Up & Out - Ariella Papa [86]
“Yeah, I’ve got no problem hanging in tonight,” I say.
“And getting crazy tomorrow night,” she says.
“Are you getting crazy, bird girl?”
“Just a bit. You’re not done with that, are you?” She gestures toward my lobster carcass.
“What? Should I suck the bones?” She shakes her head at me as if I am some sort of amateur eater. She proceeds to scrape another quarter pound out of my lobster through some kind of strange lobster surgery she must have learned on this island.
“Who would have thunk a girl from PA…” I say.
“Ms. Gordon would be so proud.”
We watch the sun go down and open another bottle of wine. For dessert we eat Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia and listen to music. We stay up until midnight talking with our legs folded up close to us on the chaise longues and I tell her in detail about everything that happened with work and Seamus. She tells me all about her fieldwork. I can’t really understand it all, but I know enough to see that it fascinates her. She has smiled more tonight than in the entire past year. I yawn involuntarily and Lauryn goes inside to set up the AeroBed.
“Sorry I’m so lame tonight,” I say.
“Don’t worry about it, I have to get up in like four hours. I’m glad you’re here. We have plenty of time.”
I wake up around ten-thirty. I vaguely remember Lauryn coming in here to grab her laptop early this morning and relishing the fact that I could still sleep. And it’s nice and cool in the guest room. I never do this, but I brought my sneakers. I’ve been running pretty consistently all week and I know that if I don’t keep at it, I’ll never get stronger.
I throw on my shorts and a T-shirt and grab my Walkman and go outside. I have no idea where I’m going, but I figure that I can stay off the main roads and keep turning left. I run about fifteen minutes and then turn around and start heading back. It’s much cooler on the island than in muggy Manhattan and I think I feel stronger because I’m not fighting the oppressive heat. I run by lots of little houses, and realize how much I would enjoy a more quiet summer off. If I ever work again, maybe I’ll get a summer house…but then I’ll have less time to spend there. There is more than one downside of working.
I see Lauryn’s Jeep in the driveway and jog around back and up the stairs to the deck. She is sitting out on a lounge chair in shorts and a bikini top and drinking an iced coffee. She smiles at me.
“Look at you, marathon runner. I never thought I’d see the day when you ran for anything but your supper.” She pulls her sunglasses down her nose.
“I’m still running short distances. I foolishly agreed to do a 10-K with Kathy. I think it’s a ploy so she can have a more attractive bridal party.” Lauryn rolls her eyes.
“There’s an iced coffee for you in the fridge. Do you need to take a shower? I figured we would just go to the beach and get sweaty, anyway.”
“That’s cool, lemme just change.”
The beach is not crowded like Jones Beach on Long Island but there are plenty of people on it, mostly families and college kids. Lauryn and I set up our blankets and break out the giant sandwiches we bought. I bought this mile-high veggie sandwich called the Tree Hugger and Lauryn got a Cuban with meat and pickles. It’s big enough to rival the Carnegie Deli’s. I only get through half of mine and then wrap up the rest.
We put sunscreen on each other and lay back on the blankets with books and magazines. Lauryn says she canceled all her subscriptions, finally. She looks a lot better in her bikini than I do, even with my week of running. Will these giant thighs ever be lean? After about forty-five minutes I’m really hot, so I get up to go in the water.
“Are you sure you don’t want to digest a little longer?” Lauryn says like a mom. She takes out a cigarette and lights it. She holds the pack out to me and I shake my head.
“I’ll wait until you are done and then we’ll go.”
“Here, why don’t you read this.” She tosses me a magazine article about getting over your ex by changing your hair.
“Thanks, I tried this already.”