Free Dumping Billy by Olivia Goldsmith Page B

“How can I help?”
    “Short of teaching Michael to deal with human feelings and finding Jack and slapping some sense into him, I don’t think there’s much you can do,” Kate told him.
    “Yeah, I told you Michael was a dud. What went on between you two in the hall? I’ll bet he got a pounding.”
    Kate thought of Michael’s face before the elevator door closed and chose to change the subject. She spilled some coffee as she moved her mug to the counter beside the refrigerator. “I don’t think there’s much anyone can do, but I’m taking a sick day.”
    “Maybe you should call it a mental health day,” Elliot said. “Except for once this one isn’t about you. Do you want me to take the day off, too? The kids have standardized testing most of the day. I can keep you company and help with Bina.”
    “Forget it. I know you’re just afraid you’re going to get my cafeteria duty,” she joked. “Anyway, you had your first and last dose of the Bitches of Bushwick. It ought to be enough Brooklyn to last a lifetime.” Before he could protest, she added, “I have to go. She’s waking up.”
    “I’ll call you later,” she heard him say as she put the phone down.
    She quickly poured a glass of club soda—her favorite remedy for the dehydration of a hangover—and walked from her kitchenette into the living room with her mug in one hand and the drinking glass in the other. Bina groaned, put a hand to her forehead, and then opened her eyes, which she closed again quickly. “Oh, my God,” she said, and Kate wasn’t sure if it was a reaction to the light or a remembrance of things past. She groaned again.
    “It’s okay, Bina, drink this.” Kate held the glass in front of her friend, and Bina squinted at it.
    “What is it?” she croaked.
    “Well, it’s not vodka,” Kate told her. “Come on, sit up and take your medicine.”
    Bina did as she was told, took the glass, drank three or four big gulps, and then began to choke. She put the glass on Kate’s coffee table, and Kate moved it onto a coaster before she went to Bina’s side. “Omigod,” Bina repeated. And Kate knew that this time she had remembered Jack and the night before. Bina looked up at her. “Oh, Kate. What am I going to do?”
    Kate sat in the wicker chair and reached for her friend’s hand. “Bina,” she said, “what happened last night?”
    “You were right about the French manicure,” Bina said. She shook her head, and Kate could see the physical pain register on her face. She went back to the kitchen and brought her three Tylenols and a couple of vitamin Cs.
    “Here,” she said, thrusting them into Bina’s hand. “Take these. You’ll feel better.” She left Bina again and went back into the kitchen, where she took out her emergency stash of saltines. Bina had just downed the last pill when Kate returned. She didn’t want them all to lie there on an empty stomach, so she handed Bina a saltine. “Eat it,” she said.
    “Oh, please,” Bina responded in a world-weary voice.
    “Eat it,” Kate commanded, “and now tell me what happened last night.” She watched as Bina made an entire meal of the saltine, taking many tiny bites and washing them down with the club soda. The moment she was finished, Kate handed her another saltine and refilled her glass. “Good girl,” she said. “So what happened?”
    Bina lay back among the cushions and put a hand across her forehead. This time the tears were silent. Kate rose, went to her bedroom, and came back with a box of tissues. Wordlessly, she handed one to Bina, who mopped at her eyes and began to talk in an unsteady voice. “You know that I was meeting him at Nobu, and I was excited because it’s one of the kinds of places you go to.”
    Kate almost smiled. Nobu was one of the most expensive, stylish Asian restaurants in the city, and she couldn’t afford to eat there even on her birthday.
    “Anyway, the place was beautiful, and when I walked past the bar I could see that