I didn’t know where the conversation was headed, but Christy was in a good mood, so I decided to tease her a little.
“Well?” she said impatiently. “Aren’t you going to ask where?”
“Where what?”
“Where I met her?”
“Met who?”
“My new friend.”
“Oh, her.”
“Don’t you even want to know her name?”
“Whose name?”
“Ugh! You’re so infuriating! Fine, I’ll tell you. You’ll meet her soon enough anyway.” She waited. “You still aren’t going to ask?”
“Ask what?”
“Her name.”
“Whose name?”
“The guy on first,” Trip said from the open door.
I frowned at the non sequitur. “Huh? Who?”
“The first baseman.”
Christy snorted a laugh.
“What’re you talking about?” I said to Trip.
“No, What’s on second.”
I shot a suspicious look at Christy, but she merely arched an eyebrow and waited for me to answer.
“Sorry,” Trip said when he realized I was lost. “I couldn’t resist.”
“That’s okay,” Christy told him. “I thought it was funny.”
“Yeah, thanks. Anyway, sorry to interrupt. Wren wants my help with dinner. So if you hear lots of banging and swearing from the kitchen, it’s just me. I’m supposed to ask y’all to stay out, though.”
“Sure, no problem,” I said.
He glanced at Christy. “Happy birthday, by the way.”
“Thank you.”
“Okay, I’ve delivered my message, so I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.” He grinned and pulled the door closed as he left.
“What was that about?” I asked Christy.
“Dinner,” she said disingenuously.
“No, before. First base, second base… that nonsense.”
She grinned. “Who’s on First?”
“How should I know?” I said suspiciously.
“You aren’t very good at this. You’re supposed to say, ‘I don’t know.’”
I didn’t rise to the bait.
“You never played baseball? Never mind. You still haven’t asked my friend’s name.”
“Oh, no,” I said, “I’m not getting into that again.”
“Why not?” she wheedled. “Never mind. Come sit with me. I have lots to tell you.” She led me to the bed. “Not like that. With your back to the pillows. Mmm hmm, and your feet up. There you go. Scoot in a bit. Perfect.” She climbed onto the bed and sat astride me. “Much better. Now, where were we?”
“You were about to tell me what your mom said.”
“Oh, no! Not so fast. I’m going to start at the beginning. Well, not the beginning-beginning, but you’ll figure it out.”
“I hope so.”
“You’re really cute when I turn the tables on you.”
“Thanks, but…” I arched an eyebrow. “Your mom?”
“We’ll get there. Just be patient. We have the rest of our lives,” she added, saccharine-sweet and utterly facetious. Then she grinned and kissed me. “Oh, I love you. Now more than ever, especially since— Uh-oh, I’m getting ahead of myself. Okay, so… Where were we? Right, my new friend.
“Her name’s Lily and we go to church together. Well, not regularly, but I’ve seen her before. We weren’t really friends until we met. Earlier today, I mean. Anyway, we were both at the clinic and started talking, ’cause—”
“Hold on, ‘clinic’?”
She ignored me and kept going, “We started talking, ’cause we recognized each other. She’s really nice. And, oh my gosh, Paul, she’s totally my type! My radar started going off— That’s what Leah called it, by the way. I don’t really know what it is, but I guess I have to call it something. So, radar.”
“Radar?” I said.
She rolled her eyes. “You know, my radar. Ugh, never mind. This’s going to take a lot longer if you keep interrupting. Save your questions till the end.”
“Yes, dear,” I said wryly.
“Better. Now, where was I? Right! So, Lily. My radar started going off, but then they called me for my appointment. I—”
“Appointment? Clinic? Hold on, the Student Health Clinic? As in…?”
“Are you going to let me finish or not?”
“Do I have a choice?”
“Not really.”
“Then, by all means,” I said, “continue.”
“Thank you. So they called me for my appointment. It was a lot quicker than I thought. The nurse asked me a bunch of questions, about my sex life and history and stuff. Then the doctor did an exam. That part was a little weird, especially when he saw I’m shaved. He asked if I’d had surgery. Then he asked if I’d had crabs. Can you believe it? Crabs, Paul! What kind of girl does he think I am!”
“The feisty kind,” I chuckled.
“Darn right I am!”
“Did you tell him why?”
“No! It’s none of his business. Besides, I don’t do it for him.”
“No,” I agreed.
“He was old anyway,” she added dismissively.
“What happened next?”
Her anger still hadn’t cooled, but she continued, “He asked why I was there, and I was still so annoyed after the crabs comment that I just told him. ‘The pill,’ I said, ‘and don’t try to talk me out of it!’”
“Did he?”
“No, but my mother warned me.” Her expression changed to amazement. “I wasn’t even scared or anything. You’d’ve been so proud of me!”
“I am proud of you.”
“Thank you.” She silently congratulated herself. Then she picked up where she’d left off. “He just nodded and told me how the pills work and when I could start taking them. Right away, you’ll be happy to know. Then he wrote me a prescription for three months. I have to go back and see him after that.”
“He probably wants to see how they affect you, if you have any side effects.”
“Probably.” All of a sudden she scowled. “I wish I could be as nonchalant as you. It’s weird, though. I’m excited but still kind of scared. I feel like I’m abandoning my beliefs. First sex, then our lifestyle, now the pill. How’s that being a good Catholic?
“But then I remember that God knows what He’s doing,” she added seriously. “He brought you into my life for a reason, Paul. My mom thinks so. My dad too. My whole family! Even Rich is starting to come around.”
Something made me ask, “What about Laurence?”
“He’d’ve loved you,” she said with total conviction. “And I know you think I’m crazy, but I really believe he’s watching over me. I feel him sometimes, like a guardian angel.” She thought about it and smiled. “I know he approves. Even today. He’d be fine with it. The pill, I mean.”
“But are you fine with it?” I pressed.
“I am,” she said after a moment. “It just feels… right. Scary, but right.” She thought of something and laughed softly. “Like when I decided to go all the way with you. That’s how it felt when they gave me the bag with my pills. I couldn’t wait to get home and take the first one. I had to, but— Oh, don’t look so surprised,” she said. “You know me. Once I decide something…”
“Heaven help anyone who gets in your way.”
“And don’t you forget it, mister!”
We shared a smile.
“It was weird, though,” she added. “My mom called right after, like she knew or something. That’s why I think God maybe wants me on the pill. He told her to call me. Well, He didn’t tell her, but you know what I mean. And please don’t tease me about it. You know I take this seriously.”
“I know. And thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” she said automatically, although she thought about it and frowned. “I’m not really doing it for you, though, am I? That’s what my mom meant. She wants it to be my choice, like it was my choice to sleep with you.”
“Your mom’s a smart woman.”
“Smarter than I realized. No, that isn’t true. I always knew she was smart. But she’s more… I dunno. What’s a good word?”