But Too Well

VIII : Secret

ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON, I have Shauna over. She's at the point where she's done pining and ready for revenge, so we amateurishly plot her ex's doom while painting each other's nails.

"What if Michael and what's-her-face get pulled over on the way to dinner, and his registration is expired, and he's driving too fast, so the officer puts them both in jail for the night?" Her fingers deliver smooth, even strokes to her toes, her face contorted into an excited, plotting smirk.

I purse my lips, trying not to laugh at her. "Um, Shauna, I don't think you usually go to jail for that. And why would both of them get locked up?"

She gives me an are-you-serious look, as if I'm the dumbest person she's ever met. "Duh, Ros. She was aiding and abetting."

I'm not really one for gossip and trash talk, but I let Shauna continue on her tirade about how horrible Michael's new girlfriend is, about how she's not a natural blonde and isn't really a size two and so on, my thoughts eventually drowning her out, drifting to things more interesting and less vapid.

I think about the landscape I'm going to paint for Daniel's fundraiser, already planning out the colour scheme and textures. I think about the plus one that the invite came with, the idea still nagging.

"Hey, Shauna," I begin, once there's a small lull in her speech, "Do you wanna be my date for this thing in about a month? Daniel's office is doing this charity fundraiser and he bought me an extra ticket." Implicit is the idea that I have no boyfriend or plans to bring a significant other, and she raises a knowing eyebrow.

"Um, babe, you know I'd love to but like, this dry spell of yours is seriously starting to worry me. Do I need to set you up with another one of my cousins?"

Immediately, I regret bringing it up, and traumatic images of Shauna's various male relatives flash before my eyes. "No," I say quickly, "please don't." I purse my lips, trying hard to suppress my growing laughter. "I don't think I would be able to survive another one of your blind dates."

She shrugs, starting on the other foot. "Your call, Ros. But you're hot, and you deserve a real date." She gives me a suggestive wink. "Not that I'd pass up any chance to get near that brother of yours. Is he seeing anyone right now?"

I groan, shooting her a disgusted glare. She's had a not-so-secret crush on Daniel since we were in junior high, and her tastes have expanded little since then. "Gross, Shauna. Maybe I should look for a date after all...."

She gives me a light whack with the nail file, her full lips pulling into a pout. "Give me the details and I'll get back to you, okay?"

The timer goes off and I rush into the kitchen—my batch of cupcakes from Monday only lasted a few of days. Definitely time to make a new recipe. These ones are strawberry, and they smell amazing as I take them out, the icing already waiting in the fridge.

I haven't done my fingers yet so I put the cakes onto a rack to cool before joining Shauna again, and she gets me to do her right hand for her, and I get her to do mine.

We drone on again about the most useless things, but I turn the six o'clock news on as soon as the hour changes, and Shauna rolls her eyes, telling me that I'm no fun. "Excuse me for wanting to be well-informed," I retort, and I turn it up, because the story catches my attention.

Shauna goes on her phone as I watch, the reporter standing in a packed courthouse, talking about how the recent surge in organized crime has sparked even more police investigation. My face pales when begin speaking about the body found almost three weeks ago, how new suspects have emerged.