“How’s”—his friend cleared his throat—“Gwen handling everything?”
“Oh, she’s being Gwen, meticulous and keen.”
Anthony smiled before he straightened his features and asked, “What do you have written so far?”
“What?”
“Your speech. Read it,” Anthony said as he moved to sit on the edge of the table that Duncan wasn’t so sure would hold the man’s weight.
“It’s nothing special.”
“I have five minutes till my next class,” Anthony said.
Seeing his friend was dead serious about him sharing, Duncan looked down at his phone and read, “‘Good afternoon, distinguished guests. I thought I’d be sadder than I am today. My parents are getting a divorce, after all, but I’m excited for them. They are loving, amazing parents, and I hope they get to live exciting and fulfilling lives separately.’” Duncan looked up at his friend. “This is where I’d go into a story or a childhood memory of some kind. I’m not sure yet.”
Anthony was studying him closely, and Duncan braced himself for his critique.
“What’s the point you’re trying to make with this speech?” Anthony asked.
“I’m not trying to make a point. I’m trying to say enough to fill up five minutes. That’s it.”
“Then it’s perfect,” Anthony said.
There was no judgment in his tone, but Duncan felt he needed to add, “I’m nervous they’re using this party to stall what needs to be done. They’ve threatened divorce so many times before, and it never happened.”
Granted this was the furthest his parents had made it in the process, but the possibility of them not going through with it was still there. Their waffling was one of the reasons why relationships were terrifying to Duncan. Disharmony could become comfortable.
“I don’t want to put all this work into a bunch of words I might not ever read out loud,” Duncan said.
“Then don’t,” Anthony said, standing up.
That type of comment made by anyone else would sound insincere and flippant, but it was the type of straightforward advice Anthony doled out. He tried to live an uncomplicated life and saw many things as black and white.
“However you approach this speech, I hope you realize it won’t change how things unfold with your folks. They’re going to do what they’re going to do.”
Duncan nodded, dropping into the chair behind his desk. If onlythinkingabout the feelings surrounding his parents’ divorce had him feeling like he’d gone several rounds with a formidable opponent, there was no way he was opening that can of worms, especially in front of an audience.
“Is Retta going with you to the party?”
Duncan straightened in his seat. “Why would you ask that?”
“I don’t know, since you have regularly scheduled dates now.”
He’d accidentally let it slip that he’d been at Retta’s apartment for a movie. “There’s no reason for her to come to the party,” Duncan said.
Except maybe that she’d make it patently more enjoyable with her enthusiasm and sense of humor that matched his own.
“And it wasn’t a real date,” Duncan added. “It was a public service. She’d never watchedRocky.”
His statements might’ve sounded less odd to his own ears if he hadn’t been torturing himself for days thinking about Retta sitting on his lap, making lustful sounds that echoed in his head during his morning jack off sessions.
“As long as you can still tell the difference,” Anthony said.
“Of course I can.”
Their lives were getting entangled in ways that were foreign to Duncan. He’d met maybe one of his ex’s siblings. But he was grateful Retta had been clearheaded enough to insist they keep at least one aspect of their arrangement straightforward.
Anthony crossed his arms. “You—”
