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Plus I need to get out of the house and Daisy can be overwhelming with how much fussing she does over Alex. He’s a grown-ass man, not a baby.
I stop to get Charlene on the way. With her picking up my slack at work, me managing Alex, and Daisy being here, we haven’t had a lot of time to talk. We’ve mostly been reduced to brief conversations and texts in which I tell her I’m fine, even though I’m not.
Charlene hops in and gives me a side-hug. “How are you? Can I tell you how much less exciting work has been without you there?”
“Jimmy and Dean not keeping you entertained?” I pull away from the curb.
“Jimmy and Dean are obnoxious and bored without you.”
“That’s because you don’t do and say half the stupid shit I do.”
“I miss our ridiculousness,” Charlene says.
“Me, too.” Charlene is the one person I miss seeing every day at work.
The closer we get to Stroker and Cobb, the more anxious I become. Working from home has been nice—nicer than I expected. I’m highly conflicted over going in today, and not just because of the guilt.
Alex is actually doing surprisingly well physically. Mentally and emotionally, it’s a different story. He’s been obsessively watching the games he’s missing, replaying every goal, most of which are being scored by Randy. The team won the past two games, which should be good, but it worries me, because it probably worries Alex. Being away from him worries me.
“Are you okay?” Charlene asks.
“I’m fine.” I avoid looking directly at her. I have makeup on today, including mascara, which I’m not sure is waterproof, and the buildup of emotions threatens to overwhelm me. Maybe I need to get a part-time job at Hot Topic so I can immerse myself in the emo that’s become my life.
“Violet? How are you, really? I know this hasn’t been easy on you. You can talk to me. ”
“Can we do the serious stuff later? After the Darcy presentation is done and I don’t feel like I’m going to hurl?”
“Okay. Sure. How are you feeling about that? Other than barfy?”
“Good, I guess. I mean, I’m as prepared as I’m going to get. Can you open the glove compartment?”
She hits the button and a bag of Swedish Fish falls into her lap.
“Thank God!” I nab the bag and tear it open with my teeth.
“You’re going to eat those now?”
“I need something to calm my stomach.”
“So you’re going with sugar and caffeine?” she asks as I pull into the Starbucks drive-thru.
“And gelatin. Don’t forget the gelatin.” I tip my head back and dump a few fish into my mouth, savoring the artificial fruit flavor. Of course, this is the exact moment the car in front of me moves forward and I’m due at the speaker. “Whaddya want?” I ask through a mouthful of candy.
Charlene orders a latte and some healthy egg-white crap while I chew furiously. I swallow in time to secure my own caffeine fix, adding one of those fudge squares and a cake pop.
“Wow. You’re really aiming for gut rot today,” Charlene says. “We’re going out for lunch, the two of us, and we’re going to talk about how you’re managing. We haven’t had any girl time in almost two weeks.”
“It’s been busy what with Alex being broken.”
Charlene purses her lips, but doesn’t say anything as I stuff another handful of fish into my mouth.
I’m slick about hiding candy from Alex. Otherwise he eats it and feels guilty. The man burns five thousand calories a day, but during the season he has the most boring diet in the world. He’s ultra-healthy. Healthier than Sunny even, and that’s saying something since she doesn’t eat anything animal-related. I’d be so sad if I had to give up cow and pig.
My secondary candy stash is in my “office” in the house. Alex had one of the six bedrooms converted after I moved in. I don’t do much in the way of work in there—until the last week anyway. Before that it was where I keep all the stuff I don’t know what to do with, and my sewing supplies so I can make costumes for Alex’s Super MC.
Once we have our coffees, Charlene’s normal breakfast, and my sugar fest, we get back on the road.
“Other than Jimmy and Dean being pains in the ass, has work been okay?” I ask.
“It’s been the usual.”
“What about Darren? You see much of him?” I feel like such a bad friend, although I think I’ve probably had a solid reason to not be as engaged with the rest of my life recently.
Charlene slips her fingers under the scarf thing she’s taken to wearing and finds the pearls underneath. “We saw each other right before the away games, and I’ll see him tonight. He’s missing Alex. The whole team is.”
