Page 140 of Error Handling

“Hey,” Christopher says.

“Are you the one who pinged me?”

Christopher holds up his hands. “Guilty.”

I stop several feet away from him and stuff my hands in my pockets. Probably not the best move if he plans to throw punches, but he’s not giving that vibe. I think I’m safe.

“I thought you had to have a membership to make house calls,” I say.

“You do. I paid for the six-month plan. I’m a landlord now, I guess.”

“You paid that much just to contact me?”

Christopher widens his stance and rubs his hands together. “Yes.”

“She’s yours if you want her,” I say. I don’t mean it. I want to hear his response.

“No, she’s not, man,” Christopher says. “That’s why I came to talk to you.”

I shoot him a confused look.

Christopher pulls out his phone and waves me over. “She sent me this yesterday.”

I lean in and squint at his phone. When he realizes I’m glued to my spot, he hands me the phone and I read.

Chris saw your texts and walked out on me. I’m sorry, but you and I can’t talk anymore. Please don’t try to contact me. Don’t send any texts. I’ll find another photographer for my senior exhibit.

I read it several times, swipe right to look at the date. It looks legit. I don’t know why it wouldn’t be. Why would they both go through this amount of effort to trick me into thinking nothing is going on?

“She’s into you,” Christopher says. “I just want to make sure you know that. I knew she wanted you the moment she looked at you in her flooded kitchen. Her eyes told me. But I’m stubborn. So, I kept trying. But I’m done. When a woman tells me to back off, I back off. You don’t have to worry about me trying to contact her.”

I hand Christopher his phone and take a moment to digest his words. He seems sincere.

Allison always seemed sincere.

This isn’t about Allison.

But it is. My trust issues. My reluctance to date again. My fear that another woman will cheat on me. Reject me.

Dad was right.

“Why did you go through such trouble to talk to me?” I ask.

“Why do you think?”

I shrug.

“Sarah’s special. You two have a connection. I don’t want to be the one to ruin it.”

“You still have feelings for her.”

Christopher looks up at the arching oak branches. “Of course I do. But she doesn’t want me. She wants you. And I want her to be happy.” He meets my eyes again. “I wish you and I could be friends, but obviously that won’t work. So, I’m done here.” He rubs his palms together like he’s washing his hands of the situation, then pockets his phone and offers me his right hand.

“You fought honorably,” he says.

I stare at his hand. “I didn’t realize it was a fight.”

“For you, I guess it wasn’t. You had her at hello.”