Imperfectly Real (A Series of Imperfections)

by A. E. Woodward

  The next morning was uneventful. Rob and I had agreed to hit the gym early and as we made our way downstairs, we found Emma and Elizabeth already in the living room with the kids. The room had been turned upside-down, with toys strewn every which way. The girls were perched on the futon, hands wrapped around their coffee mugs. They had been talking in hushed voices as we came down the stairs, but once we joined them they immediately quieted. Definitely suspect.

  “Where are you guys headed so early?” Emma questioned without missing a beat. I had to hand it to her, she was good at trying to hide things. But this wasn’t getting past me. I was going to figure out what the hell was going on if it was the last thing I did. I didn’t need to know, but for some reason unknown to me, I wanted to know. Hell, I had to know.

  “Gym. Tell Shane we’re sorry,” I mumbled as we opened the door to leave. “I didn’t want to wake him.”

  “He’ll be fine,” she said. “If anything, he’ll appreciate the few extra hours of sleep.”

  Rob slammed the door behind me and we went down the stairs in silence. When we finally hit the sidewalk, I found the fresh fall air refreshing. We started our jog—both of us lost in our own thoughts, and nothing but the sounds of our labored breathing to keep us company.

  Rob eventually broke the silence. “So, do you find this visit from Liz as odd as I do?” he questioned between breaths.

  “Seems weird to me for sure,” I replied as we turned the final corner before the gym.

  “I overheard Em and Shane mumbling something about her the other day,” Rob added. “But of course they changed the subject the minute I came into the room. I gathered things with her aren’t going as perfectly as she would like everyone to think.”

  We slowed once we reached the gym. I wiped the dampness from my forehead, not really sweating yet. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I do find it weird that Liz would be calling on Emma for support.”

  Rob grunted his agreement as we entered the gym. “That’s for damn sure. I mean when was the last time the bitch was out here?”

  “Don’t call her that,” I scolded.

  “She is one!” he argued.

  “And you are a heartless bastard.”

  “At least I can admit it.”

  I was thankful the gym wasn’t busy yet. I didn’t feel like fighting with the juiceheads to get to the machines. I just wanted to blow through my workout and get back to the condo. I was dying to get some information on Elizabeth’s situation. I wasn’t sure why I cared so damned much, I just needed to understand. Hell, I was annoyed with myself that I even cared. It was just Half-Pint. I hadn’t seen her in eight years. I had nothing vested in her, or her life.

  Every time I pounded out my reps and went to the next thing, Rob bitched at me that I was rushing him. But my hard work paid off, and forty-five minutes later I breathed a sigh of relief as we finally left the gym. Once we started our jog back home he questioned me. “What the fuck was that all about? I’ve never seen you blow through a workout like that before.”

  “Just anxious to get back to the condo and visit with everyone,” I muttered. “It’s been a while since we’ve had a night like this planned. I’m looking forward to letting loose.” Rob stared at me, apparently curious about my peculiar actions, never missing a stride. I felt like he was on to me, and I knew I needed to give him a distraction. “Plus, it’s never too early to pregame.” I was kicking myself in the ass for saying it because I knew he would never let that opportunity slide away from him—Rob didn’t need much of an excuse to start partying.

  A Cheshire cat grin spread across his face and I knew he’d make sure I was hammered sooner rather than later. “I like how you’re thinking, Ty!”

  Rob and I ran the rest of the way back to the condo in silence. I could sense his mind reeling as he tried to piece things together himself. He wasn’t a fool, and he could tell that I was a little more intrigued by the recent goings on than I should be.

  We planned out our drinks for the evening as we climbed the stairs and burst through the front door. We found everyone, including a newly awake Shane, sitting in the living room. The two rugrats were perched in their highchairs having a snack and watching T.V.

  “I’m taking a shower,” Rob called as he immediately fled up the stairs. I rubbed Felix’s head as I walked by and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge.

  “Good workout?” Shane questioned, before I plopped down onto the beanbag.

  I grunted and closed my eyes. I hadn’t slept well and my early morning workout had done nothing but tire me out even further. I started trying to figure out a way for me to get information from Shane or Emma. I knew Emma would be harder to crack—blood is thicker than water, yada, yada—so I set my sights on Shane. I knew exactly what I could say to get him to tell me the truth. It was below the belt, but I didn’t give a shit.

  Lucky for me, my chance came sooner than I thought it would. My ears pricked up as I listened to the girls talk about heading out to Central Park with the kids.

  “Do you mind if I just stay here with the guys?” Shane questioned from his spot on the futon.

  “Of course not,” Emma whispered, her voice closer than it had been. Then came the sickening smooching sounds.

  “Get a room!” I yelled, not bothering to open my eyes. The sound of their love was gross enough. I didn’t need to see it. I heard Elizabeth laugh, and my heart thumped annoyingly in response.

  What the hell?

  I hadn’t heard her laugh since we were kids … I guess I’d forgotten how infectious it was. A smile spread across my face in response. I listened patiently, while I waited for them to gather all their things before heading out to the park.

  “Finally,” I groaned after the door slammed shut. Silence resounded through the condo. My eyelids flew open and I sat up staring in Shane’s direction.

  Shane rolled his eyes, knowing what was coming. “Don’t even bother to ask.” He immediately stood up and started to walk away from me. Where he was trying to escape to I wasn’t sure. “I’ve been sworn to secrecy.”

  “Ah, that’s bullshit, Shane. Aren’t you the one always preaching about honesty? You admitted it yourself that people just need to be upfront about things.”

  He froze, his mind apparently flashing back to his own words about keeping skeletons locked in closets. We all knew how pissed he’d been when he found out that Emma and I had spent a few nights tangled in the sheets—before they got together. “That’s a low blow buddy.” He turned and made eye contact with me. “Besides, this doesn’t have anything to do with you, so I don’t see why you care. It’s none of your business.”

  “I don’t really care,” I argued. “It’s more like curiosity. But it sort of does have something to do with me, this is my condo too, and I’d kinda like to know why Half-Pint is here.”

  “Half-Pint?” Shane laughed. “She’s been here a day, and you’re calling her Half-Pint again?”

  I was irritated with my slipup. It was one thing for me to call her that but it was a totally different ballgame for Shane to know I was. “Just tell me why the fuck she’s here!” I demanded, a little angrier than I expected myself to be. I felt my face flush.

  He motioned with his hands for me to keep my voice down. He didn’t want Rob to overhear us. “Relax buddy.” Shane shook his head. “I can’t believe I’m doing this. You’d better keep your mouth shut, ‘cause Emma will kill me if she knows that I told you.”

  I hastily crossed my heart. “Scouts honor,” I promised.

  “Liz hates her life.” He sighed. “There you happy now? You nosey asshole.”

  “Very. Thank you.” It still didn’t explain much. Obviously she was unhappy. I’d figured that much out on my own. But why the hell did she feel the need to be here, with Em. “And—” I started, hoping for just a smidge more information.

  Shane cut me off. “Supposedly she just needs a little support. You know what Mrs. Sloan is like, Ty. Liz has no place else to go, and
we all know that in Liz’s eyes, Emma is great at navigating through life’s toughest shit. She’s independent, something Liz can only dream of being.”

  I rolled my eyes at that. We all knew Emma was anything but stellar at life decisions—especially considering the bumpy course her life had taken over the past two years. But I could understand why Liz might think that she had all the answers. Emma had been independent for as long as I had known her. She knew what she wanted from life and she always went after it, no matter the cost.

  Shane had really given me more than enough information, but I wanted to know more. “So why is she so damned unhappy?” I asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

  “Well, I’m not 100% sure on that one myself, but I gather that Mason is constantly gone. I think she’s just lonely and bored. I mean, since she doesn’t work, she’s stuck at home all day with Emily, and she just needs someone to be there for her.”

  I could understand that feeling. I had yet to be lucky in the love department. I’d never really cared too much for any of my exes. None of them really understood me. Plus, Cheyenne had done a number on my heart—and my bank account. Since then, I had yet to get back in the proverbial saddle.

  Shane snapped me out of my daze as he started to lecture me. “Please don’t let on that you know anything, Ty. I don’t need any drama tonight. None of us do really. It will just be good for all of us to just get out and go back to how things used to be.”

  “Holy cow!” Emma yelled. “Would you hurry up? We’re already paying for the sitter and we haven’t even left the condo yet!”

  I smiled—reveling in the annoyance in her voice—and poked my head out of the bathroom. “Relax, I’ll freakin’ pay for the next fifteen minutes.”

  “Seriously,” she groaned. “Tyler, you need a new M.O.” She was right—it took me way too long to get pretty. Always had, and probably always would. But the fact of the matter was that I’d been finishing up my evening preparations when I decided to slow it down a bit, just to get a rise out of Emma. She was hysterical when she was slightly on edge, and I was looking for a bit of entertainment for the evening.

  “Tyler Johnston, I am not waiting around for you! We never get out anymore and you’re just pissing my money away …” Suddenly, it wasn’t so funny anymore. Emma had officially gone off the deep end, I could hear it in her voice. She sounded borderline mental as she continued her rant. “… I will kick your A-S-S myself.”

  At that very moment I decided I shouldn’t push my luck any further. I knew damn well that she didn’t fuck around when it came to her money. So I stalked out of the bathroom and threw my hands up in defeat. “Alright, alright. I’m ready. Sheesh, I just wanted to look nice for our big night out,” I teased, coming down the stairs.

  “Aw, you look wonderful, Ty.” Shane batted his eyelashes as he leaned into me.

  I quickly pulled him into a headlock and jokingly punched him in the stomach. “Get over yourself, Pretty Boy, I wanted to look nice for Rob.”

  “What about me?” Rob questioned as he looked up from his cellphone. He was so oblivious lately—well, more so than usual. I swear a train could have come through the condo at any moment and he wouldn’t have noticed. Rob had always been a bit … aloof. We’d known him for years but we still didn’t really know that much about his life before us.

  We laughed at his obliviousness, but he went right back to his phone doing God knows what. He was a lost cause ever since he’d got that thing. His addictive personality was better suited to not having one, but work had finally laid down the law—no pun intended—and told him he needed to grow up and get one. Just like Shane, he was trying to climb the corporate ladder within his firm and he was at their mercy. But it had been like this ever since he got the damn thing, constantly checking his email and doing business.

  “You’ve got all the numbers right, Trudy?” Emma questioned one final time as she gathered her things from the kitchen table.

  “Yes. We’ll have a blast.” Trudy, the one and only sitter Emma used, scooped up Felix and walked toward Emily. “Come on, kiddies, let’s go read a story shall we?” I watched as Emily gripped Elizabeth’s leg tighter while the sitter tried to encourage her by offering her hand.

  “Go with Trudy, baby girl. Momma will see you soon, I promise.” Elizabeth knelt down and kissed her mini-Em on her forehead as Trudy picked her up with her free hand. Even though the kid wasn’t crying, Elizabeth continued to look guilty. I wondered if it was the first time she’d left her. I felt a slight pang of sympathy for her.

  “Okay,” she breathed, “let’s go before she starts crying.”

  We decided on walking the nine blocks to the new dance club, enjoying the crisp fall air. We laughed and talked just like old times, and I found myself reveling in the moment. Despite the familiarity, it was different walking those familiar streets now. But it truly was for the better.

  Watching Emma and Shane together and seeing their joy truly made me happy. It really was something seeing your two best friends in love. Emma laughed at something Rob said, and Shane proudly put his arm around her neck before kissing her forehead. They belonged together—there was no doubt about that. He loved her, and I loved them. And Felix. Damn I loved that little guy too.

  As the four of us joked and laughed, my eyes kept drifting back towards Elizabeth. She’d stayed at the back of our group, and occasionally forced some laughter in an attempt to fit in. I could tell she was uncomfortable and possibly still feeling slightly guilty, so I hung back, letting the other three take the lead, in order to join her.

  “How’re you liking the city?” I questioned.

  “I can see the allure,” she mumbled. “But I still don’t get how you guys know where you’re going. Every street looks the same, and I swear we just passed that same newsstand!”

  “You get used to it,” I laughed. “Ah, see, here we are.” I followed the others as they quickly turned towards the entrance of the club. Without really thinking, I grabbed her hand and led her up to the front of the red velvet ropes. The line was long, but I knew we wouldn’t have to wait. Once again, Emma had worked on the advertising campaign for this particular dance club so we were able to skip to the front. It was always good to have connections, and I swear Emma had worked for everyone in New York. Girl was good.

  We walked into the club and pushed our way through the throngs of people, straight to the bar. Rob, of course, took charge of the drink ordering and I suddenly realized that I still had hold of Elizabeth’s hand. I mumbled, “Sorry” before quickly dropping it. She smiled weakly and pushed up next to Emma who was already scoping out the dance floor, her head excitedly bopped to the beat. No matter where we went Emma just couldn’t help herself when it came to good music. She let the rhythm control her, and the girl could dance.

  Rob turned from the bar and motioned for us to push through to join him. “Jägerbombs!” he yelled over the music.

  “Doesn’t Jäger have human blood in it?” Elizabeth questioned innocently.

  The four of us shared an exasperated look as we tried to hold back our laughter. Was she really that naïve? Apparently so. I shook my head in complete and utter disbelief.

  “What?” she questioned. “I heard someone talk about it once in high school. They said something about it being blood …” Yep, she truly was that innocent. Poor thing had yet to taste the pure deliciousness of Jäger.

  “Liz,” Emma said calmly with a smile on her face, “do you honestly think that the federal government would allow people to drink human blood in their liquor?”

  Elizabeth paused for a moment. She bit her lip as she thought. I smiled at her naivety. It was endearing nonetheless. “Well when you say it like that …” she muttered, her face flushing with embarrassment.

  “It’s just deer blood, Liz,” Rob added, nodding to the shot glasses in his hands.

  “See, I knew I’d heard something about blood!” She must have felt better about her mistake as she yelled over the c
lub music. She laughed before grabbing her shot glass from the bar. “What else is in it?”

  “Quit asking questions, Half-Pint, live it up a little bit.” I spoke as I squeezed past her for my glass. I realized I’d slipped again and called her by that old nickname when everyone looked at me curiously. I shrugged before lifting the shot into the air, in between my friends. “Cheers to a night where we don’t have to fucking spell out the goddamn swear words!”

  We all whooped it up before finally chanting, “Cheers!” We laughed, clinking our glasses together and downing them in one fell swoop. I hated to admit it, but I’d forgotten how fuckin’ awesome Jägerbombs were.

  “That was good!” Elizabeth cried in excitement. “I think I want another one!”

  I laughed and motioned for the bartender to bring us another round. I could tell that the night was shaping up to be a good one, and I was already prepping myself for an amazing Rob story in the morning. I’m sure he would find some sort of trouble or chaos to get himself into. And, seriously, the dude could tell a story. It helped that his epicness could not be contained, so he constantly found himself in precarious positions.

  We sucked back another quick shot before the five of us made our way out onto the already packed dance floor. People were shoulder to shoulder and the music was thumping. We immediately lost ourselves into the crowd—the five of us gathered in a small circle all moving together. Emma and Elizabeth were actually acting like sisters and having a great time as they danced. Rob kept entertaining us with his typical asinine moves. Really, who did the ‘Elaine’ or the ‘shopping cart’ at a club?

  Shane made the trip to the bar for our beers. Rob followed suit and eventually it all became a blur. The beers kept coming and pretty soon I’d lost count of how many we’d had and began to feel that familiar fuzz creeping in. At some point, I lost track of Rob. I was sure he’d found someone or something that piqued his interest. I knew he’d find his way back to us—he always did—and then he’d have a story to tell.