Nova
I’m going to pee on myself.
It was the end of the school day - the last day of school to be exact - and I was just sure my slacks were going to be saturated with piss in no time at all. I squeezed my thighs together as tight as I could while offering goodbye hugs to my now second graders. Of course the tightest hug of all came from the baddest rugrat I’d ever experienced in my three years of teaching, but I suppose it was something like a peace offering for all the mayhem he had caused from Fall to Summer.
Summer.
It had never sounded sweeter than it did in this moment, though I didn’t exactly have plans other than binge-watching a few shows I missed out on during the school year. It was annoying as hell scanning through Twitter on any given night just to find people live-tweeting the shows I didn’t have time for. And even when I did have time, I used it trying to catch up with my on-again, off-again boyfriend who was miles away in L.A. working as a video vixen.
Well... the male version.
He was the eye candy, the love interest, the one who got oiled up just to be grinded on by whatever superstar had casted him to roll around in bed with her, or be tied up by her, or… whatever the situation called for that was all shit I was supposed to be doing.
Distance makes the heart grow fonder my ass.
Having a long-distance relationship was exhausting. Sure we could talk on the phone, text, FaceTime, whatever. But it wasn’t the same as being able to touch each other every day, hold each other every night, share jokes over dinner and have wine-drunk sex on the countertops.
I was biting my lip just thinking about it when I heard my coworker, Mrs. Lewis, screech, “It’s finally here, Nova! Aren’t you so excited?!”
I put a finger up telling her to hold that thought as I dashed to the bathroom that was just a few doors down from my classroom, not caring that the toilets were at a kid’s level. The extra distance didn’t bother me nearly as much as the smell from kids who forgot to flush.
Nothing a plugged nose couldn’t fix.
I made quick work of washing and drying my hands so I could go see what Mrs. Lewis was running her mouth about now. She was in my cohort of teachers and always had great insight when it came to education-related things. But outside of that, she was the passive-gossiper. The type to ask you questions about your day, that turn into questions about your life, that eventually turns into front page news.
Okay, maybe I was exaggerating a little.
I walked back into my classroom and found her snooping near my desk.
No surprise.
“Sorry about that, Mrs. Lewis. What were you saying?”
She acted embarrassed about getting caught, scurrying away to help me stack chairs as she said, “Oh! I was… asking were you excited about summer?”
“Definitely,” I replied, keeping my answer short since I knew this was just the lead-in for a follow-up.
“Any big plans?”
Here we go.
“Umm nothing major. Probably do some rearranging in my apartment, catch up on some TV and reading, maybe go to a conference or two. Oh, and hopefully go visit David out in L.A.”
With David’s schedule being so all over the place, my breaks and his downtimes never seemed to align throughout the school year. But now that it was summer, I was hoping we could make something work.
“Oh that’s right! You guys are doing the long-distance thing. How’s that going?”
Nosey ass.
I held back my sigh as I told her, “It’s fine.” Knowing that was hardly the case.
Maybe if David was just working as an extra for random sci-fi movies or something more neutral like that, I wouldn’t be so concerned. But the fact that he was filming sexy scene after sexy scene with some of the hottest, most eligible bachelorettes in the music industry had me on high alert.
“Babe, you’re just being insecure…,” he said.
“Babe, it’s not even like that…,” he said.
“Babe, it’s just work…,” he said.
Just work, my ass.
Whatever star he was working with at the time got to kiss him and touch him more than I had in the last few months and that was never not going to be a problem with me.
I must’ve been wearing my thoughts on my face as Mrs. Lewis felt the need to ask, “Are you sure about that? Is there something you wanna talk about?”
Not with you.
“No, I’m fine. It just gets tough sometimes, but we’re great.”
She gave me the, “I don’t believe you, but I’ll let it slide for now” smile before she said, “Well I’m sure you guys will work it out. Whatever it is.”
Girl, didn’t I just say we’re great?
I kept my thoughts to myself, offering her a smile instead as I said, “Thanks, Mrs. Lewis. Have a good summer.”
“You too, Nova! Maybe we can catch up, have dinner over the break or something.”
So you can ask more questions?
Yeah right.
I tried to sound as enthusiastic as she did when I replied, “I’m sure we can arrange something.”
When she pulled out her phone as if she was getting ready to schedule an exact time and date, I instantly got nervous. But instead of forcing me into a dreaded interaction with her plans, she said, “Oh! Looks like the Hubs is calling. I better get going.”
Secretly, I thanked the Hubs in my head as I sent her on her way. Then I spent a few hours straightening up the classroom, taking down leftover bulletin boards and organizing the bookshelf that was end-of-the-year destroyed. We technically had two more weeks of full access to the building, but I wanted to cut my time spent there as short as I could. Not that I didn’t enjoy my job, I just desperately needed the break.
All of it.
I packed up a few more things before I headed to my modest apartment that was only a few blocks from the school. I had picked it solely because it was walking distance to my job, though I only walked on the days I woke up early enough to do so and the days I didn’t have to drag a box worth of papers to grade which rarely happened. But the short distance came in handy during the Colorado winters when I could just lace up my snow boots instead of slipping and sliding on the streets with everyone else. And then there were days like today where I wanted to kick off summer with a little fresh air.
In fact, I was immensely enjoying the serenity of the walk until my phone vibrated in my pocket, knocking me out of the trance I was already in from just the smell of the neighborhood landscaping being tended to. I considered ignoring it for a moment, but when I thought about who it could be - David -, I pulled it out and was rewarded with someone even better as I smiled at the contact picture before tapping the screen to answer.
“Kaylin! I miss you babes! What’s up?!” I gushed into the phone, my excitement surely enough to make me look like a lunatic to anyone driving past. But with the end of the school year being so hectic, I hadn’t caught up with my best friend in far too long to be worried about a nosey side eye.
I could feel her smiling through the phone, and I imagined her resting poolside with a drink in her hand as she said, “I miss you too, mamas. How are you?”
“I’m… fine. Officially Summer break so I’d be a fool to complain right now. How about you?”
The question seemed silly considering her life circumstances were a world apart from mine. While I was still in our hometown working as a teacher, Kaylin was in Miami living the life of a baller’s wife. While I administered meaningless tests and sat through staff meetings, she managed her investments and shopped at high-end boutiques with the money from her returns. While I dealt with foreign bodily fluids and broke up mini-scuffles, she volunteered through her husband’s foundation and occupied his arena suite at each home game.
Still, no matter what pedestal I put her lifestyle on, she didn’t seem nearly as enthused when she plainly replied, “Girl, you know I’m good. Lamar is on a seven game road trip, so things are pretty quiet around here. But other than that, it’s… Miami.”
Leave it to Kaylin to make Miami sound like it was Boise, Idaho or some other no man’s land. Then again, I knew she was hardly ever fazed or impressed with anything, part of the reason Lamar was so attracted to her back in college. While everybody was busy fawning over him, girls and boys alike, Kaylin treated him like the normal human being he was. Even now that Lamar was a top-tier player in the league, Kaylin still thought of him as just… Lamar.
They had gotten married right after she and I graduated from college, and now three years later, they still acted like newlyweds which was something I couldn’t help but admire. But since I didn’t see that in my cards anytime soon, I focused my energy elsewhere when I told her, “Miami sounds like a dream right now,” releasing a sigh as I imagined my feet covered in warm sand, living in swimsuits and cover-ups, and being drunk by noon off of fruity cocktails.
“That’s actually why I was calling. I was wondering if you wanted to come down and visit me this summer. Well… for the summer.”
My heart leaped on its own, calming down just enough for me to ask, “Kay, you’re playin’ right? For one, I can’t really afford it. For two, the whole summer? I know you love me, but you don’t love me that damn much.”
Even though we hadn’t seen each other in far too long, the fact that we had grown up together like sisters almost guaranteed that it wouldn’t take long for the excitement of seeing each other to wear off before we’d be getting on each other’s nerves like blood, though thankfully never for blood. Well... except for that one day back in elementary when I caught her kissing my crush behind a tree.
Johnny fuckin’ Clauson.
She laughed into the phone as if she could read my mind before she said, “Nova, you can stay in the condo for free. You know we’re hardly ever there now that we finally found a real house. And I’ll even stock the fridge for you, so you won’t have to spend a bunch of money eating out every night.”
The offer almost sounded too good to be true. But considering the contract extension Lamar had just signed this past year along with the investments I knew Kaylin was cashing in on, I couldn’t help but push it when I asked, “Well how am I gonna get down there?”
“I’ll pay for your flight, Nova,” she answered with a slight groan, making my smile grow even wider as I climbed the steps then buzzed myself into my building. And since she seemed to be in a giving mood, I decided to push one more time.
“And baggage fees too?” I asked, as I unlocked the door to my unit.
She smacked her teeth, laughing as she said, “Damn, girl. You really are broke! But sure, baggage fees too. All these bitches down here are just way too fake for my liking. I need my bestie to come and refresh my people skills because I’m starting to think something is wrong with me.”
“Probably is, Kaylin,” I thought to myself with a quiet laugh, knowing she was practically the queen of throwing shade though it was hardly ever intentional. In all honesty, she was usually just speaking the truth that we all wished we had the courage to do. But since I knew most people didn’t take very kindly to that, I had no problem telling her, “Kay, I’m sure your blunt ass has ruffled more than a few feathers down there.”
“That’s not my fault though. If they didn’t wanna hear the real, they shouldn’t have interacted with me,” she replied knowingly, making me laugh again as she continued, “But anyway, are you gonna come? I can get you a flight as soon as this weekend.”
Once again, my heart felt like it was going to leap out of my chest at just the thought. But while this weekend sounded lovely, I released a regretful sigh before I told her, “I have to finish up at the school first, sis.”
“Finish up at the school? The kids are gone which means you should be too.”
I nodded as if she could see me, plopping down on the couch as I whined, “I know, I know. But I have a few end of the year meetings with my team and the district, then I have to finish cleaning out and packing up my classroom. But I should be done by like, the end of next week.”
There was a clap in the distance as she said, “Well then it’s settled. I’m booking your flight for next Saturday. And pack light so we’ll have a reason to go shopping.”
It amazed me that she could speak of things so casually while I felt like I was going to cry when I told her, “Thank you, Kay. You have no idea how much I need this.”
“Actually, I do know, especially considering ol’ raggedy ass D…”
“Nope! Not going there. Not today,” I said, cutting her off from what I knew was going to be another rant about how David was no good for me.
They had practically been at odds from the first day I introduced them to each other, David, for whatever reason, convinced Kaylin was just another groupie who had swindled Lamar for his money and Kaylin convinced David was more talk than work when it came to his career. In fact, I could remember the day David stormed out of my apartment after Kaylin kept referring to him as a Z-list actor.
But since I cared about them both, I did my best to protect them from each other. And thankfully Kaylin understood that as she said, “Fine, fine. I’ll send you the flight info as soon as I get it. Can’t wait to see you, boo.”
“I can’t wait to see you either. And make sure you warn Lamar that I’m coming. You know, just in case he was planning on housing one of his side honeys at the condo.”
I was only teasing her since she had taken a little stab at my… situation. But somehow she still managed to come out on top when she replied, “Bitch… that flight is not booked yet.”
Since there was no way in hell I was going to ruin my opportunity, I was quick to tell her, “I’m just playin’, Kay. He and I both know you’d cut his ass if he even thought about pulling some stuff like that.”
“Cut him, take him for everything he has, and then cut him again with a knife I paid for with his money,” she replied without missing a beat, making me burst with laughter since I knew she was serious.
I shook my head as I muttered, “Crazy ass,” before picking up my voice to tell her, “I’ll talk to you later, girl. Thank you!”
And just like when I first picked up, I could feel her smiling through the phone when she said, “You’re welcome, mamas. I’ll see you soon.”
Once the call was ended, I scrolled through my log to find David’s number, anxious to share the news of my new summer plans with him. But after only one ring, it went to voicemail as if… I know his ass didn’t just press ignore on my call.
I tapped the screen to call him again, assuming - and maybe hoping - it was an accident. But this time the call didn’t ring at all, instead going straight to voicemail as if he had turned his phone off.
Naturally my mind went to the worst case scenario of him avoiding me to be wrapped up in some girl, a thought that always made me sick to my stomach. But since I had no proof and I knew he’d be able to deny it without any hard evidence, I decided it was in my best interest to focus on the positive vibes of my summer getting a whole lot sweeter thanks to Kaylin’s generosity.