Under Suspicion

Fire and Air

“Fire and Air”

Scene:  The following morning, start of day-watch.

Earnest:  Man, I’m glad this stint’s almost over.  I’m looking forward to a couple days off.

Wry:  Yeah.

Earnest:  Tonight Eileen and I have a sitter lined up, so we’re going out for a nice, quiet dinner where we can relax and act like adults for a change, instead of parents.  And tomorrow we have absolutely nothing planned, no place we have to be, no play-dates or birthday parties or anything.  I’m looking forward to it.

Wry:  I’ll bet.

Earnest:  How about you?  You got anything planned?

Wry:  Not so sure, anymore.

Earnest:  What?  Why not?  Wait, didn’t you go out with Lauren last night?

Wry:  Oh, now you get her name right.

Earnest:  Well, better late than never.  So how’d it go?

Wry:  Don’t ask.

Earnest:  Why?  What happened?

Wry:  She asked me to go to a party with her.

Earnest:  (Looks over at Wry.)  The nerve of that woman!

Wry:  (Gives withering glare.)  The party is in Phoenix.  Her parents will be there.  And Doctor Delicious, the one she ran into the other night.  His parents are celebrating an anniversary or something, so there’s a big party planned.

Earnest:  And that’s what you argued about—going to the party?  Or maybe it was the doctor....

Wry:  (Shrugs.)  To tell you the truth, I’m not sure what we argued about.  The conversation was all over the place.

Earnest:  (Shakes head.)  Meeting the parents is kind of a big deal.  Especially when you have to travel out of town to do it.  You think she’s starting to get serious?

Wry:  I don’t know.  That’s a possibility, but the fact that this all happens right about the same time this doctor friend shows up...  seems like more than a coincidence.

Earnest:  So she’s either trying to move your relationship into deeper waters, or maybe trying to make the doctor jealous?

Wry:  (Shakes head.)  I don’t think she’s trying to make him jealous.  Until this week she hadn’t seen him in two years, so I don’t see how that would work.

Earnest:  Maybe she’s trying to make you jealous.

Wry:  I think she knows better than that.

Earnest:  So what happens now?

Wry:  (Shrugs.)  That’s up to her.

Earnest:  Will you go to Phoenix with her?  If the offer still stands?

Wry:  When she first asked, I admit, I panicked and stalled and didn’t answer right away.  She called me on it, and that’s what set her off.  But I’m not necessarily flat-out opposed to the idea.  I just want to know—for sure—why she asked me.  What’s her goal.