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“That one is mine,” she told me, pointing out a balcony on the second floor. There was a bench and a barbecue and several potted plants on the balcony.
“You ready?” she asked, squeezing my hand and then leading me to the entrance.
“Yup,” I said.
“You ready to meet Murphy?” I’d forgotten about her cat.
“Yup,” I repeated.
“You a little nervous?”
“Yup,” I said for the third time. Why was this so nerve-racking? Echo had seen my place and I hadn’t been flipping out about it then. Why was this different? I couldn’t put my finger on the reason.
“It’ll be fine, come on.”
A horrible sound greeted us when Echo unlocked the door. It was unlike any cat sound I’d ever heard, but there was a little hairless blob at Echo’s feet, making the noise.
“Oh, I know, you are such a sad kitty,” Echo said in a high voice as she picked up the blob. The sound stopped.
“This is Murphy and he’s kind of an asshole sometimes, but that’s why we get along,” Echo said.
“He’s so wrinkly,” I said, reaching my hand out tentatively to the hairless cat. He blinked wide blue eyes at me. How could something so strange also be so cute at the same time?
“He is my wrinkle king.” She kissed the top of his head and then walked through the apartment. “I need to feed him. You can make yourself comfortable.”
I took stock of the apartment. It was clean and cozy. Less decorated than mine, and fewer tchotchkes, but I liked it. She favored a more subdued color palate, but sprinkled throughout the space were pops of red, which was clearly her favorite color.
The apartment was nice, and clearly new construction. Stainless steel, granite, white walls, and black matte fixtures. No frumpy lamps like at my place. Katie said I had the decorating instincts of a grandmother.
“What’s your verdict?” Echo asked as she came back toward me. I was still in the little entryway. I hadn’t made it to the living area yet.
“I like it. Fancy.”
“I’ve been here about two years? The place I had before this was a complete disaster. I wouldn’t have let you come over if I was still living there. Would you like anything?” She slipped off her shoes and I did the same, leaving them on the little rug beside the door.
“Would I be a total dork if I asked for some tea?” I said, going to sit on her couch. It wasn’t white, but it was close to being white and I envied her the hairless cat. No dark hairs left on the furniture like at my house. Maybe she was onto something.
“You would not be a dork because that’s what I was going to have,” she said. Echo brewed some water in the kettle and brought over two mugs, both with the logo from Heartwood High School on them.
“It’s weird having you here,” she admitted.
“It’s weird being on a date with you, to be honest. I mean, I know we did a date in Florida, but this feels more official.”
“I know. We never really dated, did we?” She pulled a blanket off the back of the couch and put it over her legs.
“No, we just kind of locked eyes and then fucked when we had a spare moment.” That made her laugh.
“Are you still mad at me?” she asked, dunking her teabag in and out of the mug.
“I mean, I’m still a little hurt. I don’t think that feeling is ever going to go away. It hurt, because I had real feelings for you then.” I had real feelings for her now, and I couldn’t untangle which feelings were from which time.
“I had real feelings for you, Kiri. I did. Things with my parents . . . Let’s just say that they were not supportive when I came out and I haven’t talked to them in over four years.” Holy shit, that was awful.
I compulsively squeezed her hand.
“I’m so sorry. That’s awful.”
“I know,” she said, wiping a few tears. “It is what it is. I’ve moved on. I’ve been in therapy over it. They’d rather throw their only daughter away than admit that they were wrong, and that’s something they’ll have to live with. I have good friends, who are dying to meet you, by the way, and one of my co-workers has sort of stepped in and I spend Christmas and Thanksgiving with her family every year. I’m not alone, but it still hurts when people are asking me what I’m doing on a holiday and wonder why I’m not visiting my parents.”
