Page 38 of The Moment I Knew

I laughed, short and humorless. “I think I’ll survive.”

“Well,” she said finally, “you don’t always know what’s good for you in the moment.”

My dad shifted beside her. “Hilary⁠—”

She lifted a hand without looking at him. “I’m not being mean. I just think this is one of those things you’ll thank yourself for later.”

“I won’t,” I said.

She smiled again, that same tight curve of her mouth. “You don’t know that.”

I looked back at the TV, at the actors frozen mid-expression. “Can we just watch this?”

“We can,” she said. “After we finish talking.”

I glanced at my dad. He was staring at the TV now, jaw tight like if he didn’t look at either of us, this might resolve itself.

I stood up. “I’m getting dessert.”

Hilary’s face brightened like I’d made a good decision. “That’s a great idea. I’ll come with you.”

Please don’t, I wanted to yell. But I wasn’t like that. She was important to my dad, so I would be nice.

“But be careful not to eat too much,” she said, following me. “It is kind of late.”

I ignored the suggestion as I walked into the kitchen. The freezer opened with a hollow groan. I pulled the ice cream from the freezer and scooped mechanically, listening to her continue behind me.

“You know, dating is a skill. Communication, boundaries, confidence. It’s better to start now when the stakes are low.”

I still didn’t look up as I purposefully dropped another scoop into the bowl. Normally, I would have stopped at two scoops, but just because of her comment about it being late, I added a third.

She watched me take a bite, then sighed. “I just don’t want you closing yourself off. That’s how girls get labeled.”

“Labeled as what?”

She hesitated. “Difficult. Cold.”

I swallowed. “I don’t care.”

“You say that now,” she said gently. “But you will.”

I leaned against the counter, ice cream melting too fast in the bowl. My phone buzzed in my hand—another text from Mitch, probably. I didn’t check, but Hilary’s eyes dropped to it.

“You should call him back,” she said.

“No.”

She tilted her head. “Just hear him out.”

“I already did.”

“Tell him you changed your mind.”

“I didn’t.”

She stepped closer, lowering her voice like we were sharing a secret. “It’s one date. An hour, maybe two. You can leave early if it’s terrible.”

I looked down at my ice cream. It had lost its shape, gone soft around the edges. I felt the same way. Dad appeared in the doorway. “Maybe we should drop it.”