Theoretically Speaking

Chapter Six

“I think we’re lost.”

“We are not lost.” I searched for a street sign and looked down at our written directions in confusion, then compared it to the ones from the GPS.

“Recalculating,” the GPS repeated for the umpteenth time in the last three minutes. It was a woman speaking – Ginny – with such a dull voice that it became the most irritating thing ever. “In zero point two miles, make a left.” There was no left turn to make, so we kept going. “Recalculating. Take a left.” We kept going. “Recalculating. In zero point five miles, take a left.” Faye slowed down, but realized that the left turn led to a dead end. “Recalculating. Take a lef–” I turned the GPS off. I’d bought it quite some time ago, and it had definitely used these years to master the art of annoyance.

“Aeryn,” Faye started in that overly patient voice of hers. “Let’s just make a U-turn and get back on the interstate.”

“We’re not lost!” I looked back at the GPS and frowned. Gosh, why was this thing so old?

“The GPS doesn’t even recognize the street we’re on.” My eyes fell on the first house, then the second, then skipped to the end of the street where more houses awaited. Okay, maybe we were lost. “We’re supposed to go another fifty miles before starting to look for the house,” Faye continued as she pulled up on a curb and turned off the ignition. She stared at me. “We’re lost.”

It took me a while to finally admit it out loud. I tried to find a route back to the interstate on the GPS but the thing was so old that it eventually seemed to go crazy before finally shutting down, this time all by itself. Faye decided to call Aidan for some help. She gave him the name of the street we were on and after a completely pointless argument over Aida, she hung up and joined me on the trunk of her car without quite being aware of my presence. Half an hour later, Aidan still hadn’t shown up, and she called him again. When she hung up, the poor girl was ready to explode. She threw the phone in the car, sighed and pushed her thick black hair away from her face. She reached in her pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. She took one from the pack and twirled it between her fingers, unaware of my eyes glued to her hand in a bit of shock.

The thing with Faye Jones was that she’d always been the good, pretty girl who would never be caught getting drunk, getting high, skipping class or smoking. That had been her thing and although she had been part of the more popular crowd, she was always content with being the good girl. In high school, Aidan and her had been quite the item. Both were stunning in their own unique ways and had successful parents. Although Aidan didn’t come anywhere near Faye’s level of intelligence, everyone had known that they were both destined to attend an Ivy League college – Aidan through money and Faye through her brains. Their lives had seemed genetically programmed for success. Back then, it had been one of the most irritating things ever.

“You smoke?” I asked.

She looked up at me as if she’d forgotten that I was even there; she shook her head, and her eyes seemed darker than usual. She looked at her own hand. “I did.” She paused and crushed the butt of the still unlit cigarette with her slender fingers. “Seeing your two-month-old trying to reach for your cigarette can scare the hell out of you.” It was odd to hear her swear, even with a little word like hell.

We remained quiet for a while, staring at the intersection ahead, waiting for Aidan. The neighborhood was as dead as a cemetery. No car drove past us, no noise came from the houses, no dog barked. Most of the blinds were down, while a few curtains were pulled back to let some light in. The only thing that reassured us that time wasn’t standing still was the wind tugging at the trees.

“How are you holding up?” I asked.

She rubbed her face. “I got pregnant at sixteen, Aeryn. It’s not exactly playing Barbie. It feels like I’m always being pulled by twenty different people in twenty different directions, and I can’t say no to any one of them. Lynn helps out but…it’s hard.” Lynn was Faye’s closest friend and the only one whom Faye hadn’t distanced herself from during the pregnancy. The other girls seemed to have believed that pregnancy was a terminal disease that required quarantine. “I can’t go to college or have a life. I have to plan for someone else’s future when mine is completely fucked up. I mean, I love her with all my heart. I would give anything…anything for her. But it’s just…Sometimes it’s hard.” She dropped her head, closing her eyes for a brief second. “Sometimes it’s hard not to imagine a simpler life. Sometimes I wish I hadn’t lied to Aidan about taking the pill that week…Sometimes it’s hard not to miss my mom.” She took a sharp intake of air.