body was still trembling, Joann regained control over her breathing and pulled her face away from Peter’s chest. Finally, she made eye contact with her confused daughter. Joann’s mascara had begun to run, smudging her cheeks. Her brown eyes pooled with tears and she said in a choked whisper, “Let’s go home.”
Peter lifted Kendall up on his shoulders and the family walked toward the parking lot. Before they reached the car, Joann gazed over at Peter and Kendall. The devastation was clear on her face and a fresh wave of tears burst from her. Peter squeezed her hand, but it appeared as if nothing would ever be able to bring her comfort again.