35
Almost two weeks pass by before I see Izzy again. I'm pushing Sasha down the main street in her stroller, when I notice her in her car, sitting at a red light. She does a noticeable double take, but recovers enough to raise her hand in acknowledgment before the light turns green and she pulls away.
The following week she's at the park again. I consider carrying on by without stopping, but before I've reached a final decision, she sees me and waves. My feet change direction before my head has fully caught up, veering across the grass to where she sits on a picnic rug, her body angled toward Jimmy as he plays.
"Hi!" she greets me, squinting up at me with one hand shielding her eyes from the sun. She reaches behind her head with her other hand and scoops her hair round and over her shoulder, running her fingers through it as though ridding it of tangles. "Do you want to join me for a minute or two? I'm desperate for some adult conversation." She smiles and scoots across.
"Sure," I say, lowering myself down beside her. "One of those days, huh?"
"Seriously, I can do nothing right today. We got out of the house before I lost my mind."
"Kids, huh?" I say. She sees the way in.
"That wasn't your sister I saw you pushing last week, was it?" she asks. I laugh a little.
"No, that's my daughter."
"She's cute," she says, sending a wave of pride washing over me.
"Yeah, she is," I agree. "I don't know if you remember Kate from school? She's Sasha's mom. We're not together." I offer all of this up without her even asking.
"I do remember her, she was nice. I'm sorry things didn't work out for you."
"It's okay, we've never really been together as such. Things are good though, we get on well."
Jimmy looks up and waves, then comes racing over the grass and throws himself at Izzy. She catches him, yelling in surprise as he sends her off-balance and sideways into me. I automatically reach out and catch them. They're a big bundle of giggles as I help Izzy to sit them both back up again.
"Jimmy!" she attempts to scold him through her giggles. "I'm so sorry," she says, turning to me, her cheeks pink. I realize I'm staring when they darken further and she looks away coyly. "You made us crash into Edward," she says. "What do you say to him?" Jimmy scrambles to his feet. He looks at me for a moment frowning.
"I know you," he says. "Izzy has a picture of you in her room."
His words take me by surprise and Izzy looks like she wants the whole rug to slip inside a crack in the earth and disappear.
"She does?" I ask, keeping my eyes on her.
"Jimmy!" she hisses, pulling him onto her lap and ducking her head behind him.
"We were best friends a long time ago," I tell him.
"Why aren't you friends now?" he asks, all wide-eyed innocence. I think of how once I'd have been the one hiding away while she brazened it out.
I look at her and think of how much water has flowed under the space where our bridges burned.
"I don't know," I tell him.
~S~