On Rotation

by Shirlene Obuobi

No matter how much Tabs tried to empathize, for her, my romantic troubles just didn’t compute. Growing up, she’d been Baby Appiah 2.0, with most of my book smarts but none of my diffidence.

Her words slashed through me like a knife across my chest. It was like my own mother had sat back and listened to me speak, licked her fingers, and put my enthusiasm out like a flame. And she had done it so dispassionately, with the same regard that she crossed an item off a grocery list.

Many men had called me beautiful; no one had yet to reach deeper and tell me what they liked about me beyond that. And here was Ricky, going into detail, identifying what I liked most about myself and telling me he liked it too.

Shae has so many coworkers who have a partner but not a single close friend, and they’re all desperately lonely because of it.”

“You realize I don’t need you, right?” I interrupted, searching his face. “I’m going to be a doctor, and I’m turning out to be a pretty damn good one. I have the most amazing friends in the world. A nice place. Everything I could possibly need—”