really listening.
Later, when we were cleaning up, Kevin
leaned in close to me and said, "That really was a long time ago
when I told Nate those things. Seriously. I don't think that way
now. It's not just you. I don't want kids anymore
either."
I smiled and nodded. "I know. It's
fine, really."
But a few minutes later, Min stepped
up to me and said, "Hey, you want to go for a walk?"
And I hope it doesn't make me sound
like a jerk that I said, "Yeah, let's go."
* * *
Inevitably, we found ourselves walking
down the road to Amazing.
Min didn't say anything like, "Wow,
that was rough back there, how are you doing?" And she didn't look
at me all concerned either. Which was great, because it really
wasn't a big deal. On the other hand, I knew that if I wanted to
talk about it, she was more than willing to listen.
Instead, I said, "Are you mad at
Gunnar?"
"For moving that orca?" she
asked.
I nodded.
"Well," she said, "he committed a
felony. But this is your wedding, and I believe him when he said he
moved it farther down the beach. So I guess this is one of those
times where you sort of turn the other way and pretend it didn't
happen. Like when a friend tells you no one understands her like
Taylor Swift."
I smiled. "How do you think he did
it?"
But Min looked at me with
this droll expression, and we both laughed. This was an ongoing
joke between the two of us, how pointless it was to even try to understand the
conundrum that was Gunnar.
"Ruby is no dummy either," I said, "is
she?" I didn't want to talk about what Nate had said at lunch, but
I could at least reference Ruby being smart enough to know what an
idiot he was.
"Did you think she was?" Min
said.
"No, but you know how it is. Everyone
talks about emotional intelligence and 'different learning styles,'
but who really believes in those things? It's not until you see
them in action with people like Gunnar and Ruby."
"Actually, I think almost everyone
else believes in those things. It's just us bookish, verbal types,
people like you and me, who are skeptical. Because if there are
different ways to be smart, it means we're not special."
"Well, hey," I said,
"don't you think we brainy geeks should get something ? We gave the world Game of Thrones, the
Internet, and, you know, science . But still people laugh at
us. Everyone says, 'We're all geeks now!' but it's so not true. The
cool kids still run this world, same as always, and you damn well
know it."
Min laughed.
"Are you worried about her spending so
much time with Nate?" I asked.
"Ruby? You mean because they might run
off together?" When I half-shrugged, Min laughed again, and said,
"Oh, God, no! Ruby is the most lesbian lesbian I've ever met.
They're just friends."
I nodded, and we kept
walking down the road to Amazing. At this point, I felt pretty
great. The wedding was back on track, that thing Nate said really
was forgotten, and the air was crisp and clean. Even better, I was
looking forward to seeing the ruins of Amazing again. What had happened to those
people all those years ago? I was already spinning this fantasy
about Min and me figuring it out. Yeah, I knew that people had been
investigating this mystery for years, but so what? We'd be like
Veronica Mars! Talk about Revenge of the Nerds: two geeky friends
are staying on the island for a weekend wedding, and they stumble
upon some clue hidden in the ferns, missed by all the investigators
before. Or maybe it was simply a question of being smart enough to
look at the ruins from a slightly different point of view, and our
seeing what should have been obvious to everyone else, but had been
missed because of all their stupid preconceptions.
Yes, this was all a silly fantasy — I
wasn't serious about it, and it wasn't like I was going to mention
it to Min, especially after she'd teased me earlier, saying the
mystery of Amazing was exactly my kind of thing. But somehow it
really did excite me.
We rounded the corner around the hill,
and the
Later, when we were cleaning up, Kevin
leaned in close to me and said, "That really was a long time ago
when I told Nate those things. Seriously. I don't think that way
now. It's not just you. I don't want kids anymore
either."
I smiled and nodded. "I know. It's
fine, really."
But a few minutes later, Min stepped
up to me and said, "Hey, you want to go for a walk?"
And I hope it doesn't make me sound
like a jerk that I said, "Yeah, let's go."
* * *
Inevitably, we found ourselves walking
down the road to Amazing.
Min didn't say anything like, "Wow,
that was rough back there, how are you doing?" And she didn't look
at me all concerned either. Which was great, because it really
wasn't a big deal. On the other hand, I knew that if I wanted to
talk about it, she was more than willing to listen.
Instead, I said, "Are you mad at
Gunnar?"
"For moving that orca?" she
asked.
I nodded.
"Well," she said, "he committed a
felony. But this is your wedding, and I believe him when he said he
moved it farther down the beach. So I guess this is one of those
times where you sort of turn the other way and pretend it didn't
happen. Like when a friend tells you no one understands her like
Taylor Swift."
I smiled. "How do you think he did
it?"
But Min looked at me with
this droll expression, and we both laughed. This was an ongoing
joke between the two of us, how pointless it was to even try to understand the
conundrum that was Gunnar.
"Ruby is no dummy either," I said, "is
she?" I didn't want to talk about what Nate had said at lunch, but
I could at least reference Ruby being smart enough to know what an
idiot he was.
"Did you think she was?" Min
said.
"No, but you know how it is. Everyone
talks about emotional intelligence and 'different learning styles,'
but who really believes in those things? It's not until you see
them in action with people like Gunnar and Ruby."
"Actually, I think almost everyone
else believes in those things. It's just us bookish, verbal types,
people like you and me, who are skeptical. Because if there are
different ways to be smart, it means we're not special."
"Well, hey," I said,
"don't you think we brainy geeks should get something ? We gave the world Game of Thrones, the
Internet, and, you know, science . But still people laugh at
us. Everyone says, 'We're all geeks now!' but it's so not true. The
cool kids still run this world, same as always, and you damn well
know it."
Min laughed.
"Are you worried about her spending so
much time with Nate?" I asked.
"Ruby? You mean because they might run
off together?" When I half-shrugged, Min laughed again, and said,
"Oh, God, no! Ruby is the most lesbian lesbian I've ever met.
They're just friends."
I nodded, and we kept
walking down the road to Amazing. At this point, I felt pretty
great. The wedding was back on track, that thing Nate said really
was forgotten, and the air was crisp and clean. Even better, I was
looking forward to seeing the ruins of Amazing again. What had happened to those
people all those years ago? I was already spinning this fantasy
about Min and me figuring it out. Yeah, I knew that people had been
investigating this mystery for years, but so what? We'd be like
Veronica Mars! Talk about Revenge of the Nerds: two geeky friends
are staying on the island for a weekend wedding, and they stumble
upon some clue hidden in the ferns, missed by all the investigators
before. Or maybe it was simply a question of being smart enough to
look at the ruins from a slightly different point of view, and our
seeing what should have been obvious to everyone else, but had been
missed because of all their stupid preconceptions.
Yes, this was all a silly fantasy — I
wasn't serious about it, and it wasn't like I was going to mention
it to Min, especially after she'd teased me earlier, saying the
mystery of Amazing was exactly my kind of thing. But somehow it
really did excite me.
We rounded the corner around the hill,
and the
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