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“Like life,” he said seriously, and I rolled my eyes to keep from misting up. “Wheel me back to my room so we can talk, and I’ll find a great place to put my treasure.”
I took hold of his chair and wheeled him down the hallway, while he carefully held both the duck and the books as if they were precious. “This guy is going to be named Chuck,” he said over his shoulder as we reached the door to his room.
“Chuck, really?” I asked.
“Chuck the Duck,” he responded.
“At least you could tell it was a duck.” I laughed as I helped shift him from the chair so he was sitting on the bed. The room was full of my pottery creations. Cracked pots and lopsided animals covered every shelf. “Do people ever ask about these?”
He grinned. “They always want to know how old my grandchild is.” Then he winked. “Just kidding. They ask who the artist is and if she has a studio somewhere.”
“How old do you tell them your grandkid is?”
“About nine or ten.” He chuckled. “At least you got all your mother’s other talents,” he said. “She was the smart one; I was the hot one.”
I smiled at him. “Neither one of you was good with technology.”
He leaned back and looked at me affectionately. “That’s true. You got that all on your own. Our little miracle baby. We never thought we’d be lucky enough to have you, but here you are. Pretty like your dad and brilliant like your mom.”
I ducked my head. “Dad, stop.”
“We’re just proud of you. Your mom sure is, looking down on you. And I am, too, right here.”
My eyes welled up, so I quickly looked at the floor.
“You’re going to rule the world one day, Indiana,” he said. “I mean it.”
I sniffled a little. “I doubt that, Dad,” I said. “It’s hard being in the tech industry. In a lot of industries, actually. Bros promote bros. And then there’s me.” I let out a hollow laugh. “An outspoken, girl-type person who shops in the juniors’ department and doesn’t inspire confidence in employers.”
“You’re normal size,” he interjected. “We had you tested.”
“That’s not the point, Dad.”
“You’ve always worked so hard, Indiana. Way harder than you needed to. I wish you didn’t always feel like you had to prove yourself.”
“But I do!” I cried. “It never stops. And I’m exhausted.”
“Then take a breath and rest. You don’t need to meet everyone’s expectations all the time. Only your own. But besides that, I don’t see how you could not inspire confidence. You’re an absolute spitfire, and I wouldn’t change anything about you.”
“But you’re my dad. Let’s say you weren’t, though. Would you be mad if I deceived you?”
His eyes twinkled. “Deception is part of human nature. I don’t know anyone who hasn’t lied at some point. Including you. Who are you deceiving, Indiana?”
I blushed. “My boss. We haven’t met in person, and he thinks I’m Harrison Ford.”
His jaw dropped open. “You told your boss you’re a famous actor? That’s really, really inappropriate, Indiana.”
“No! I didn’t!” I protested. “I just…didn’t correct him. And besides, it’s your fault. You named me Indiana. So now he thinks I’m part of the boys’ club, and he’s coming to meet me in person, and I had to be tested when I was a kid to see if I had a growth disorder,” I pushed out all in one breath.
“So you’re worried you might fall a little…short…of his expectations.”
I humphed, and Dad lowered his head to examine Chuck the Duck, but I could tell he was trying not to laugh. “I knew when you were a baby thatIndianawas the only name big enough to suit you, no matter how tiny you were. Four pounds, six ounces. Can you believe it? Your mom disagreed at first—she wanted to name you Melanie—but we won her over. Every time she called you ‘Melanie,’ you cried. But you giggled every time I called you ‘Indiana.’”
I’d heard that story so many times, and I’d never believed a word of it.
“If your boss has any sense, he’ll realize he’s even luckier that you’re not—how did you put it?—in the boys’ club,” he said.
“But he won’t. That’s not the way it works, Dad. You know it isn’t.”
