Raener led a tame life, though he would have preferred madcap. How to change it? He sat on a curb to consider.
That was the moment Nora came up to him and said, “You are the father of my child.”
Raener had never met Nora, but didn’t deny her accusation. He had a bad habit of sleepwalking after overdoing the carbs. Who could say? Maybe she was right. Besides, here was the sliver of madcap he’d been hoping for.
Except that now a man—apparently Nora’s boyfriend—was examining Raener’s face for the most appropriate spot to place his fist. “Tame” began to regain its appeal.
Think fast. “What about the other two guys that night?” asked Raener. That surprised Nora. It surprised Raener to have said it. It surprised the boyfriend, who was so flummoxed that he, too, admitted to three amorous encounters in one night.
“So you have that in common,” said Raener.
“Except I didn’t get pregnant,” said the boyfriend.
“Me neither,” said Nora. Another surprise. “I’ve never met this guy before. I just said it because the evening was so dull.”
“It really was,” said the boyfriend. “Until then.”
The three then retired to a bar, where they discussed the things they all had in common. Hatred of early American style living room sets. Annoyance at groups of people who hogged sidewalks. Relief that the evening was not so tame after all.