Chapter 4 - THE BOYFRIEND WHO CAME BACK
Cabana Three stood beside the shallow end with white curtains, a small refrigerator, and two cushioned chairs that looked too clean to touch.
Mia inspected everything as though she had been invited into a palace.
“There are grapes in here.”
“You can have them,” I said.
“All of them?”
“All seven.”
She smiled.
It was the first real smile I had seen that morning.
We changed into our swimsuits, and I helped Mia apply sunscreen to the places where her skin remained sensitive from treatment.
She wore a soft blue swim cap, although there was no hair beneath it.
When she reached the edge of the pool, she froze.
For months, every new environment had come with rules.
Do not touch that.
Stay away from crowds.
Wash your hands again.
Tell me if you feel dizzy.
The pool looked enormous.
I stepped into the water first and held out my arms.
“You don’t have to be brave today.”
She looked at me.
“What am I supposed to be?”
“Eight.”
Mia took my hand and entered the pool.
She laughed when the water reached her waist.
The sound hit me so hard that I had to turn away for a second.
We spent almost an hour in the shallow end. Mia floated on her back while I supported her shoulders. She kicked water at me. She asked whether dolphins ever accidentally entered hotel pools.
For that hour, she was not a patient.
She was a child.
When we returned to the cabana, Dylan was waiting outside.
He had changed into a plain gray T-shirt and carried our original towels, freshly washed and folded.
I moved in front of Mia.
“Courtney isn’t with me,” he said.
“What do you want?”
“To apologize.”
“You already helped remove her.”
“That isn’t the same thing.”
He set the towels on a chair.
“I watched her throw your things away.”
My anger returned.
“You saw it?”
“Yes.”
“And you sat there?”
He looked down.
“I told myself it was none of my business.”
“You were sitting in my daughter’s chair.”
“I know.”
Mia sat behind me, listening.
Dylan continued.
“Courtney said the tags were old and that people left towels on chairs all day. I wanted to believe her because believing her was easier than confronting her.”
“That doesn’t explain what happened after we came back.”
“No.”
He swallowed.
“I heard what she said to Mia. I should have stood up immediately.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because I’m a coward when conflict involves someone I love.”
The answer was painfully honest.
He looked toward Mia.
“My mom died when I was twelve. After that, my dad became obsessed with work, and Evan became the person who handled every problem. I got very good at letting other people make difficult decisions.”
“That sounds lonely,” Mia said.
I glanced at her.
Dylan’s expression changed.
“It was.”
Mia looked at the towels.
“Did you wash those?”
“The laundry staff did.”
“That’s good. You probably would have ruined them.”
A laugh escaped me before I could stop it.
Dylan smiled.
“Probably.”
He removed an envelope from his pocket.
“I was supposed to pay for a private dinner tonight. I canceled it, but the kitchen had already ordered everything.”
He placed the envelope beside the towels.
“Evan suggested we donate the food to the pediatric family residence near the hospital.”
Mia looked at me.
That residence had been our temporary home during the worst weeks of treatment.
Families stayed there while their children received care.
“That’s a good idea,” she said.
Dylan nodded.
“I thought so too.”
He started to leave.
I stopped him.
“Why did Evan have the ring?”
“I wanted him to help arrange the proposal.”
“Did he like Courtney?”
Dylan gave a tired smile.
“No.”
“But he agreed?”
“He said I had to learn the truth about her myself.”
Mia tilted her head.
“Did you?”
Dylan looked back toward the glass doors through which Courtney had left.
“Yes.”
He walked away.
Mia watched him go.
“Mom?”
“What?”
“Sometimes karma looks sad.”
May you like
I sat beside her.
“Yes,” I said. “Sometimes it does.”
