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“Sho,” Baxter said, impatient now. “Sometime before we open.”
“I saw it by accident this morning when we were in the shower,” she said, pointedly ignoring the look on his face. “He was really sheepish about it. It was cute.”
“I’m going to vomit cheese danish all over those shoes and I really like those shoes,” Baxter threatened.
“He got it on a Birthright trip--it’s like a--”
“I know Birthright, I dated a guy,” Baxter said, waving his hand to speed things up. “Thirty teenagers in a sweaty bus on the road to Jaffa, lots of hot IDF guys, and shakshuka.”
“You are a terrible person,” Shoshana said, but she was laughing. “He was on birthright. He and his friends all got tattoos to commemorate. It says tikkun olam, and it means, basically,repair the world.”
“Wait. Hot Pants has a tattoo above his ass that’s a Michael Jackson lyric,” Baxter said, and something in the way he said it made her consider him more closely.
“Baxter, I will personally shred the leather on the dashboard--”
“I swore, okay, I swore!” he said, looking offended. “I just don’t get it, is all.”
“It’s not just a fucking Michael Jackson lyric,” Shoshana said, surprised that she was actually offended by this. “The concept is a bigger deal than that. It goes back… it's just a big deal, okay? Like, philosophically, I mean. It’s about making the world better, and social justice, and we each have a responsibility and stuff. Wiki it, it’s pretty fascinating. So anyway, he keeps it because it was Birthright but also because itdoesmean a thing. Also don’t call him Hot Pants.”
“Hot Pants is way better than Sexy Pants. Sexy Pants is infantilizing.” he said, speaking as though he were an authority on the subject.
Shoshana didn’t say anything, choosing to wait him out.
“Okay fine, I won’t call him Hot Pants to his face.”
“Thank you. What are you doing here this early, anyway? This is the sixth time in as many days. What gives?” Shoshana said. She sighed heavily, feeling suddenly tired. Maybe it was the early morning. As much as the orgasms had been appreciated, she wasn’t used to climbing out of bed before at least eight thirty.
“Oh, that’s easy,” Baxter said, “I’ve been getting the paperwork ready. I’m quitting at the end of the month.”
Shoshana had nothing pithy to say in response to that. Nothing at all.
Nineteen
“Shoshana, oh my god, you look amazing!” The voice somehow carried over the sounds of clinking glasses and sports stations projected onto big screens and the general din of a bar at lunch time. Shoshana’s head turned toward the voice and she smiled apologetically at the hostess, waving to her as she wound her way through the tables to the side wall where Patti Reeves was waving to her from behind a high table.
“Hey Patti. How have you been?” Shoshana said, hanging her bag over the back of the pub chair and leaning in for a quick touching of cheeks. It wasn’t quite the air kisses and hugs she was expecting, but she reminded herself that she was making an actual effort to not be a snotty bitch. Because Leah and Abi had good taste and if they liked these women, there was something likeable about them.
“I am so great,” Patti said, climbing back into her seat. The woman was very petite, just barely five feet, and the high pub chairs weren’t the easiest for her to navigate. Shoshana wondered if she should suggest they get a regular table but decided against it. She didn’t want Patti to be uncomfortable and she was already seated, so maybe she preferred the high tables.
This was the first of the dreaded lunches.
That she was on time was a minor miracle and probably Baxter’s fault. Thinking about Baxter’s pronouncement this morning made her stomach twist hard, and she forced herself to focus on the situation in front of her. If she’d ever had a good reason to reschedule a lunch, today was probably that day, but she was committed to making an effort. She’d promised Leah, and to be frank, knowing that she’d be inadvertently hurting her friends for so long made her want to work to be better.
So here she was. Lunching.
She realized Patti was still talking and forced herself to pick up the thread of conversation.
“--so Becca is taking honors English this year. She thought about going AP but we did some research and she decided it was a racket. Did you know you pay all that money and those credits don’t even really transfer? So, she’s going to do honors this year and next year when she’s eligible she's going to do half and half, classes at the community college and high school--”
“I didn’t realize she was that old,” Shoshana said, trying to remember Patti’s history. Unfortunately, everything after high school was a blank because that’s when Shoshana stopped caring about the goings-on at shul.
“Don’t feel bad, I don’t realize she’s that old half the time!” Patti laughed, accepting a menu from the waiter. “I didn’t know if you’d want a big lunch, so I told him I’d wait to see about appetizers until you got here.”
“I’m so sorry I’m late--”
“Girl, you’re not late, I’m early,” Patti said, waving away the apology. She gestured to the small, leather bound planner next to her elbow. “I love the noise here, it’s my calm space, believe it or not. I wanted to get some time to think.”
“Oh, okay,” Shoshana said, feeling a bit like she should ask what that meant but wondering if maybe that would be overstepping, “We can get an appetizer if you want, but to be honest I usually skip lunch--”
