Page 4 of While You Were Trending

“Mom, you need to sit down,” Ginny says.

“What’s a shit town?” Pip says. “Let’s go there. I want to scatter this bastard all over a shit town.”

“We are not scattering ashes at my sister’s wedding.”

“Have to—make sure—my baby—loves me,” Freida sobs as she pushes Ginny away.

Dammit.

Dammit.

I look behind me, hoping someone else has wandered in here and can help, but I’m it.

Helping is on me.

“Mom,stop,” Ginny says.

“Have to go—go hug mybaaaabbyyyy,” Freida replies, staggering into Ginny again.

While Ginny’s in heels.

Ginny sprained her ankle not long after Alex started dating her.

Do it once, you’ll do it again.

Shit.

Fuck.

Time to do my good deed of the day.

I step out from behind the post and stride to the women.

“Oh, thought this place was empty,” I say like I haven’t been watching for the past few minutes.

Ginny looks at me.

Her lip curls.

Her eye twitches.

It twitches more when I grip her mom’s arm and pull her off Ginny.

“Letgoooo,” Freida says.

“Just helping you stand up straight,” I reply.

Freida’s makeup is still in place despite the tears rolling down her cheeks. “You’recuuuute. You can be my cute. Caro got a cute. I deserve a cute too.”

“Declan’s not interested, Mom,” Ginny says.

“Who has a deck can?” Pip asks. “What’s a deck can? I have an ashes can. Is that the same? I’m gonna dump my ashes can. Dump it in the river. He always hated being wet. Says a lot about our sex life, doesn’t it?”

“I want a sex life,” Freida sobs. She leans into me. “Will you be my sex life?”

I grimace. “No.”

“But you’re stroooong. I deserve stroooong.”