Emily was at a loss for words for a moment. She finally looked him square in the eyes. "What was her name?"
"What?"
"What was her name? How do I know you’re not just making this up?"
"Are you always this suspicious?"
"Not always, but I’ve come to regret that."
"Sophie Gorman. And we lived right there." He turned around and pointed to Mass. Ave. "173 Mass. Ave, apartment two, right above the dance shop."
"Really?" She made a face. "I didn’t think they had an apartment up there."
"Trust me, they do. Truly beautiful, huge and costs a fortune. None of which I paid, by the way."
"Congratulations."
"Do you still doubt me? Go over there right now and look at the buzzer for apartment two. Scout’s honor, it says ‘S. Gorman.’"
"Fine."
The two silently crossed over to the Reflecting Pool and then crossed to Mass. Ave. She was about to take a right when he put a hand on her shoulder. "This is where we part. I’m going to go sit in the bagel shop now. If you’re satisfied with what you see, please join me. If you still think I’m making this up, then just walk on by, and I promise not to follow you or even call." Before Emily could say anything, Drew walked toward the bagel shop.
Emily shook her head as if shaking off a chill. She had half a mind to simply walk away and circle until she needed to meet Zainab, but that wouldn’t be fair. She walked up the block until she got to the Dance Store.
Lo and behold, S. Gorman lived in apartment two. Okay, he wasn’t lying. But what did that prove?
Because Emily didn’t have a good reason not to, she walked into the bagel shop, where Drew had a bagel and cream cheese laid out for her. She realized she was starving. "S. Gorman lives at 173 Mass. Ave.," she said before she bit into the bagel.
"So you believe me about that?"
"I believe you about that." She sat back in her chair. She was starving and drained. She would have believed him about anything.
"Okay," Drew said softly. "Now it’s my turn. Were you just being nice, or do I have a chance with you?"
She smiled, suddenly very tired. Her last final had taken the last bit of her adrenaline. She wasn’t upset enough with Drew for it to come back. "The bagel was a nice touch."
"You didn’t answer my question."
"I don’t know... you seem to genuinely like me, you continued to like me after you went out with me and I was mean to you..." she leaned her head back. "Tell me again why you would want a chance with me?"
She closed her eyes for a second. "Emily?" She opened them again.
"What’s wrong?"
"You were almost sleeping... and your phone is ringing."
Emily blinked and realized that her phone was indeed ringing. Zainab. "Hey."
"Hey yourself. Are you okay?"
"Yeah, just a little sleepy. What’s up?"
"Can I meet you a little bit later than three? Say, four-thirty? Joe needs a little help with a bill they’re trying to rush through this week."
"Bill? Joe?" Emily shook her head, and realized she was cold.
She heard Zainab sigh. "It’s kind of a long story. Can you do four-thirty? They don’t urgently need me, but..."
Emily looked at her watch. Jesus, how did it get to be one? "Yeah, yeah, four-thirty is fine. It’ll give me a chance to wake up. See you then." She hung up and looked at Drew. "So I guess I’m free for a little bit more. Did you want to say something else?"
Drew looked at her as if she were speaking an alien language. "It can wait. Where do you have to be at four-thirty?"
"The Kingdom of Coffee... I mean... you know what I mean."
Drew nodded and smiled. "Yes, yes I do. What are you going to do until then?"
"I think I’m going to the math lounge, if no one else is sleeping on the couch."
"When was the last time you had a good night’s sleep?"
"September?"
"Come on." Before she could say anything, Drew put on his coat, gathered their bags and garbage, and pulled her up. He put her coat on her, buttoned her up, and led her out the door.
She groaned as she walked. Maybe it hadn’t been September, but probably mid-October or whenever it was that she’d started worrying about this week. "Where are we going?"
"I bet my couch is much less crowded than the one at the math lounge."
"Aren’t we taking things for granted?"
"I promise, I will be a perfect gentleman. I’d have to be, because necrophilia is not my thing."
Carrying both of their bags and holding her up by the waist, Drew lead Emily down Westland Avenue and then onto Hemenway. Less than a block later, he opened his front door and walked her up a flight of stairs.
Drew unlocked a door, and Emily sighed as she saw the nice, big, empty couch. "Were you joking about sleep?" she said as she slumped onto it.
Drew put down the bags and went through another doorway as the front door closed. Emily slid onto one of the pillows and had just closed her eyes- or so she thought- when she felt something drop on her. Through half-opened eyes, she saw and felt a sheet and blanket. "Oh, that’s nice," she murmured, then pulled the pile to her chest.
"Come on, Sleeping Beauty." Drew pulled her shoes off, then unfolded the blanket and laid it on top of her.
"Why does everyone call me that?"
"I’m not the first guy you’ve fallen asleep on?"
"No," she murmured. "But this is much earlier... I’ll tell you some other time... after you tell me... about the apartment..."
"Sounds like a plan." A few moments later she heard the heavy front door close as she drifted off to sleep.
Everything was going to be okay.
CHAPTER 21
Mitch took his last final at two. He did the best work of his academic career. He knew he aced it. He only wished that somehow his effort on that final could make up for the one he screwed up earlier in the week. He had calculated that he had now gone from an A- in that class to a B. Fine. Or it wasn’t fine, but it would do.
At three-thirty he handed in his blue book and left the building. He looked back with some longing as he passed all of the other buildings he wasn’t going to see for three months. He walked to his car, or so he told himself, but he realized a few minutes later he was walking in the opposite direction. He was walking toward the café. He couldn’t help himself. That was his excuse these days.
He walked in, forcing himself to appear casual. He saw a couple of people he knew and sat to talk to them for a few minutes, but he kept looking at the door. He looked at his watch. It was four. Finally, he went to the counter and ordered some coffee to go because there weren’t any seats. He went to the condiments counter and spent a long time putting in his sugar, which he almost never used, and milk. At four-fifteen he had to admit that whatever he had been waiting for wasn’t walking in today and it was time to go.
He sat in his car for a minute, letting the engine warm up. Then he punched his glove compartment so hard his knuckles bled. Cursing, he found a napkin to bandage them, and then drove off.
CHAPTER 22
Emily saw Mitch as he was the night they stayed out. First he was standing on the edge of the Reflecting Pool, pretending to fall in, and then she pushed him in and walked away. Then they were sitting on the bench near the tiny pond by the Charles where they had fallen asleep. She kissed him this time. She wondered why it wasn’t cold now. "I don’t want to wake up," she said as Mitch kissed her forehead. "You have to, sweetheart. But I’ll be back." Then she realized her phone was ringing, and she jumped up.
It was dark. She scrambled for her phone, finally finding it in the pocket of her coat. "Hello?"
"Um, hi?" Zainab laughed. "Did I wake you up?"
"Wake me up? Yeah... oh no! What time is it?"
"I’ve got... five-thirty."
"Ugh! Have you been waiting for me this whole time?"
"Yeah, but the celebratory almost-end-of-finals crowd rolled in half a
n hour ago, so I’ve been staying busy. Where are you?"
"That is an excellent question."
"What?"
"I think I’m on Hemenway Street."
"You think?"
"I’m at Drew’s place. I got sleepy at the Bagel Shop, so he put me to sleep on his couch."
"I bet!"
"Trust me, nothing happened."
"What were you doing at the Bagel Shop?"
"I believe we have discussed my love for bagels and cream cheese before. Remember, the great Garlic versus Onion debate?"
"Very funny. What were you doing with Drew? I thought you threw red paint on him or something."
"He saved me from window shopping with a surprisingly impressive apology and a little bit about his last girlfriend."
"Drew had a girlfriend?"
"Zainab!" Emily laughed, even though that had been her reaction as well. "You said you thought he was cute."
"Yeah, but you agreed that he was... is awkward a good word?"
"True. But I don’t know what I think about anything because the next thing I know weeks of sleeplessness, anxiety and possibly malnutrition caught up with me, I was snoring, you needed to blow me off for Joe-"
"That is so unfair!"
"-And then I was half-carried here. Now here I am, sitting in the dark, talking to you." She sighed. "So tonight sounds like a bust. Are you going to be around tomorrow?"
"Yeah, but you know I’ll be happy to spot you for some coffee if you come on over. That is, if you can figure out where you are."
Emily shuddered. "No, not coffee... but maybe I could use some water... I’m sorry, I’m going to try and wake up, but tomorrow I should be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. What are you looking at tomorrow?"
"I think I’m free until four. Want to call me tomorrow?"
"Perfect. Talk to you then." Emily hung up and collapsed back on the couch. She was sitting in the dark. Usually she was spooked in dark, unfamiliar places, but there was enough light coming in from the street to keep her from panicking.
She finally got up and got herself some water. Mmm, just what the doctor ordered. She took a few deep breaths and began to feel a little bit more alert.
Did he say he lived by himself? Because this apartment seemed large as college apartments went. The living room had high ceilings and seemed spacious despite the chair, couch, television, table and rug. Emily compared it to Zainab’s living room, which was easily half the size of this one. Drew’s kitchen also had deep ceilings, but wasn’t as big as the living room. However, it had a large refrigerator and stove. From the smell of things it even seemed as if Drew cooked there.
She had started to make her way to the couch when the door latch unlocked. She jumped then sighed with relief when Drew came through. He laughed. "Who were you expecting?"
"You never know, especially in strange apartments."
"I see you figured out where the kitchen was though."
She raised her glass as if to toast. "Putting my education to good use."
"Even this one?"
"Don’t start that," she said, yawning. "But thank you for letting me crash on your couch. Fortunately, I figured out that my problem was probably more one of hydration than hunger or even exhaustion, though I think I might take a few more minutes to catch my breath."
"Don’t rush on my account. I was actually hoping you could stay for dinner."
"You don’t have to feed me," she said uncomfortably.
"I think it’s the least I can do after last night. And I tried to make up for it this afternoon, but you only had one bite before you fell over, so please?" The last part he said pleadingly.
"Okay," Emily said, settling back into her seat. "But I’m a vegetarian-"
"I don’t think I’m going to forget that. So I bought-" he reached into his grocery bag and started pulling out food. "Salad. Dressing. Veggie burgers. Buns. And in case you didn’t want a veggie burger, fresh ravioli. Tomato sauce. And in case you didn’t want tomato sauce, Alfredo sauce. And in case you’re feeling naughty," he smiled and pulled out the last item with exaggerated flourish, "ice cream!"
"Wow. Is anyone on the solar car team vegetarian? I don’t think I’ll be able to eat all of that."
"Hmm. I don’t think I’ve even seen those guys eat. But Richard has his healthy moments, so I’ll be sure to invite him over. And there is no law that says that you have to be a vegetarian to eat a veggie burger, right?"
"Not that I’m aware of."
"So don’t worry, no landfills will be overflowing because of you."
"Good to hear. Well, is there anything I can do to help?"
"Yes, actually. Are we having burgers or pasta?"
"Hmm... pasta."
"Alfredo or tomato?"
"Oh, that’s hard, but I think I’ll go with Alfredo. Maybe not too much of it though."
"I will put on such a small amount of sauce, you won’t even taste it."
"Finally, someone who understands me," she said with a smile.
After twenty minutes, everything was ready, but Emily wasn’t hungry. She forced herself to eat half a plate of food.
Drew looked at her reproachfully. "Too much sauce?"
"No, no..." Emily pushed her plate away. "I just don’t have an appetite. Give me a couple of days, and maybe I can work my way up to one again."
Drew tilted his head. "This has been a rough couple of months, huh?"
Emily sighed. "The last few months I have handled with much bitching and whining, but the last two weeks... that’s been rough."
"Finals hit you that hard?"
"Finals, idiocy with my mother..." Emily sipped her water. She sighed. "Tell me about what happened with you and S. Gorman."
"Sophie," he said emphatically, perhaps afraid she might think ‘S’ stood for Simon or Sylvester.
"Tell me about Sophie Gorman."
He sighed. "Her parents are very well off. She could have gone anywhere she wanted, but this is the best school she got into. And there was something about wanting to be in the city. We were both put into the same dorm as freshmen and, I don’t know, I guess she thought I was cute or something. I tried to be nice and play it off that we could be friendly, but she was really forward. She’d sit right next to me in the cafeteria; force herself into conversations with me. And I couldn’t say ‘no’ nicely, so I didn’t say anything. One thing led to another, and then the next thing I knew I was living with her for sophomore and middler year."
"Was she pretty?" Emily asked, and wasn’t sure why.
Drew shook his head, almost trembling. "No, not at all. She was really short- like five foot one. She was a little mouse, a very bossy, pushy little mouse. You’re..." he smiled. "You’re pretty sophisticated and worldly by comparison." He stopped and looked at her as if she were going to respond to that.
"Okay, anyway. It took you two years to break it off with someone you couldn’t stand?"
"It wasn’t... it wasn’t that I couldn’t stand her. It was just that she didn’t do anything for me, other than maybe provide some companionship. But that could be pretty annoying as well. Trust me, she wasn’t the type to tease out Othello and Iago’s motivations. Honestly, I don’t know what we did manage to talk about, maybe because I tuned her out most of the time."
"That must have sucked, for her. Why did she want to stay with someone who wasn’t listening to her?"
"I’ve asked myself that a bunch of times. I think the answer, and the reason why she clung onto me so quickly, is that she was scared of being without her family for the first time." He looked at the wall for a moment. "Maybe that’s why I stayed with her. But sometimes just having someone next to you isn’t enough. You need to feel like you’re getting some kind of spiritual connection, or whatever. You know what I mean?"
"I don’t know, is this a religious thing?"
"No, that’s not what I mean, although Sophie was Jewish, so that was a problem."
"I guess I should tell you that my grandfather was J
ewish-"
"Not because I have anything against anyone being Jewish. But children would have been a problem."
Emily was tired and confused. "Was marriage an issue? Even if you... didn’t want to be with her?"
Drew looked confused too. "It doesn’t make sense. But when you’re with someone for that long, for so many hours in the day, that’s what you start thinking about, isn’t it?"
"I don’t know. I think I’d start plotting my escape."
He sighed. "And there was some of that as well. Like I said, it doesn’t make any sense."
"So what finally gave you the push out the door?"
"Something stupid, I’m sure. The toothpaste cap? The sink hose pulled out too far? I think it was all of it, all at once. I don’t remember who started bitching about whom first, but then we were screaming at each other, and it was about everything. And then I walked out, and I didn’t come back until I knew she wasn’t going to be there, and I got my stuff and I didn’t go back."
"Have you seen her since then?"
"On the street, on campus, once at Whole Foods. She used to look like she wanted to say something to me, but I was too chicken to hear her out. And then the last few times, she hasn’t bothered to make eye contact with me. It’s weird. Even though we both kind of despised each other, especially towards the end, she was also sort of my best friend. And now she’s not." He shrugged. "And now that you’ve gotten my complete romantic history for the college years- and yes, that is the complete history- don’t you think you owe me a peak into the enigma of Emily?"
The Smartest Girl in the Room Page 11
