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Until I heard the doorbell ring.
"James, can you take that? I'm giving Chelsea a bath." Rita yelled from the nursery, and I walked to the door.
When I snapped it open, a huge knot formed in my throat.
"Good morning, handsome. How's your Sunday?"
It was blissful until these two popped up at my door.
"Jess, Wendy, what are you guys doing here?"
The Monroes looked at me, each sporting a brilliant smile.
"Wendy told me my ass is getting big so now we're jogging on our days off."
“Really? It’s only March, a little chilly for running if you ask me. You’re both off?"
It was not chilly at all; actually, we’d had very warm days lately. I was just spiraling.
"No," said Wendy. "But I have a late afternoon shift to go in on one of Zach's surgeries, so we have time for a few miles. Come on, James, put Chelsea in a stroller, and let's go."
"Umm, we just had a walk and I think she'll be down for a nap soon," I said quickly in hopes they would take the rejection and leave before everything went down in flames, but it seemed like Jessica was not about to back down.
"So what? Fresh air will be great for her. Trust me, Sullivan. I'm a doctor of kids."
"Guys..."
"We miss Chelsea, and both Wendy and I agree that you are acting shady as hell lately so spill it. Why you're avoiding us?"
Instantly her words made me feel like crap. I had been avoiding my friends. I avoided them like the plague, keeping them in the dark, because of the obvious. That was another dick move on my part.
So how could I begin to explain myself?
"I'm not exactly avoiding you, it's just...umm..."
"Stop stuttering like a virgin who sees a penis for the first time. What's going on?"
There was the unhinged Jessica we all knew and loved.
"I can't come because...because I have a woman over."
I got a long ‘uhhh’ sound from both of them. Again, Jessica was the one who took the word.
"So, bring her for a walk too. We can all be happy, healthy and sexually active. We are adults, James, you can have sex if you want. We’re not judging."
It was all about sex with this one. Or food.
Good thing that Wendy decided to cut in and temper the situation:
"No one is judging you for trying to rebuild your life. If you ask me, you waited too long. A few years too long."
Since Avery left, I had realized that the tensions between my friends and her ran deeper than they let on. Long story short, a lot of people did not find Avery... easy to like.
"Yeah, thanks, Wendy, but it's a bit complicated." On cue, I heard Rita coming down the stairs with a giggling baby in her arms.
Fuck!
"Daddy's at the door," she told Chelsea in a sweet tone, then she addressed me. "Chelsea is hungry so we had to postpone the bath. Everything ok there, papi?"
