One of the Guys

by Jessica Strassner

  “Well, you ladies have fun!”

  Kate said goodbye and tossed her phone on the bed. She yanked her t-shirt up over her head and quickly tugged on the sweater. She yelled for her mom as she opened her bedroom door. “Are you almost ready?”

  “I’m ready to go. You look nice in purple.”

  “Thanks,” Kate said, pushing up her sleeves and raking her fingers through her hair. “Let’s go! I told Julia we’d meet her there at nine. We’re going to be late!”

  They arrived at the karaoke bar, named Fifteen Minutes, shortly after nine, and the place was already crowded. Kate led her way through the web of tiny, crowded tables and finally spotted Julia holding down a high-top near the stage. “Sorry!” Karen said, reaching out and giving Julia a hug. “Kate was on the phone.”

  “Sorry,” Kate laughed.

  “No problem. I am just so glad you guys wanted to come out again. We’ve been so busy getting ready for the Valentine’s Day fundraising benefit for the Heart Association that I’m glad Kate’s taking a break and having some fun!” Julia gushed. “What are you drinking, Karen?”

  “I’ll have a Long Island,” Karen said, perching on the stool and looking around. “So how does this work, exactly?” she asked.

  “I’ll get the drinks,” Kate said, leaving Julia to explain karaoke to her mother. She threaded her way through the crowd and to the bar where she quickly managed to flag down a bartender and order two beers and a Long Island iced tea. She turned around and leaned her elbows against the bar while to watch a trio of girls belting out Prince’s “Kiss” on stage while she waited.

  “I’ve only been trying to get that guy’s attention for, like, ten minutes,” a loud voice said in her ear, nearly making her jump.

  “Kevin!” she cried.

  “Hey, stranger! I haven’t seen you in forever! What’s been going on?” They hugged quickly.

  “Did I jump in front of you or something?” she asked. She waved the bartender down again. “Another beer, please?” she asked. “Put it on my tab.”

  “Thanks,” Kevin said. “So, where have you been?”

  “Loooong story,” Kate said.

  “You’ll have to tell me sometime.”

  “Yeah. I’ll give you the abbreviated version for now. My mom’s been staying with me.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah. My parents are kind of doing this whole trial separation thing, I guess. So, I’ve been spending a lot of time with her. She’s here with me and my boss, Julia.”

  “That sucks. Is she okay? Are you okay?”

  “Oh, yeah. She’s fine. I’m fine, too,” Kate added, tucking her hair behind her ear. “I think they’ll work it out eventually.”

  The bartender placed the drinks in front of them and Kate and Kevin smiled at each other. “Well, I’ll let you get back to your mom,” Kevin said, taking the bottle of beer. “Thanks for this.”

  “No problem,” she said. She handed the bartender her debit card for the tab and grabbed her two beer bottles in one hand and the glass in the other.

  “Hey, Kate. Call me if you ever want to talk or hang out. Don’t be such a stranger.”

  Kate nodded and made her way back to her mom and Julia. She placed the drinks on the table and seated herself in between them. “Have you picked a song yet?”

  Karen grinned in response.

  “Really? Already? Do I know it? Do I have to get up there and sing it with you?”

  Karen nodded. Julia giggled. “Yes, you know it.”

  “Okay,” Kate groaned. She wasn’t really a fan of karaoke. She had also been ridiculously drunk every time she’d done it, so she couldn’t really recall any of her past performances.

  The three ladies sat and chatted through renditions of “Like a Virgin,” “Living on a Prayer,” and “Piano Man.” The next thing she knew, Kate was being hauled off of her bar stool by her mother and led onstage.

  As soon as the music started, Kate recognized the song. “Just like the white winged dove sings a song, sounds like she’s singing, who… who… who…” Kate and Julia let Karen take the lead, and Kate was surprised to find that her mom made a halfway decent Stevie Knicks.

  She spotted Kevin and a couple of his buddies in the back of the crowd, near the bar. He raised his bottle to her in a salute and she waved back, trying not to laugh as she sang into the microphone with Julia. When the song ended, they made their way back to their table. Kate was relieved that the experience hadn’t been too terribly traumatic.

  As the three of them giggled and rearranged themselves on their stools, Kevin approached with two bottles of beer and another drink. “Nicely done, ladies!” he said, high-fiving everyone at the table.

  “Thank you,” Kate said. “Kevin, this is my mom, Karen, and this is my boss, Julia. This is my friend Kevin,” she said.

  “Hi, Kevin. Thank you for the drinks. That’s so sweet,” Karen beamed, taking her glass and swirling the little straw around in it. “How do you two know each other?”

  “We’re friends,” Kate said. She looked at her mom, wide-eyed, hoping that she didn’t think that Kevin was one of her other kind of friends. “Just friends.”

  Kevin nodded in agreement. “Yes, and as your friend, I was coming to ask if you’d like to go to my friend’s Super Bowl party.”

  Kate found herself staring at Kevin. Did he just ask me on a date in front of my mom?!

  “As friends,” he added.

  Karen nudged Kate into speaking. “Yes. Sure. That sounds like fun. Thank you.”

  “I’ll call you,” Kevin said. “Ladies, I really enjoyed your performance.”

  “Thanks for the drinks!” Julia called as he walked away.

  “He’s cute,” Karen said.

  “Mom, that’s Kevin.”

  “He’s cute,” Julia agreed.

  “We’re just friends,” Kate said. “That’s it.”

  *

  When Super Bowl Sunday rolled around, Kate found herself not knowing what two teams were even playing, but she knew that Madonna was the halftime show, so it couldn’t be all that bad. She finished up her work at the office and rushed home to freshen up. She threw on jeans and a plain white t-shirt and pulled her hair up into a ponytail. I’m only hanging out with Kevin, she thought, so it’s not like I need to get all dressed up. She studied her reflection in the mirror, and then another thought crossed her mind. But what if he has cute guy friends?

  Half an hour later, she had curled her hair and applied a full face of makeup. It seemed like a bit much for just going and watching the commercials during a football game, but she figured it was better to make the extra effort just in case she met anyone interesting.

  “Wow,” Kevin said, as she got into the car next to him.

  “Hi,” she smiled. “What?”

  “Nothing,” Kevin said. “Nothing.”

  They drove along companionably, making small talk about who would be at the party, the hosts, Mike and Valerie, and some of Kevin’s other friends. Kevin fumbled with the radio a few times until he finally gave up and played a Coldplay CD instead. Kate felt a little awkward and tried to remember the last time she and Kevin had really done anything together, just the two of them. The only thing she could really come up with was waking up on his couch the morning after Lucy and Jackson had gotten engaged.

  When they arrived at Mike and Valerie’s house, however, Kate immediately felt relaxed and welcome. “Hi!” Valerie gushed, immediately taking Kate by the arm. “I’m glad Kevin brought someone with him. Can I get you anything to drink? We have a ton of snacks. Grab something and go pick a seat in the living room before all the comfy spots get taken!”

  Kevin nudged Kate. “I told you that Valerie was really nice. Want a beer?”

  Kate nodded and wandered into the kitchen and picked up a football-shaped plate. She started scooping chips, dips, meatballs, and macaroni salad onto her plate. “Save room for dessert,” Kevin said. “Valerie makes these crazy-delicious chocolate peanut b
utter brownies.”

  Kate took her beer from Kevin and stood by while he loaded his plate with food. Then she followed him into the living room where they plopped down on the loveseat together. “Hey, man, what’s up?” Kevin said, balancing his plate on his knees and leaning over to shake a guy’s hand. “Everybody, this is my friend, Kate. Kate, this is everybody!”

  Kate smiled and said hello. “Hey, it’s Stevie Nicks,” one of the guys said, raising a bottle of beer in her direction. Kate assumed that he had been with Kevin at Fifteen Minutes and witnessed her karaoke performance. She said hello and hoped that she wasn’t blushing too much.

  As she surveyed the room, she realized, again, that everyone seemed to be paired up with someone else. And most of the guys who were single didn’t seem to be all that cute. A lot of them were wearing backwards baseball hats and acted suspiciously like they were perhaps still in their early twenties. She’d definitely overdone it with the hair and makeup. She looked down at the plate of food in her lap. At least there would be brownies.

  *

  Kate and Julia leaned against their cars in the parking lot of the Davenport Hotel, both absolutely exhausted. The Heart Association’s Valentine’s Day fundraiser had been a huge success, and Julia had made contact with lots of future clients. It was rare that Bride Ideas organized such a large-scale event, but Julia was never one to shy away from a challenge when it presented itself. It had been a lot of work on top of the weddings they had planned earlier in the day, but everything had gone smoothly.

  “So, do you and Alex have any romantic Valentine’s Day plans?” Kate asked.

  “Are you kidding?” Julia asked. “All I want to do is go home and go to bed. What about you?”

  Kate snorted. “I guess I’m going home to hang out with my mom.”

  “What? No date?”

  Kate shook her head. “Nope. Everybody’s busy.” This was an assumption, really. She hadn’t heard from anybody in awhile, so she didn’t really know what anybody was up to.

  “What about that nice guy from karaoke? Didn’t you go out with him?”

  “I went to a party at his friends’ house. It wasn’t a date or anything. Besides, I’m tired. I want to go home and take these shoes off and get into my pajamas.” Sometimes she felt like that was all she did after work anymore. “Maybe I’ll pick up some Pei Wei on the way home or something.”

  “Well, I hope you have a good night. Thank you for all of your hard work on this event. I’d say it was a success!” Julia threw her arms around Kate.

  They said goodbye and Kate slid in behind the steering wheel. She rummaged around in her purse for her cell phone and quickly dialed. The phone rang and rang; her mom didn’t pick up, but the answering machine did. “Hey, Mom, it’s me. I was going to stop at Pei Wei on the way home and get some caramel chicken for dinner. Do you want an order? Call me back.”

  She drove to the restaurant and was surprised to find that even though it was busy, the line moved quickly. Before her turn at the counter, she quickly dialed her phone one more time. Still no answer. She decided to order two dishes, just to be on the safe side.

  On the drive home, all Kate could think about was putting on her pajamas, finding a movie on Netflix, and digging in to some good food. By the time she turned down her street, her stomach was actually growling. She was so focused on getting food into her belly, that when she pulled into the driveway, she nearly drove right into the back of a truck that was parked in her spot. She stepped on the brake just in time and peered over the steering wheel. It was her dad’s truck. No wonder her mom hadn’t answered the phone.

  Kate gathered up her bag of food and her purse and headed towards the door. Unsure of what to expect, she took a deep breath and headed inside. She stopped dead in her tracks.

  The whole house was glowing with candlelight. Candles were spread out over every surface. Kenny G was playing on the stereo. And in the middle of the living room, her parents were slow-dancing.

  “Uh. Hi, Dad. Hi, Mom.”

  “Hi, honey!” her dad said, holding out his arm to her. Kate crossed the room and her parents folded her in their embrace while she stood, holding her bag of Chinese food.

  “Everything okay, I take it?” she asked, stepping back.

  “Everything is wonderful!” her mother beamed, leaning in and resting her head against her father’s chest.

  “That’s good,” Kate said, taking the food into the kitchen. She pulled a fork out of the drawer and opened her container of chicken. She kicked off her shoes and stood at the counter, eating and trying not to spill rice down the front of her dress, while her parents continued to slow dance around the living room, murmuring to each other and smiling. They were kind of cute, actually.

  Kate sighed and continued to shovel chicken, pineapples, and rice into her mouth, only pausing to get a can of Diet Coke out of the fridge. When she closed the refrigerator door, her parents were standing in the kitchen, arms wrapped around each other, smiling gaily at her.

  “Your father’s moving back home!” her mother announced.

  Even though she knew that her parents’ separation would be short-lived and that their reconciliation was inevitable, she still felt a sense of relief that everything was going to be okay with them. And then…

  “Wait. What?”

  “I’ve decided to sell the property up north. I had no idea that your mother was so unhappy up there. Living apart like this – this is no way to live. So I’m moving back home. Here. Where we can be together like we belong.”

  “All of us,” her mother added.

  Kate put her fork down and swallowed her most recent bite of food with some difficulty. “You’re moving back here? When?”

  “Your mother and I are going to go pack up the house tomorrow. I’ve already spoken to a realtor, and…”

  As her father explained how quick and easy the moving process would be, all Kate could think about was the fact that she would be living at home with both of her parents again. The only time she’d actually done so after college was when she first graduated and was still looking for a job and an apartment. She moved out as soon as she could so that she could be on her own. Of course, when her parents decided that they were going to move north to play at being farmers, she happily accepted their offer to stay in their old family home, which they had decided to sit on, rather than sell.

  “Isn’t that great?” her mother asked, interrupting her thoughts.

  She nodded. “That’s great,” she said. “I’m glad you guys worked everything out.” She hurriedly scooped the last few forkfuls of food into her mouth at once and smiled at her parents, her cheeks bulging. She chewed quickly, hugged both of her parents, and then excused herself to go to her room.

  She tugged off her cocktail dress and replaced it on the hanger. She hadn’t intended on going anywhere tonight, but she also didn’t want to sit around and watch her parents kiss and swoon like lovesick teenagers. She pulled on a pair of jeans, a hooded sweatshirt, and flip-flops and headed back into the living room. Her parents were back at it, dancing again. They were completely oblivious as she grabbed her purse and slipped out the front door.

  Kate started driving without really having a destination in mind. She didn’t want to bother Julia, knowing that she was probably already fast asleep. She hesitated a few seconds, and then decided to give Lucy a call. The phone rang a few times before Lucy’s voicemail picked up. Of course, Lucy and Jackson were probably out celebrating Valentine’s Day.

  Months ago, Kate would have called up Max or Chris. Now, both of those guys were also probably celebrating Valentine’s Day… with someone else. It wasn’t necessarily that she wanted someone to be romantic with tonight – she just wanted someone to hang out with.

  Taking a deep breath, she dialed Kevin’s number. As the phone continued to ring, she realized that he, too, might have Valentine’s Day plans with someone. She was about to hang up, when he finally answered in a sleepy, gravelly voice. “Hello?”<
br />
  “Hey… Kevin. It’s Kate. Um… Were you… sleeping?”

  “Yeah, but that’s okay. What’s up?”

  “It’s not even ten o’clock yet!” Kate exclaimed.

  “Well, it’s not like I had any major plans this evening.”

  “Me either. Happy Valentine’s Day, by the way,” she said.

  “Yeah,” he yawned. “So what’s up?”

  “Well, I was going to ask if maybe you wanted to, um, hang out or do something, but, um, since you’re sleeping and all…”

  “No! I’m up. I’ll get dressed. What do you want to do?” he asked.

  Kate chewed on the inside of her cheek. “Uh… I don’t know. I didn’t really have a plan. I just kind of got in my car and started driving. Everyone’s busy tonight,” she added. Suddenly, she regretted saying that. She didn’t want Kevin to think he was her last resort. Even though… Well, he kind of was.

  “Everyone except me and you,” Kevin laughed. “How about I meet you at the Sand Bar in ten minutes?”

  “That sounds good,” Kate asked. She was already only a few minutes away. “I’ll see you then.”

  Kate hung up the phone and tossed it in her purse on the passenger’s seat, relieved to have some sort of plan for Valentine’s Day. It would beat sitting at home with her parents. When she arrived at the Sand Bar, it was obvious that any couples celebrating the romantic holiday had chosen to go elsewhere. There were people sitting at tables clustered around the portable heaters and there were several patrons at the bar, but none of them looked to be particularly lovey-dovey; it was just the typical Saturday night bar crowd.

  She ordered two beers at the bar and then sat down at an empty table. She put her feet up on one of the empty chairs and sat waiting for Kevin. As she thought about how she was spending her Valentine’s Day, she smiled. She wasn’t moping around the house. And it was actually kind of nice to not have to worry about getting dressed up to go out on a date, or to worry about buying a present or making some kind of romantic gesture. She was happy to sit with her feet up, bundled in a heavy sweatshirt, drinking a beer – even if it was a little chilly out.