AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He seemed to ponder that. Just when she thought she might be reaching him, he said, “I don’t know if my mother is like that. I don’t see her as a bigot. She’s fake and judgmental with everyone.”
“Everyone?”
“Well, most everyone.”
“So, hold on, you’re trying to tell me that being superficial, she’slesslikely to be a bigot?”
“I’m saying I don’t see how it means she is one,” he said curtly.
“You don’t see…listen, you witnessed that open attack on my character just now. That’s not your garden variety superiority, that’s panic for her little boy. She sees me with you, she sees you being all touchy-feely, and that’s it, whoop! She’s made up her mind.”
His eyes met hers narrowly. “What do you mean, made up her mind?”
“You really don’t know, Bastian? You’re not being deliberately obtuse here?”
“No, I really don’t know,” he said stiffly.
Calm. Patience. Breathe. Speak slowly.
“She’s made up her mind that my presence is an offense to her personally. And it’s not because I haven’t been to a five star, sorry. It’s because I’m black.”
He was silent.
Paula pressed fingers into her eyes. “Never mind, it doesn’t matter.”
It’s just same old, same old. What do you care? What did you expect from this man? He’s a spoiled guy who lives in a dream world. Let it go, Paula. Let. It. Go. Find the sunny joy.
“I’m not saying it doesn’t matter. I just don’t understand.”
One chance. One more chance.And this was absolutely the last one she gave this man.
“Fine. Let’s try this. Let’s take you. You’re Bastian Spencer. You’re a good-looking guy with all these social connections. People react to that, you said. They use you, right?”
“Right….”
“Even though you’re more than those things, a lot more. But those people don’t care, to them it doesn’t matter whoyouare. They just react to the one part that matters to them. They react before you even say a word. And it happens so often that one day it occurs to you, well, golly, everybody must be that way. And you start getting a little jumpy. Like you were with me. You jump to conclusions. You assume all anyone sees is your social clout.”
Bastian nodded. “You must get that too, in your field.”
“Uh, sure I do. But see, I’m Paula Raymond, and people react to the part of me that matters most tothem. To some people, sure, it’s my success. But to certain people the big thing, the bigger thing, is my origins. They see and react without my saying a word. And it happens enough and leads to nasty stuff enough times that I go, ahah! There it is! Bigotry, I know you well. Following me here?”
“Yes, but…that really happens to you?”
Don’t roll your eyes. Patience.
“Yes. It really happens. So now I’m alert to it. I try not to jump to conclusions, though.”
“Wait a minute,” he said, “My mother contributes to diversity causes.”
Oh, my god.“And?”
“And doesn’t that mean she’s not….”
“No. It’s unrelated.”
His thoughtful look said he was processing that.
“She was rude, but hey, so were you. You were rude to me for months. I wondered, but ultimately I go by what I see.”
