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I glance up at the clock, and I tell Stacey I’m taking a break. She doesn’t look at me funny, not like she should, because Stacey is clueless and wouldn’t know serendipity if it smacked her in the face. Trust me, I’ve thought about it. She’s still crying over her date, the guy who hasn’t called. Needless to say, she isn’t good with signs. She should be out hunting her next prey, I mean, date. But Stacey’s domesticated. Me, I’m working on it.
People are predictable. Until they aren’t. This is the best time to make your move. When they least expect it. I’ve never seen Josie Dunn post a picture from this trail before. This run-in will be perfect. She won’t be expecting to see me here. Better yet, she won’t be expecting not to see me here.
I’m not exactly dressed in workout gear, but this is Austin, so basically anything goes. Also, I’m in luck because the photo she posted shows me two things: her surroundings—A.K.A pretty much her exact location— and what she was wearing. Now, I know what to look for to find her. Even so, it takes me two tries to get her attention. The first time she’s too busy staring at her phone to notice when I drop my keys right in front of her. She sort of glances up when I lean down to retrieve them, but I can see that she doesn’t really see me because I can also see that she’s replying to Instalook comments with people over her shared love of running. I don’t miss the irony. She’s not even running. She’s sitting on a bench. And this is a prime example of why people don’t have real friends anymore.
The second attempt, I make sure to get her to notice me. I don’t just drop my keys. I drop my whole body. It’s less dramatic than it sounds. I’m practically a professional. My best friend and I, we used to do this thing where we’d pretend to fall down in order to get sympathy from people, which is how I learned the tricks of the trade. My friend once earned herself an ice-cream cone. Me, I got free rides when my mother didn’t show and my first experience with the likes of the Dunns of the world. I’ve had plenty of experience since then. But you never forget your first time. Just let yourself fall. It’s okay if it hurts.
“Oh my gosh,” Josie Dunn says, reaching out. She tries to catch me, but not hard enough. It’s okay though. It’s better this way. Guilt does amazing things to people. She looks at me sideways. “Are you okay?”
I squint into the sunlight. She looks like an angel. But I bet she isn’t. I grunt, and I clutch my ribs. “Yeah,” I wince. “I will be.”
“Here—” she says. “Let me help you.”
“It’s okay,” I counter, brushing myself off. “I’ll manage.”
She eyes me intently. My shades fell off on my way down. “Wait,” she gasps. “I know you. From the coffee shop.”
I search her face. I narrow my eyes. I pretend. It’s fun to fuck with people. “Coffee shop?”
She looks confused. “We met in the alley…yesterday.”
I cock my head slightly to give the impression I’m thinking hard.
She exhales slowly. I want to hate her. She’s just so beautiful and so concerned that I feel sorry for her instead. “But you probably see a ton of people…”
When I don’t answer, her expression grows more concerned.
She chews at her bottom lip. I watch as she shifts her weight from foot to foot. She glances right and then left. Josie Dunn is looking for a way out. She’s looking for someone else to take responsibly for the predicament she’s found herself in. People like her always do. It comes natural to them. “Do you know what day it is?”
I close one eye and focus hard on her face, her eyes specifically. “Monday?”
She shakes her head slowly. “No,” she says, sucking her bottom lip in further. “Is there someone I can call?”
I hold up one finger and reach in for the energy bar from my pocket. I tear the wrapper and stuff a piece into my mouth. Once I’ve chewed and swallowed, I start to take a second bite but she looks so stunned, so helpless, I give up the act. “I’m just fucking with you,” I say, and I bet no one speaks to Josie Dunn like that. “I know what day it is. And I remember you. You like Americanos.”
“Oh,” she says, and I see relie
f. Her body visibly relaxes. The creases around her eyes soften. “How strange running into you here…”
I laugh at her pun. She doesn’t get it. “Not that strange. I walk this route every day.”
She juts her bottom lip out.
“Nice kicks by the way…”
She glances down at her shoes. “Thanks.”
“They’re very clean…”
She blushes. “Forgive me,” she says, extending her hand. I’ve embarrassed her by pointing out my position. I’m beneath her. Not just figuratively, but literally. I’m still on the ground, inept and clumsy. She smiles, and she towers above me, giving the impression that she has the upper hand. Women like Josie Dunn like the upper hand and still they pretend they’re embarrassed by having it. “Here,” she tells me, shaking her head. “Let me help you.”
I take the hand she’s offered, and I’m surprised by how soft it is. Like it’s never seen a hard day’s work in its life. “Sorry,” I offer. “I’m new at this running thing.”
When we’re eye to eye, she checks her phone. I can see the notifications lighting up her screen. “Yeah,” she says, smiling at her phone. “It’s been awhile for me too…”
“Say,” I press my lips together and rub at my knee. “Why don’t you come by Lucky’s later?”
She’s still staring at the phone. I deepen my voice. “Coffee on me. Or a sandwich, if you’d like.” She looks up then. I shrug like it’s nothing. “That way I can thank you properly for saving my life.”
