Page 14 of The Boyfriend Hypothesis
Esther’s boyfriend was in the graduate screenwriting program at UCLA. He only had a few months left before he finished his degree, and he’d already landed an agent after one of his scripts made the finals in a big screenwriting competition.
“That’s too bad.” Penny liked Jonathan. He was a little awkward, but in a sweet way. He made a good match for Esther because they were both awkward in social situations, but in totally different ways. Left to her own devices, Esther defaulted to lurking alone near the food, whereas Jonathan had a tendency to talk too much when he was uncomfortable—mostly about himself. But when they were together, they brought out the best in each other. Jonathan gave Esther a reason to join the party, and Esther relaxed Jonathan enough that he didn’t slip into lecture mode—or if he did, she gave him a sharp nudge in the ribs to make him cut it out.
It was the kind of relationship Penny had always wanted. One based on give and take. Two mismatched pieces fitting together to make a whole.
Instead, Penny always seemed to be the one doing the giving, and her boyfriends did all the taking. She hadn’t yet figured out the secret to achieving the right balance.
“Is it me, or is Cynthia’s stuff way better than everything else here?” Esther whispered.
“It’s not you.” Penny squinted at an installation in the middle of the floor. “Is this part of the show, or did someone leave a ladder sitting out?”
Esther tilted her head. “I think it’s supposed to be art?”
“It’s a ladder.”
“I don’t know what to tell you. I’m not really an art person.”
“Me neither.” Literature Penny could do, but the subtleties of the visual arts were a mystery to her.
“I’m gonna need more wine for this,” Esther said, and they detoured past the bar to snag two glasses of white before continuing their circuit around the gallery. “So how are you doing with the breakup thing?” she asked as they stopped in front of a photograph of an old tire.
Penny studied the tire, trying to figure out what was special about it. “I’m fine.”
Esther cocked an eyebrow at her.
“Seriously.” They strolled to the next display on the wall. “I mean, sure, I was upset at first. But mostly I feel stupid that I didn’t realize what kind of guy he was.”
“I’m not sure how you’re supposed to know in advance that a guy is a cheater,” Esther said.
“Beats me. They should have to wear a sign.” Penny stared at the painting on the wall in front of them. It looked like someone had spilled blue paint across a canvas. How was that art?
“We should be able to clip their ears like feral cats,” Esther said with a smirk. “That way everyone knows what they’re getting into. ‘Warning: this guy’s a cheater. Fuck at your own risk.’”
Penny snorted at the image of Kenneth trying to pick up women with one of his ears clipped. “Yeah, so…I think I’ve had it with dating.”
Esther’s eyebrows shot up. “Permanently?”
“Probably not.”
They stopped in front of one of Cynthia’s paintings. This one, Penny could appreciate. It was a watercolor portrait of a weathered old black woman with haunting eyes. Penny thought it might be Cynthia’s grandmother.
“For the immediate future anyway,” she said to Esther. “I’m just tired of dealing with it. I don’t need that kind of trouble in my life.”
Esther nodded. “I don’t blame you.”
“Really?” Penny looked at her in surprise. “Aren’t you going to try to talk me out of it?” She’d expected more resistance from someone in a happy relationship. People in relationships always seemed to want everyone else to be in relationships too.
“Why would I?” Esther shrugged. “I think you should take as much time as you need.”
“Thank you,” Penny said. That was exactly what she wanted to hear.
“You don’t need a man in your life to be happy.”
“Exactly.”
“Most of them are more trouble than they’re worth.”
“It’s true!”
