The Silver Linings Playbook Chapter 8

The Dress-up DinnerRonnie finally comes to get wind me in my basement and says, Im on my means home, so I still establish a few minutes.As I finish my set of bench presses, I smirk because I know what that arguing means. Veronica does non know he has come to see me, and Ronnie needs to obligate it quick if he does not postulate to get caught doing something with come in Veronicas permission something give care say hello to his best friend, whom he has not seen for a long prison term.When I depend on up, he says, What happened to your face?I connect my forehead. My hands slipped yesterday, and I dropped the bar on myself.And it made your cheek all orotund like that?I shrug because I do not really requirement to tell him my father punched me.Man, you really beat trimmed down and bulked up. I like your gym, he says, eyeballing my weight bench and suffer Master 6000, and thus he sticks out his hand. Think I could come everyplace and work out with you?I stand, reel h is hand, and say, Sure, knowing the question is only all the same another bingle of Ronnies false promises.Listen, Im lamentable I never came to see you when you were in Baltimore, but we had Emily, and well, you know how it is. But I felt like the letters kept us close. And now that youre home, we can bent grass out all the time, right?As if , I start to say, but then bite my tongue.As if what?Nothing.You still view Veronica hates you?I keep my communicate shut.He smiles and says, Well, if she hated you, would she be inviting you over for dinner tomorrow night?I look at Ronnie, trying to sess whether he is serious or not.Veronicas devising a big meal to delicious you home. So are you coming, or what?Sure, I say, still not believing my ears, because Ronnies promises ordinarily do not come with particular proposition words like tomorrow attached.Great. Be at my house at sevener oclock for drinks. Dinners at eight, and its going to be one of the wifes formal candlelit th ree-course meals, so wear something nice, authorize? You know how Veronica is around her dress-up dinners, he says, and then hugs sweaty me, which I tolerate only because I am so surprise by Veronicas invitation. With a hand on my shoulder, Ronnie looks me in the eye and says, Man, its good to scram you home, Pat.As I watch him determine up the stairs, I think about how much trash Nikki and I would blab about Ronnie and Veronica if apart time were over and Nikki was going to the dress-up dinner with me.Dress-up dinner, Nikki would say. are we in elementary school?God, Nikki hates Veronica.