Page 91 of You've Got Hate Mail
The woman needs a hearing aid.
“I’ll go.” I say it gruffer than I mean to, but I don’t move from the floor.
This is where I go when I need to let out my frustrations and rage at the world and everyone in it.
Now I need to let it out all over again or I’ll be a complete jackass for the rest of the day.
“No, no, I’ll go,” Cricket says. “I—Mabel told me no one ever uses this place, but she said the cellar’s almost as good, exceptthe barstools here are comfy, but I can sit on a floor. I can go—I can go there.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No need to apologize. I’m sure you thought you were alone.”
“No, for—for this morning. I was—” Shit fuck dammit, I don’t have this in me right now. I suck in another breath and move my hands so I’m pressing my fists into my eyeballs. “I was inappropriate.”
“You were a good friend, and I made a disaster of your house?—”
“Lavender and the cat made a disaster of my house.”
“But still, I shouldn’t have left the pancakes?—”
“Fluffernutter is the problem, not you and the pancakes.”
“Is that her full name?”
“Yes.”
“Did she come with it?”
“No. Lav named her.”
“My grandma used to make me fluffernutter sandwiches.”
“Hers too.” I suck in another breath. Fuck, I miss my parents. Ineedmy parents. I text them every day, mundane stuff so they don’t worry about me, but they have spotty cell signal right now and I get replies about every three to four days when I would love to hear something normal from them every day. “Still does when they visit.”
“Your parents?”
“Yes.”
“Are they nearby?”
“They’re hiking Central America.”
“All of Central America?”
“Yes.”
“Wow. That’s awesome. Do they hike places a lot?”
I drop my hands to my sides, let the darkness clear from my vision, and finally look up at Cricket.
The lights that I didn’t initially notice illuminating the tasting room hit her just right to make green glitter sparkle on her hands as she fiddles with them like she’s unsure of herself.
Naturally.
Who wouldn’t be after listening to me completely lose my shit?
“Sorry for all of the questions,” she says. “I—I’ve always been curious. It’s why I went to journalism school.”
