Page 48 of Definitely Not a Thing

I rolled my eyes at it before I swiped it away – not trying to be negative, but the last month had been such a whirlwhind ofnot-that-gorgeousthat despite my usual purposely-sunny outlook…

I wasn’t trying to hear that shit.

The day was going to be what it was going to be, and I was going to roll with it.

Thatwas the kind of declaration that had been getting me through these days.

So… I peeled myself out of bed to see what kind of day it was gonna be.

A… great twist-out one, I soon realized once I made it to that stage of getting ready. And a phenomenal mascara one after that. I tempered myself though, refusing to get too excited.

Something could – and likelywouldgo wrong at any moment.

Not the weather though – it wassucha pretty day, with just enough cloud cover to keep it from being too hot, but still sunnyand bright. A group of teenagers with designer tote bags and better lash extensions than mine told me I was “tea” as I passed them on their way to school, giving me the finger taps and all.

It… was getting harder to keep myself neutral.

Iwantedto be optimistic, really bad.

But that’s how they trick you.

Who the fuck was “they”?

Who knew?

But, by the time I sat down at Urban Grind after securing the last butter roll from the bakery case – a truly baffling stroke of luck – I wassure.

Theywere definitely on my ass.

I had to keep my eyes open.

A notification popped up on my screen, and as soon as I realized what it was – an email from Proxy’s Media Relations Manager – my shoulders sank.

I knew it.

I took a deep breath before I opened the message, steeling myself for whatever the correspondence held.

A… glowing, unexpected shout-out inSugar&Spicemagazine.

That was what it held.

I really need to seek help.

As hard as I tried, all day, to find some gloom that might support my reticence to justchill… I simply could not.

It was great.

The KANAOS class was great, and I got a massage after, got my nails and brows done. By the time I was heading back to my apartment for the day, the sun was setting, painting the sky over the Heights a beautiful mixture of red and purple and orange and pink. Somebody had a grill going, and the smell drove me to the corner store at the end of my block.

I got the last plate of burnt ends, and they gave me the extra that wasn’t enough to make another.

That was the last straw.

I was over the moon by the time I made it back to my building – in such a good mood that when I saw Calvin outside on that cracked court, running his usual solo drills, I didn’t avoid him.

I went and sat down on the steps.

And just… watched him.