Page 105 of Out on a Limb

“How do you know a rabbi? Are you thinking of converting?”

“Jason’s dad is a rabbi. He’s really nice and knows a lot about baseball. They can’t watch TV on Saturdays butDad, they get presents eight days in a row at Christmas.”

“It’s Hanukkah for them.”

“Is that the Jewish word for Christmas?”

“Sure.” Walker buckled Hobie into his seat. He drove them to Doug and Ron’s house. The whole trip, Hobie regaled him with tales of his school day. He remembered the tiniest details like picking dried glue off the Elmer’s Glue nozzle. Walker listened like they were folktales around a campfire. He enjoyed hearing the minutia rather than getting a watered-down recap once a week.

Not working had some perks.

Ron answered the door in tight biking shorts that would never leave Walker’s memory, unfortunately.

“Hey, Hobie! How was school?” He scooped him up in a hug.

“Great!”

“Your stepson is studying to become a rabbi.”

“Mazel Tov!” Ron said.

“Bless you!” Hobie replied.

He put him down, and Hobie ran into the house.

“Walker, are you able to drop Hobie off at soccer practice tomorrow? I have a meeting I know is going to run long.”

“Definitely!”Look up, look up.

“Thanks. I appreciate it.”

“And I appreciate this,” Walker said. “Letting me pick up Hobie from school and drive him to practice on your days.”

Ron peered around to make sure nobody was watching them. This was their secret. Doug didn’t know. Ever since their epic fight, he wasn’t speaking to Walker at all. He was picking up Hobie promptly from Walker’s house and dropping him off not a second earlier than he had to as directed by the courts. Ron was their intermediary, and he gave a nod that acknowledged the awkwardness but reminded Walker that Doug knew how to hold a grudge.

They shared a look of understanding.

“I’m happy to do it,” Ron said, and Walker gave him an appreciative nod. “I hope you guys patch things up soon, for Hobie’s sake. He asked Doug the other night why he hates you.”

“What did Doug say?”

“He of course denied it and said it was part of adult feelings. He’s waiting for you to apologize.”

Walker didn’t want to apologize to Doug. He didn’t want to give him that satisfaction, even if he wasn’t proud of how things went down

“You really don’t mind shuttling Hobie back and forth like this?” Ron asked.

“No. I’ll take whatever extra time I can get with him.” Walker and Ron said their goodbyes. Walker got a mistaken, unfortunate glimpse of the bicycle shorts again, and he knew he would never be able to unsee it.

Φ

Walker searched online for jobs while Hobie played in his room. It was June 1.I will have a new job by the end of the month, Walker promised himself. So far, it wasn’t looking too hot.

He scanned the listings for other project management jobs, but whenever he clicked on a listing to view a job description, a red light flashed in his mind. Abort, abort. None of these jobs seemed interesting. He could see through their HR-approved language. He knew whatmulti-tasking, can-do attitude, good communication skills, anda self-starterreally meant. It was all a trap.

But he also needed a job. Because he quit, he couldn’t file for unemployment. He had savings, but he watched his bank account dwindle thanks to everyday, innocuous things like gas and bills and food. He took a deep breath. He reminded himself that on some level, he knew what he was doing when he quit. He recalled the high he felt, the sense of clarity and excitement that fueled him.

I did the right thing, he told himself. It was time for a new beginning.