out of my thoughts and take another sip of my drink. Skyler takes another sip of hers and asks me, “Do you want to know how I know all of that about you?” I shrug my shoulders and feel my eyes brimming with tears. She leans in closer to me and says, almost in a whisper, “Lucia, I was the same way too. I never thought that I would find someone who could make me happy, but look at me now: I’m getting married to the love of my life and I have never been this happy. I was afraid of getting hurt, but I decided that I’d rather give my heart the chance to experience love than leave it empty forever.”
Our food arrives and I wipe my cheeks quickly, trying to hide my emotions. The waiter leaves and I look down at my dinner, my appetite gone. I look up at Skyler and see her already eating her shrimp and streak. She stops when she notices that I’m not eating, “I’m sorry, Lu. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I shake my head and take a spoonful of mashed potatoes. “It’s not your fault; you didn’t upset me. What you said upset me, but that’s just because it’s true; I am afraid of getting hurt.”
My friend smiles and signals to our waiter. Before he can even ask, Skyler has already placed an order for a slice of double-chocolate cake. The waiter nods politely and walks away.
Skyler says to me, “After the day you had today, I think you need some chocolate.” She takes a bite of her food and then adds, “And you need to go on Chat Love.”
I appreciate her concern, but I don’t want to talk about my problems anymore. I change the subject, “What I need is to hear all about your wedding plans.”
At the mention of her wedding, Skyler’s eyes sparkle, and she rambles on about her big day for the rest of our meal.
Chapter 6
After my dinner with Skyler, I am exhausted, and I want nothing more than a nap. As I open the door, I see Autumn and Wayne sitting on the couch and typing on her pink laptop.
“Hey,” Autumn says cheerfully.
Wayne looks up and smiles at me. “Hello.”
I take off my shoes and sit on the couch next to Autumn, sandwiching her between Wayne and me. “What are you guys doing?” I ask.
Without looking away from her laptop, Autumn answers me, “I’m helping Wayne set up his profile.”
I rub my forehead, still feeling the effects of the two dirty martinis that I had earlier. I look at the laptop screen and see that Autumn is on Chat Love.
“We made your profile already but we couldn’t decide what picture to use, so you can just pick one out later,” Autumn says while making adjustments to Wayne’s “Interests” section.
I sit up straighter, “What? Why would you do that?”
Still staring at the screen, she answers, “You said yourself that it’s hard for you to meet anyone of quality. We’re just helping you out.”
Shaking my head I angrily reply, “I don’t need it. Delete my profile.”
Wayne gets up from the couch and sits on the wooden coffee table in front of me. “Come on Lu, I’m trying it. And if it fails then we can both laugh about it together.” He turns to Autumn and asks, “What should my love name be?”
I look between Autumn and Wayne, my skepticism written clearly across my face. “What? What is a love name?”
Still typing, Autumn answers, “A love name is a cute name you use so that nobody knows your real name.”
“But they can see your picture,” I retort.
“Yes, but they still don’t know your real name, so they can’t look you up and stalk you.” Autumn replies in her “teacher voice,” a sickly-sweet, slow tone that indicates that she’s growing tired of my questions.
I reply sarcastically, “That sounds reassuring.”
Wayne pats my knee to get my attention, “We named you YankeeGirl4Ever.”
I cross my arms across my chest. “That’s a stupid name.”
Autumn looks at me and gives me one of her big smiles, “No, it’s cute. You love the Yankees.”
I get up from the couch and stretch, trying to appear
Our food arrives and I wipe my cheeks quickly, trying to hide my emotions. The waiter leaves and I look down at my dinner, my appetite gone. I look up at Skyler and see her already eating her shrimp and streak. She stops when she notices that I’m not eating, “I’m sorry, Lu. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I shake my head and take a spoonful of mashed potatoes. “It’s not your fault; you didn’t upset me. What you said upset me, but that’s just because it’s true; I am afraid of getting hurt.”
My friend smiles and signals to our waiter. Before he can even ask, Skyler has already placed an order for a slice of double-chocolate cake. The waiter nods politely and walks away.
Skyler says to me, “After the day you had today, I think you need some chocolate.” She takes a bite of her food and then adds, “And you need to go on Chat Love.”
I appreciate her concern, but I don’t want to talk about my problems anymore. I change the subject, “What I need is to hear all about your wedding plans.”
At the mention of her wedding, Skyler’s eyes sparkle, and she rambles on about her big day for the rest of our meal.
Chapter 6
After my dinner with Skyler, I am exhausted, and I want nothing more than a nap. As I open the door, I see Autumn and Wayne sitting on the couch and typing on her pink laptop.
“Hey,” Autumn says cheerfully.
Wayne looks up and smiles at me. “Hello.”
I take off my shoes and sit on the couch next to Autumn, sandwiching her between Wayne and me. “What are you guys doing?” I ask.
Without looking away from her laptop, Autumn answers me, “I’m helping Wayne set up his profile.”
I rub my forehead, still feeling the effects of the two dirty martinis that I had earlier. I look at the laptop screen and see that Autumn is on Chat Love.
“We made your profile already but we couldn’t decide what picture to use, so you can just pick one out later,” Autumn says while making adjustments to Wayne’s “Interests” section.
I sit up straighter, “What? Why would you do that?”
Still staring at the screen, she answers, “You said yourself that it’s hard for you to meet anyone of quality. We’re just helping you out.”
Shaking my head I angrily reply, “I don’t need it. Delete my profile.”
Wayne gets up from the couch and sits on the wooden coffee table in front of me. “Come on Lu, I’m trying it. And if it fails then we can both laugh about it together.” He turns to Autumn and asks, “What should my love name be?”
I look between Autumn and Wayne, my skepticism written clearly across my face. “What? What is a love name?”
Still typing, Autumn answers, “A love name is a cute name you use so that nobody knows your real name.”
“But they can see your picture,” I retort.
“Yes, but they still don’t know your real name, so they can’t look you up and stalk you.” Autumn replies in her “teacher voice,” a sickly-sweet, slow tone that indicates that she’s growing tired of my questions.
I reply sarcastically, “That sounds reassuring.”
Wayne pats my knee to get my attention, “We named you YankeeGirl4Ever.”
I cross my arms across my chest. “That’s a stupid name.”
Autumn looks at me and gives me one of her big smiles, “No, it’s cute. You love the Yankees.”
I get up from the couch and stretch, trying to appear
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