AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“For every meal,” I drone.
“New York has a lot of good restaurants.”
“Good restaurants with not-so-great vegetarian options,” I reply. “At least the ones I’ve been to. Easier to just cook for myself.”
Cheaper, too, but I’m sick of pointing out our separate tax brackets.
I drain the pasta and add in the grated tomatoes and butter, plus some salt and pepper.
“Smells good,” Kyle says.
It’s weird, having him standing only a few feet away while I stir.
Cooking has always been a solitary activity for me. I’ve gotten used to making my own meals ever since I got to college and discovered the dining hall was sadly limited in its meatless options.
Lauren and Serena always make their own food separately, and no guy I’ve ever dated has made any effort to adjust to my diet. One brought me to a steak house for our fourth and final date after I mentioned I was a vegetarian several times.
“I put some ground beef in the fridge earlier. It’s probably still frozen, but if you take it out and run it under some cold water, it should—”
“It’s fine,” Kyle says.
I glance at him, continuing to stir the pasta so everything combines. “It’ll be good in this. Just—”
Again, he cuts me off, “I’m good with it like this. Really.”
I stare at him, unconvinced, but decide it’s not worth arguing about. “Okay.”
Kyle gets two bowls out of the cabinet. I divide the pasta between them, then sprinkle the cheese and basil on top.
We end up sitting out on the front porch, which Kyle suggested. Rain is still dripping off the edge of the stripped roof, beading on the railing below.
“Have you heard from Mabel and John?” I ask, blowing on a forkful of pasta. Steam curls upward in twisted columns.
“Just a text that they arrived safely. John doesn’t have a cell phone, and Mabel isn’t much of a texter.”
“Somehow, I’m not surprised by that.”
Kyle smiles.
“Who are they visiting again?”
“Their goddaughter, Cecilia, and her parents.”
“How old is Cecilia?”
“Uh, around our age probably. She got married a couple of years ago. Her husband is in the military.”
“Weird.”
“The military?”
“The marriage. Sometimes I forget I’m old enough that people my age get married.”
To my surprise, Kyle agrees with me. “It is weird.” To my even greater surprise, he adds, “Hudson is planning to propose to Morgan at the end of the summer. I’m happy for him—them. But it’s bizarre. We were like brothers, growing up, and I barely know her because I’ve spent so little time here since graduating.”
“You’ve got plenty of time now, right?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
