“What are you talking about?” I asked.
“Liam, we talked about leaving here so many times. It’s always been a dream of mine. I know we have the big city here but… Boston…”
I felt bad for Emily.
She looked rigid and uncomfortable.
“Miranda, what’s happening here?” I asked.
“Sorry. It’s a week-long conference. There’s a lot happening. But I’m planning on hanging around for a week after. Maybe more. I don’t know. I have a few meetings I’m taking. Possible job offers.”
“In Boston,” I said.
“Yeah,” she said. “I’m not taking anything, okay. I just want to explore options. I want to… see what it’s like there. That’s all. I thought we were going to do this together, Liam. Now, I get it. You have to stay here. That’s fine. And I know we agreed to get married here. Things are already in motion. So I’m not saying we’re not going to do that. I know you’re working on a lot at once on your own. This notebook… you and Emily… it all makes sense…”
“What makes sense?” Emily asked.
“I need your help, Emily,” Miranda said.
“Okay…”
“Okay? You’re in?” Miranda asked.
“I mean okay… as in, I’m listening…”
“Right,” Miranda said. “Sorry. There are some deadlines coming up for the wedding. Flowers. Food. Music. So many things I really have no… I don’t know. I’m not good at this. I’m not meant for it. But you have an artistic eye, Emily. Right? I remember you telling me how you used to sing. And I remember you getting drunk in college and singing. And you always wanted to go to the art museums. And you always liked flowers… you know?”
“Okay,” Emily said again. “What are you asking?”
“I’m asking you to help Liam while I’m gone,” Miranda said.
“What?” I asked.
Miranda looked at me. “I want you and Emily to plan our wedding together.”
I pushed from the counter. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m serious,” Miranda said. “Think about it. Emily is my best friend. Right? She knows everything about me. She knows everything about us, Liam. She introduced us. You two have been friends forever too. It’s perfect. And this way when the wedding comes, I don’t end up with cheeseburgers and half dead, discount flowers.”
I glanced at Emily.
She looked at me and looked away in a hurry.
“Miranda, I don’t understand,” I said. “We can wait until you get back.”
“What if we can’t?” she asked. “What if something happens in Boston and I get a job offer?”
“Then we deal with it,” I said. “Together.”
“No, Liam. I said we were going to get married here. I’m keeping to that. So if something happens, I want to be able to come back, handle my personal and professional life, get married, and move.”
“Wait a second,” I said. “You’re talking way too many steps ahead here.”
“Emily, can you back me up?” Miranda asked. “I suck at this stuff, right? Just be honest with me. Tell me I suck at it.”
Emily exhaled slowly. “Yeah. You suck at it. Flowers. Decorations. It’s not your thing.”
“Exactly,” Miranda said. “Look around the apartment. Look how boring this place looks. It’s like the waiting room where I work.”
“That’s true,” Emily said.
“And you know Liam, right? You can talk about the past with him. You know my past. We’ve been friends since college. I mean, this makes sense to me. Am I crazy?”
“You’re crazy,” I blurted out. “Sorry… but…”
Miranda looked at me again. “You’ve been doing so much on your own. I’m just trying to help. I’m in a tough position here, Liam. I can’t miss going to Boston. I don’t want to let you down with the wedding. You’ve been asking all these questions about our past…” Miranda shut the notebook. “What do I do then?”
Emily looked at me.
I looked at her.
She shrugged her shoulders.
“Are you sure about this?” I asked Emily.
She didn’t answer.
Miranda did.
“She’s sure of it,” Miranda said. “It gives you both something to do. Have fun at it. That way I get to go to this conference. I get to see what jobs are possibly out there. And I get to have my dream wedding without the work. No offense to you two.”
“None taken,” I said.
“Oh, and another thing,” Miranda said to Emily. “Do this and forget about that stuff we talked about. The papers? The extra money? I’ll cover it for you. I should have never brought it up.”
“Uh… right…”
“So what do you think?” Miranda asked.
“I think you two should keep talking,” Emily said. “Alone. I don’t want to be in the way. I think it’s… yeah, it’s a good idea… but you two need to make sure of it all…”
“Okay,” Miranda said. “Are you sure you don’t want to stay for something to eat?”
“No,” Emily said. “Liam’s had a rough day. You two need to talk.”
“You had a rough day?” Miranda asked me.
“Work,” I said. “Let me walk Emily to the door and then we’ll talk…”
Miranda’s phone started to ring.
She took the call and walked out of the kitchen.
I looked at Emily, she had already got up and was walking to the door.
I hurried after her and got to the door first.
I opened it slowly. “I’m sorry about that. I don’t know what she’s thinking right now.”
“She always had crazy ideas,” Emily said. “You two should talk about it.”
“We will. I had no idea that was coming.”
“It’s okay,” Emily said. “I’m used to it.”
She smiled. For a quick second.
Emily was halfway down the hallway when I stepped out of the apartment.
“Hey,” I called out.
Emily looked back.
“Steve wanted to hook up with Meghan,” I said, finishing my story from earlier. “So he wanted to build a fire and tell ghost stories. So he could scare her then comfort her. I told him he was building the first too close to the tent. That’s how the tent caught on fire.”
Emily shook her head. “All that for nothing.”
“You know what a guy will do to get the attention of someone he likes.”
“Have a good night, Liam,” Emily said.
“You too…”
She disappeared and
