David pointed at his chest. “Me? It’s been a while. I—um—”
“Becoming a teenager,” Bridget chimed in happily, “is a new beginning.”
“That’s right,” Nora said, adding to Bridget’s insightfulness. “It’s a time of hope and optimism as you begin to envision your future and all the possibilities.”
“Well, I don’t know about all that,” Hailey said, “but girls will start to notice you, so you might want to rethink your wardrobe.”
“Hey,” Nora said, offended by the remark, since she was the one who picked out his clothes. “What’s wrong with his wardrobe?”
“A sweater instead of a hoodie, for starters,” Bridget said.
That sounded reasonable.
“A white T-shirt with an untucked chambray would be nice.” Hailey looked at Nora. “Maybe we should go shopping this weekend.”
David looked over at Nora and winked. He was no help at all.
“I’ll think about it,” Nora said.
After they ate pizza, sang “Happy Birthday,” and ate some cake, Hailey brought Trevor his presents. He opened Bridget’s first. It was a black T-shirt with the word DIFFERENT written in a white font, followed by the definition: NOT THE SAME AS ANOTHER OR EACH OTHER; DISTINCT, INDEPENDENT.
Trevor stuffed the shirt back into the decorative paper bag it had come in and said, “Thanks.”
Bridget smiled at him. “You’re welcome.”
Hailey handed Trevor a small box wrapped in comics from the newspaper David still had delivered on Sundays. “Here,” she said. “This is from me.”
Although one arm was in a sling, he was still able to use his fingers. Trevor ripped it open and pulled out a leather necklace that had a hand-carved wooden turtle dangling from it.
“The turtle represents the Hawaiian green sea turtle, the only indigenous reptile found in Hawaii. It’s a symbol of good luck.” Hailey paused in thought, as if trying to remember what she’d memorized. “Aumakua. It’s a form of a guardian spirit.” She gazed upward before saying, “I wish I had given it to you early. Maybe then you wouldn’t be wearing a sling.”
“Thanks,” Trevor said as he used his good arm to slide the leather necklace over his head. “How does it look?”
“Super cool,” Bridget told him.
The last present was from David and Nora. As Trevor opened their gift, Nora thought of how lucky they were to have two great kids. They got along well. She’d heard stories from coworkers and friends about how their kids fought over every little thing.
Trevor opened the box, which was the size of a standard shirt box, and pulled out a manual.
Hailey wrinkled her nose. “You gave him paper for his birthday?”
“Read it,” David told Trevor.
Trevor eagerly flipped through ten pages of pictures and information about the compatible components he would need to assemble his own computer. As far as she and David were concerned, Trevor was a computer expert. He wanted to become a qualified computer specialist, and he was always talking about how he wanted to build his own computer.
Now he would have a chance to do just that. Nora and David figured it might challenge their son and hopefully teach him some valuable skills, too.
“What is it?” Hailey asked.
Trevor’s eyes grew wide with excitement, which was a huge relief to Nora. It was the first time since the incident that her son had shown any real emotion. It made her happy to see him smiling again.
“I get to shop online for all the components needed to build my own PC,” Trevor told Hailey.
Hailey rolled her eyes. “You’re such a nerd.”
Trevor grabbed hold of the turtle pendant hanging from his neck and said, “A lucky nerd.”
She laughed. They all did.
“Thanks, everyone,” Trevor said. “This is the best birthday ever.” He looked at Nora, papers in his grasp. “Can I go to my room and start looking for the parts now?”
David stood, too. “It’s your birthday. Of course you can.”
After the table was cleared, Hailey and Bridget disappeared upstairs, leaving Nora and David alone.
“Listen to that,” Nora said.
David stopped what he was doing and stood perfectly still. “What? I don’t hear anything.”
“Exactly. It’s called peace and quiet.”
David smiled. “Glass of wine?”
“Absolutely.” She went to the cupboard to grab two wineglasses while David opened a bottle of Cabernet. “Did you see the excitement on Trevor’s face when he opened his gift?”
“I did. He looked happy. I told you everything would be fine. He just needed time.” David rummaged through the drawer for a corkscrew to open the bottle. “So, have you made up your mind? Are we still on for dinner tomorrow night with the mysterious Jane Bell?”
Nora nodded. “We’re still on.”
Nora had thought a lot about someday breaking the metaphoric “glass ceiling,” believing if she climbed to the top, she could strategize to improve opportunities for women in the workplace.
But she wasn’t there yet.
And the problem was, ever since Trevor’s pool incident, work had begun to lose its appeal. Some days, she wondered if she’d lost her drive, her passion for eagerly climbing the corporate ladder. And she wasn’t sure taking on a new job was the answer. Why rock the boat when she and David were doing well? They had a nice home, a retirement account, and money saved for the kids’ college. They took a family vacation every year. Life was good, and for that reason, she had told Jane when she’d called the first time, she appreciated the offer but wasn’t interested.
One week later, Jane had called again. She gave Nora a quick spiel about her thoughts on transparency in the workplace and her dislike of seemingly useless policies. This time, she asked Nora to meet her for dinner at the Red Fox. “Bring your husband,” she’d said. “I’d love to meet you both to chat some more about the job offer. That way, you’ll have the rest of the weekend to talk things over.”
“And if I say no a second time?” Nora asked, imagining a lifetime of weekly calls from Jane Bell.
“Once we’ve met,” Jane said, “if I still haven’t convinced you, then you’ll never hear from me again.” There was a pause before Jane added, “I promise.”
Nora thought it odd that Jane had invited her husband to join them for dinner, but perhaps Jane believed that would make Nora more apt to say yes to dinner. The truth was, Nora was finding it difficult to believe she was considering saying yes to meeting with Jane at all. She’d already spent more than enough time thinking over the pros and cons and talking to David about whether she should risk giving up a job she’d worked so hard for, a job that hadn’t turned out to be everything she’d hoped but one that continued to serve her family well. Despite everything, in a flash of impulsivity, she had decided she was curious enough about Jane Bell’s offer to meet the woman in person. After meeting with Jane, if she still couldn’t be convinced, at least she would have no regrets knowing she had taken the offer seriously.
Trevor closed the door to his room, something he rarely did, since he was afraid of everything, including being confined in a small room with the door closed. He was thirteen . . . a teenager, and he felt like a five-year-old inside. He knew he was smart, at least when it came to computer stuff. But he wondered if he’d ever stop thinking about how claustrophobic he’d felt while being held underwater. It didn’t take much to bring him right back to the moment he had been suffocating.