When peer pressure pushes Lenny to try out a new dating app, she starts to realize that the past may not always define the future.
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Lenny Harlow wants a lot of things, but a boyfriend isn't...
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"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT," I said into my phone. I was on the phone with Talia, and I was starting to get more than a little ticked off. "I get that you think you're a million times more intelligent than I am, but this is a partnered project. I'm not writing a report on something I had no part in. My ideas are good; you just need to get off your high horse."
She scoffed. I pictured her twirling a braid. "Lenny, all I'm saying is; we don't have nearly enough experimental basis to source. How the fuck is anyone supposed to understand how the human body works? Not everything is meant to be figured out. Not everything has an explanation. Let it go. We'll do something else."
"You know anatomy exists for a reason, right?"
"And you know that doesn't explain shit, right?"
For the next three seconds, I shut my eyes. I could hear her breathing, waiting for me to say something only for her to counter it immediately. I took a deep breath, inhaling all that wonderful polluted air. "Can we discuss this later, with Professor Chantrea?"
Talia clicked her tongue. "So we just leave it for the rest of the week?"
"If you can manage to tear your eyes away for a few days, then yes, Atalia. That's the plan." I marched up the Odinox family's wooden steps onto their front porch. Unlike us, they had a welcome mat, a doorbell, and a doggy door. I rang the doorbell. "You need a break."
She let out a sigh. "Bye, Lenny."
I shoved my phone in my back pocket and took off my shoes. Welcome mats usually stood to mean no shoes in the house. I also didn't know about wearing shoes around Kaylee.
The door opened to reveal a boy that looked to be twelve at most, and bore no resemblance to Nash. He frowned at me for a good minute, squinting both eyes, looking me up and down and up again ... "Are you Lenny?"
At least I didn't have the wrong address. What were the odds of two different Lennys being scheduled for dinner at two different houses at the same time? Like...zero, probably.
"Yes, and you are?"
"Jonah." He ducked back inside. "Well, my mom's in the kitchen with Odin, and I'm not supposed to let strangers in..."
"You're not supposed to tell strangers your name, either, J," said the voice I'd come to recognize as Kaylee's. Jonah rolled his eyes and beckoned for me to come in. I pushed my shoes to the side with the others, a pair of yellow sneakers and a beat up black converse, and followed him in.
The living room walls were lined with family photos, single person photos, photos of Darius, photos of Darius with Kaylee... but the ones which demanded the most attention were the family photos. Most of them were old; I could tell for two reasons. 1. Because a woman who was clearly their mother was present, and 2. Because they both looked way younger than they currently were, if Kaylee's missing front teeth were anything to go by.
