Page 40 of A Bookish Story

We pass by the Looff Carousel, which has been here for decades and seen generations of children make the rounds. Their parents now stand by with phones in their hands, scrolling. A few take photos before they go back to their scrolling.

Ryan treats me to a waffle cone and we walk through the covered concrete walkway, the crowded beach to our right. There isn’t a place for privacy, or quiet, so we finally settle against the rail that separates us from the concrete steps leading to the sand. I hold my cone, facing the beach. It’s a cloudless day, the sun bright and punishing. Children are running, laughing, splashing at the water’s edge, and building sandcastles while their parents rest in the shade underneath huge colorful umbrellas. I would imagine a scene like this one transcends time and place. The only difference is the clothing. There’s a woman wearing a string bikini getting ogled by the men.

I think of a game I’ve only played with Sofia, but Ryan will be a worthy opponent.

“You see her?” I point to the woman hauling an umbrella, carrying towels, sand toys, and a baby on her back. A toddler follows close behind, a man holding his hand. And nothing else.

Ryan stiffens, mutters a curse word and I know, were we not several hundred yards and crowds of people away, he’d rush to help. So would I, but that’s not the point. I chose her for a reason. She has a story.

“I think she’s going home to tell him he either steps up or she wants a separation. This is just a slice of what happens between them every day.”

“Ah, I used to play this game but it’s been many years.” Ryan leans over the rail, splaying out his arms. “See those two over there?”

I see a young woman on the edge of the surf, a young man beside her. There’s a healthy distance between them. Either they don’t know each other or they’re not happy with each other. Funny how both might be true.

“They just met. She’s not too sure about him, or even men in general, because she just broke up with someone and it was traumatic. The groom stood her up at the altar, but she took the honeymoon by herself. That’s why she’s here, alone. She’s not at all ready for this, but he is extremely interested. He just leaned in.”

I scrunch up my nose and take another look at the couple. “What do you mean?”

“Yeah, the lean. What, you don’t know the lean?” He cocks his head.

I’m drawing a blank and a little ashamed to find that my first thoughts run to how lean and fit the young woman is, which shows in many ways I’m my mother’s daughter.

“I think I know what you mean but I’m not sure,” I confess. “In this context.”

“The lean,” he says.

Actually, I need to hear his explanation because something tells me it will be delicious.

“Explain it to me like I’m five.”

“I think you know.” He smirks. “There are different kinds of leans. There’s the friend lean, where you bend slightly in interest. Like I’m doing right now.”

“I see.”

“And then there’s the lean away.” He exaggeratedly leans back. “This is when someone is definitely not interested.”

“Like I haven’t seen that one before,” I say.

“Lastly, smartass, when a guy is interested, this is the lean.”

When he closes the distance between us, all the breath leaves my body. He’s right. The lean is powerful, especially when it’s him. His eyes are the deep blue of the sky at twilight and I’ve absolutely stopped breathing.

“You’re r-right,” I say. “That’s powerful.”

Ryan returns to the healthy distance between us and we’re back to the way we are every day at work.

“Before revisions for the book, when I was actually trying to write a love story, I devoured a dozen romantic comedies. The lean is from While You Were Sleeping.”

“One of my favorite movies of all time!” It’s time for a rewatch.

“Writing a love story forced me to take a hard look at the unspoken physical language between two people. A lean is just the start.”

We’re quiet for several seconds, simply watching the couple as they start off on a walk in the other direction. I catch the lean this time, when he laughs and says something to her. She also laughs. She’s giving him a chance. Good for her.

Sometimes you have to take a risk.

“Are your parents still together?” I ask.