Kit scrolled through her phone and said, “Huh. You’re right. You don’t show up on my ‘singles nearby’ page.” She took a sip of wine and curled up on her end of the sofa. “Oh, I bet it’s because I don’t have ‘casual encounters’ selected as something I’m interested in. I have ‘looking for love’ selected.”
“Ah,” I said, taking a big gulp of my wine. “That’s it. We’re not looking for the same thing.”
We were quiet for a minute. I focused on eating my pizza. Finally, Kit asked, “But so wait. Youjustwant to hook up with people?”
“Well, I think the positives of those kinds of arrangements are obvious,” I said with a chuckle.
“You’re not interested in, like, meeting someone? Or dating? Like you go out a few times, and then you hook up, and then you both just go your separate ways?”
“Eh, not exactly. There can be some low-commitment, repeat engagements. I believe colloquially called the booty call,” I said matter-of-factly. “I take it you’ve never really been into casual hook-ups?”
Kit shrugged. “I’ve just had one or two relationships. I dated the same guy all through college, and I’ve been pretty single otherwise.”
“So, no sex with any of these guys you’re dating?” I couldn’t help myself.
Kit cackled a bit and said, “I don’t need a boyfriend to have an orgasm, William.”
“Little Miss Independent!” I laughed and took a sip of my drink. “Casual hook-ups are overrated, anyway. I stay on the app out of habit really. To be honest, they’re more effort thanthey’re worth for the most part. I just fell into the habit because I traveled so much for work that nothing else made sense. I just didn’t have it in me to put that much effort into a long-distance thing.”
Kit nodded as if she understood. “I get that. I mean, not for the exact reason, but I moved back here and was so focused on spending time with my mom before she died that I just couldn’t fathom making room for anything else.”
“I haven’t really had a chance to say this, but I’m sorry to hear about your mom passing away,” I said.
“Thanks for saying that. It’s been a little over a year. The holidays are hard.” She looked down and sighed. “I didn’t tell my aunt I came home when my dad’s flight was cancelled. Aunt Rita would have left her trip with her new boyfriend to spend the holidays with me, and I didn’t want her to do that.” She raised her gaze and asked, “But what about you? You didn’t want to see your family during the holidays?”
“Oh, my mom is in the Philippines visiting her family for a few months. She goes every year.” I scooted forward and reached for some crackers and cheese.
“What about your dad? Where’s he during the holidays?” she asked.
Without looking at Kit, I said, “My dad died when I was ten. Car accident. My American family, my dad’s family, wasn't so accepting of my mom. She was just so different from who they thought my dad would end up with, and when my dad was gone, it was hard for us to stay connected to them. So, it’s just been me and my mom since then.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Kit said softly. I could see the sadness in her eyes. I knew the kind of grief she was feeling.
I cleared my throat. “I’m glad I can do things for my mom like send her to the Philippines for an extended vacation though. She worked so hard when it was just the two of us, so now Itry to provide everything she needs so she doesn’t have to work anymore.”
“You mentioned that you moved back to Creekstone when your mom got sick. Where were you before that?” I asked.
“Oh, I was living in D.C.,” Kit said between bites of pizza.
“With your dad?” I felt curious about Kit and wanted to know more.
“Actually,” She tilted her head and paused. “With my ex-boyfriend, Matt. I was completing a fellowship, and he was there getting ready for med school.”
“What happened to Matt?” I asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.
“Eh,” Kit sighed. “Nothing. Matt was fine. I just wanted to move home, and he was moving to Los Angeles. We tried the whole long-distance thing, but honestly, I just didn’t feel like it was fair to Matt, so I broke it off with him.”
“What was unfair about it?” I asked, then added. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I know long distance is hard, but what was unfair? Seems like there’s more to it than the simple long-distance excuse.”
Kit looked down at her wine glass in her hand. She licked her lips and bit the inside corner of her cheek like she was thinking.
“Was the sex awful?” I smirked. “Is that why you’re so good at the solo act?”
She laughed and threw a small Christmas gift-shaped pillow at me. “The sex was fine. I mean, it wasn’t the mind-blowing thing people talk about in the movies and in romance novels, but it was nice and sweet, and you know, exciting enough.” Kit looked at me for confirmation.
I shrugged. I honestly couldn’t imagine having just regular vanilla, routine sex with Kit, but I didn’t want to make her feel weird. “Sure, I think I get it. Long-term things get routine.”
Kit turned her head and looked at the ceiling as if she were contemplating that. “Yeah, routine. That is a good way to describe it. When Matt and I started dating, it was an easy decision. Our best friends were dating, so we just kind of made sense. Matt is this super smart, handsome doctor, and he wanted me to be his girlfriend. His parents seemed to be okay with him dating someone like me. Our best friends loved us together. I think I was caught up in being part of this big picture that worked for everyone.” Kit chuckled at herself, then leaned forward to pick up another cracker from the board. “My dad says I’m a recovering people pleaser.”
