Claire's brother, Mike, keeps assaulting the punching bag. It sways back and forth from the ceiling like a wind chime. Must feel good to be that strong.
I'm here to get his approval for the equipment budget for the new office. Mike and Sid will move into a new office building soon and they put me in charge of the tech.
Once he stops punching, I hand him the paper in my hand and a pen. He signs it against the punching bag and gives it back.
"So, how was the date?"
I groan. Someone must have seen me and Andy and told Mike.
"It was good."
"Going to see him again?"
I nod. "This weekend. We're going to the carnival."
He sits on the bench, wiping his sweat. He taps on the seat near him, gesturing me to sit.
After I sit, he tells me, "I don't want to sound like an annoying brother." But he always does. Mike maybe is not my brother by blood but he's as good (and bad) as one. "If you really like Andy, I'm happy for you. But I thought you wanted to wait for your mate."
I look down at the paper in my hand. Mike writes a bold signature, just like Sid.
He continues, "If you're doing this for Claire, I can talk to her. Dating is something you should want to do for yourself. You shouldn't do it just because your friends ask you to."
"That maybe how it started, but now I do want to go to the carnival with Andy," I say.
I gave it a lot of thought. Although Luke and I are having no trouble maintaining our distance, things won't always be the same in the future. I also want to stop feeling sorry for myself every time I see Katie and Luke together.
Getting a boyfriend might be good for me.
Mike nods. "Okay. That's fair enough. Just go into it with an open mind. He's not mated, and neither are you. Things might change drastically in the future if either one of you finds their mate. You get what I mean, right?"
I nod.
He strokes my head. "Good. I just don't want you to get hurt. I also heard Luke was there with Katie and you guys met. Seriously, I don't know why you're friends with her when she's dating that bastard."
Mike hates Ben and Luke. So does my brother, Sid.
"She's cool," I answer succinctly, hoping it's enough and he doesn't probe into it further.
Mike returns to his punching bag.
–––––
She hits the bumper of the car in front of us while trying to park.
"Goddammit, Claire. I told you to let me drive," I say.
She's a terrible driver. Terrible.
Really terrible.
Really, really terrible.
Every time she changes gear, the car swirls like whipped cream. Every time she stops the car, our seatbelt nearly cuts through our shoulders. Every time she parks, our car touches something else. Every time she takes a turn, the car behind us starts honking madly. Every time she tries to take over another car, its driver swears at us.
You get the idea.
As usual, I leave a note with an apology and Claire's number under the wiper of the poor car whose ass our car kicked before getting in the bookshop. We're here to buy some notebooks and textbooks for our new term in school.
