• • •
“So you grew up in Pasadena?” she asks, while we load up the car. We managed to scope over half of the flea market in just under two hours.
“Well, actually Calabasas, but it was the land of the evil beautiful blonde people. The kids really bullied me there, so my parents thought I’d fit in better in Pasadena. Besides my dad loves living so close to Caltech-nerd nirvana.”
“So was the bullying better in Pasadena?” she asks having a hard time containing the distress on her face.
“A bit, but really only by a matter of degrees. The confident jocks can make high school rough place for artists who love cartoons and comics.”
As we pull up to the house I give her one more out. “Are you sure you’re up for this? They can be very odd.”
She turns towards me, and smiles. “They sound like my kind of people, Nathan…let’s go.”
She seems a little taken aback as we head up the walkway. “This is quite a house,” she says. “What does your dad do again?”
“He’s an inventor.”
“Did he invent the Post-it Note or something? This is pretty grand.”
I look up at the Greene and Greene craftsman style home and see it with a new perspective. “I hadn’t thought about it, but I guess you’re right.”
I lead her around the side of the house, into the back and towards the tennis court. Right as we approach the gate I hear Curtis moan loudly.
When we step inside we see that he’s playing against Dad and Billie, and they appear to be winning. Billie is doing some type of victory sashay across the court.
Dad sees us first. “Look,” he calls out and points, “Nathan’s here with his date.”
Ugh.
“Dad, this is my friend Brooke, not my date.”
He ignores me and steps up to shake her hand. “Nice to meet you Brooke, Nathan told us about you.” He turns towards me. “You’re right son, she’s very attractive.”
Can I die now? Can’t a meteor fall from the sky and nail me, turning me into tennis court dust? I look over at Brooke and she’s smiling, but right then Billie and Curtis approach us.
“So this is Brooke,” Curtis booms. “Nice to meet you. Have you and Billie met?”
“Hey, I know you,” Billie says surprised. “You’ve shopped in our store, right? It’s Billie’s Outer Limits on Olive near Buena Vista.”
Brooke smiles. “Yeah. I almost went in last week to buy Nathan’s book. He won’t give me one.”
“Don’t be a dick, dude. Give Brooke a book,” Curtis demands.
Billie’s eyes light up as she studies Brooke. “Hey, I just realized…you look just like B…”
Panicked, I jump in and cut her off. “Can we talk about this later? I haven’t introduced Brooke to Mom yet.”
Billie gives me a look as I quickly lead Brooke back to the gate. Once safely inside the house, I can derive comfort in knowing that my Mom is the only one that won’t humiliate me. When we step into the kitchen she turns and smiles.
“Hi Mom, this is my friend Brooke.”
Mom comes over and warmly shakes her hand. “So nice to meet you Brooke. Welcome to our home.”
“Thanks for having me, Mrs. Evans. Your house is amazing.”
Mom smiles at her. “Thank you, and please call me Diana.”
Wow, that was fast…I can already sense that she likes her.
“Nathan will have to show you around later.”
“Can we help you get lunch ready?” Brooke asks.
I’ve never seen this side of Brooke. It’s a revelation.
“That’d be great,” Mom replies, as she pulls out some fruit. “Would you two mind cutting this up for me?”
I turn towards Brooke. “Do you mind getting it started? I just have to ask Dad about something. It’ll only take a minute.”
I hurry back to the court and when I step inside Billie comes right over and punches me in the arm.
“Hey, what’s that for?” I grumble.
“Cheating on Dani, you swine.” She gives me the ultra-bitchy Billie look. “And am I right, is B-Girl modeled after Brooke?”
Curtis joins us shaking his head. “I warned you dude, that this could get messy.”
“Yes Billie, B-Girl is Brooke but please, you have to keep that a secret. Brooke doesn’t know about it….she has no idea. Besides, she has a boyfriend already.”
“Your bosses, bosses, boss, right, dude?”
Curtis is so damn helpful.
“Yeah, he’s president of Sketch Republic,” I admit defeated.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” she spews. “What are you going to do when she finds out about the drawings and that you’re so in love with her? Cause from the looks of it that could be soon. Then her boyfriend will find out and you’ll find your ass on the street like a cheap hooker.”
I clasp my hands over my head and groan.
Billie pushes me. “And how could you do this to Dani, asshole?”
Dad steps up and joins us looking totally confused.
Curtis pulls her back. “Calm down, baby. Dani is in on this.”
“What do you mean in on this?” Billie’s face and neck are getting red. I notice her tattoos take on a different look as a result.
“Who’s Dani?” Dad asks me, while watching Billie with a frightened look.
I take two steps back and fold my arms. “That’s it…we’re leaving. I should’ve known it would be a mistake to come here.”
“Who’s Dani?” Dad asks louder this time.
“Dani is Nathan’s pretend love interest, that Brooke, his real love interest, is helping him hook up with,” Curtis explains.
“What?” My Dad says with a faraway look as if he is calculating a complex math problem in his head.
Yeah, good luck with this one Dad.
“What, are you fucking kidding me! Nathan, I thought you were a smart dude,” Billie says, shaking her head.
“Evidently not,” I offer as I start walking towards the gate.
“Don’t leave, Nathan,” my Dad insists, trying to be the voice of reason. “Consider the ramifications, son. Leaving under the effects of provocation is only going to make things worse. How will you explain the deviation to Brooke? It defies logic which is intrinsically unsettling.”
“Huh?” Asks Billie.
I can’t blame her. You have to hang with dad awhile to get his particular form of geek speak.
He turns towards Curtis and Billie. “Let’s just all agree to have a nice lunch and give Nathan a chance to recalculate and reformulate his strategy with Brooke another time, somewhere more appropriate.”
“Dad’s right,” Curtis nods. “Besides, Mom’ll be really bummed if you leave now.”
I turn it over in my mind. “Okay,” I agree. “But only if you promise.”
They nod and so I go back in the house to rejoin Brooke where she and my mom are chatting away like long lost friends. Despite all the drama we just dodged, for a moment I allow myself to imagine Brooke and I in the future. I picture us as a real couple hanging out here on a Sunday with my parents, and I get a warm feeling in the pit of my nervous stomach.
Luckily lunch is uneventful other then my mom’s obsessive staring at Billie’s tattoos. Everyone is polite and talkative. Brooke seems particularly enchanted with my dad’s stories about ideas he’s pursued with his inventions. After lunch Curtis gives Billie a feral look and they disappear somewhere in the house while dad offers to show Brooke his work studio. I decide to stay behind and help Mom with the dishes.
“Oh, Nathan. She’s lovely, really lovely. She’s just the kind of girl I hoped you would find.”
“But Mom, she’s just a friend. She has a boyfriend already, and he’s the president where I work.”
“Perhaps,” she states in that cryptically female way. “But clearly you two are meant to be together. She’ll just need some time to work it out.”
“You really think so?” I ask, not hiding the hope in my tone.
She firmly nods. “You’re crazy about her, aren’t you? I can see it in the way you look at her.”