Page 68 of Avoidance
“Fine,” she sighed.
I looked at her out of the corner of my eye. “Want to try that once more, with feeling?”
“Can we just discuss it later?”
“Sure.” I wondered what was going on between the lifelong lovebirds. I pulled into my usual spot in front of the gym. Red and black balloons were now tied to the door handle, and I could see how crowded it was through the glass windows.
Inside, a DJ was spinning current dance songs in the middle of the ring. Trays of food lined the wall to the right; vendors from the neighborhood were at their booths to the left.
“It’s huge in here!” Shelly said. “It doesn’t look this big from outside.”
“I know.” I scanned the room for T.J., but could not find him.
Shelly made a beeline for the food line, and handed me a plate. “I wonder where the food is from.”
“I would assume somewhere nearby. It looks great.” We piled out plates high with chicken, pasta, and vegetables, and stood over to the side.
Shelly grabbed my arm. “Holy hotness. Look at him!”
When I turned my head in the direction of Shelly’s gaze, I smiled. T.J. was walking towards us from the far side of the gym. His red baseball cap was on backwards, and he was wearing his usual black t-shirt with the sleeves cut off, exposing his tattoos and shredded obliques.
“That’s T.J.”
Shelly’s mouth dropped open as she looked at me. “That is T.J.? That is the guy you’ve been training with for the past week?” She looked back at him, and then at me. “He is gorgeous!”
I looked down at my plate of food. “Stop making it so obvious that you’re staring at him.”
“I’m not.”
“Your eyes are so wide, they might pop out of your head, and I could use a shovel to scrape your jaw up off the floor. You’re right – totally discreet.”
“Is he walking in slow motion, or is it just me?” Shelly whispered, as T.J. walked within earshot.
“I think your brain is in slow motion,” I muttered.
Shelly burst out laughing.
“What’s so funny?” T.J. asked as he crossed his arms over his chest.
“Why don’t you ask Shelly?” I gestured to my left with an innocent smile.
“Hi, Shelly.” T.J. extended his hand for a shake.
“Hi, Shelly. I’m T.J.,” Shelly said. “I mean… Shelly. I’m Shelly. You’re T.J. But you know that. Of course you know that. It’s your name.” She laughed nervously, and I watched her cheeks turn the same color as her hair.
“We don’t let her out much,” I joked, leaning in.
T.J. grinned. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Shelly.” He turned his attention to me. “I’m glad you came.”
“The place looks great. There’s so many people here.”
He nodded proudly.
Suddenly, I heard a high-pitched squeal. “Merry!”
A tiny human was running at me, full-speed. Tanner was not far behind, walking towards us with his usual strut.
“Khloe!” I exclaimed. I handed Shelly my plate, and scooped her up as she crashed into me. “What are you doing here?”