Page 70 of You Only Need One
That doesn’t mean it has to be academic.
An hour in, my phone rings. If I’m with Ben and I get a text, I always ignore it. I don’t like staring at a screen when I’m with a friend or family member. I have the same No Checking Texts rule for Marcus, Terra, Pops, and Curt. But calls are different; they’re more immediate, carrying a sense of urgency. And they aren’t as common.
“Sorry. I’m just gonna take this real quick.”
He nods and accepts the book when I hand it to him. My screen flashes Terra’s name.
“Hey, Terra. What’s up?”
“You with your man?” No greeting, just straight to embarrassing me.
I glance over at Ben, but I can’t tell if his smile is just polite or if he heard what Terra said.
“I’m with Ben. Is that why you’re calling?” No comment on him being my man, which he most definitely is not. I think my roommate and I might need to have a talk.
“Nope. Just asking. So, I have bad and good and bad and good news.”
“That’s a lot of news.”
“Yeah, so here’s the deal. Bad news: a pipe broke at the bar. Good news: we get the weekend off work while it gets fixed and they clean up the flood damage. Bad news: we don’t work; we don’t get paid. Good news: Curt has insurance and contractor buddies, so the bar should be good by next week.”
My mind goes on a roller coaster with her as she reveals each of those news nuggets. Most people would be psyched for a weekend off. And, sure, I like having free time. But, now, I’m going to be lower on funds than I expected. Especially sucky with the holidays coming up. Guess that means more handmade gifts this year. Unless I want to give up a few meals.
“How bad is it?”
“Just some mild water damage on the first floor. And a hole in the wall needs to get patched. Still, it’s enough of a safety hazard that he’s decided to play it safe by closing.”
“Okay. Got it.”
“So, with the whole weekend open, maybe you can actually go out. Like, on a date or something. Do you remember what those are?”
“Thanks. You’re a great friend.” The sarcasm in my voice is thick.
“I’m just saying. Okay, I’ll let you go. Give Ben a lingering French kiss for me.” She hangs up, and I regret not leaving the room with my phone when I first saw she was the caller.
I can’t tell if Ben heard any of the conversation. He’s just flipping back through the pages we’ve already read, as if searching for something. I decide that he wasn’t able to hear my roommate’s inappropriate musings and feel a mixture of relief and regret.
“Everything okay?” Ben stares at me now instead of the book.
“Yeah. Well, kind of. That was Terra. Apparently, a pipe burst at Both Ways, and there’s some water damage that needs fixing before Curt can open the place back up. Shouldn’t take too long, but it looks like I have the weekend off.”
“So, you’re suddenly drowning in free time?”
“Seems like it. I’ll have to decide what to do with my newfound freedom.”
The change in my schedule is making me light-headed in a not-so-great way. I shuffle items around in my bag until I find my day planner. The two boxes I labeled as Work are written in bright purple pen because they were never meant to be erased.
Empty time, voids that need filling.
Not sure what to write in those spots, I grab for my striped notebook and flip to today’s list, making sure to angle it, so only I can read the page.
1. Morning run.
2. Digital marketing class.
3. Dialysis/reading with Ben.
4. Don’t sniff Ben.