Page 206 of It Happened on the Lake

He was alone. The girls he’d been with minutes before not in sight.

His smile wide, he said, “Thought I saw you.” He was breathing hard, his face flushed. “I’ve been meaning to stop by.”

“Oh?” She was surprised, yet felt not only relief but a little thrill as well.

“Yeah, I found something you dropped the other day. When you spilled your Coke and your purse fell over?”

“What?”

He reached into the front pocket of his jeans, and she noticed the careful embroidery on the denim. Daisies winding up his leg by the side seam. “I went by the table where you were sitting on the way back and I found these.” He handed her a small plastic bottle. Inside were her pre-natal vitamins, her name printed on the label. She hadn’t even missed them.

“Oh.” She let out a breath and felt her cheeks grow hot. She wanted to deny that they were hers but obviously couldn’t. “Uh. Thanks.” Embarrassed, she didn’t know what to say.

“You okay?”

“What do you think?” she shot back.

He lifted a shoulder. “Don’t know.”

“Well, let’s see, since you know my deepest, darkest secret,” she said, “then you’ve probably figured out that I’m just fine. This is exactly where I thought I’d be at eighteen. Pregnant, having to get a GED, and all those universities that accepted me? Forget it. No college for me. Oh, and the father of my baby? Not in the picture.”

His smile had slowly fallen from his face. “I’m sorry,” he said. He actually looked like he understood.

“Yeah.” She blinked against a rush of tears. “Me, too.” Clearing her throat, she put up a brave front. “Look, thanks for finding these.” She held up the vial of pills, shaking it so that it rattled. “I don’t know how I could have explained losing them.” Dashing the tears from her eyes, she blew out a long breath and pulled herself together.

An awkward silence ensued, and she finally said, “I’d better get go—”

“Would you like to go out?” he said suddenly, and she thought she hadn’t heard correctly.

“What?”

“Yeah. You know. Go out. On a date.”

“You want to take me out? Seriously?” He was being absurd, or felt sorry for her, which she definitely didn’t need. She motioned to her abdomen. “Why would you want to do that?”

“I said before, you could use a friend.”

“And I told you I didn’t need one.”

“But maybe I do.” He appeared almost sheepish as a soft breeze passed by. Leaves on the branches overhead shimmered, casting shivering shadows across the walkway.

She laughed. “Looks like you’ve got plenty of friends to me.” Gesturing to the intricate embroidery on his jeans, she said, “Someone who sews flowers on your Levis, unless you have hidden talents with a needle and thread.”

“Hardly.”

“And you have people to go to protests with.”

He lifted a shoulder. “Maybe I want to meet someone new.”

“A girl who’s pregnant?” she said, shaking her head and laughing. “Oh sure.”

“That has nothing to do with it.”

“Come on.” This was ridiculous.

“See you at eight,” he said, not accepting “no” for an answer. Then he took off, jogging away, a tall man with an easy, loping stride.

“Wait!”