He grunted, “I’m beginning to think this was all a ruse, Master of Water Blisters.”

I nudged his shoulder with mine as another wave of chills started, which didn’t go unnoticed by him. “Go to the car and I’ll bring it.”

“Thanks.”

Within minutes, we were enjoying a giant colorful shave ice surrounded by the cool comfort of the car’s AC, and blessed by sidewalk awning shade. I was feeling 80 percent better and giddy.

Sunny took tentative bites, his lips puckering at the sweet and tart li hing mui.

“Dried plum powder,” I explained. “Get down to the ice cream. You’ll never be the same.”

I watched with great interest as Sunny shoveled through the layers of shave ice and syrup to hit a jackpot of purple ice cream. He examined it the way he examined pixels on a prototype. When he took that first bite, his face went from curious to alive.

“Good, right?”

“What is this masterpiece?” Sunny shoved aside the ice and dug out the ice cream. He could’ve just ordered a scoop of ice cream.

“It’s ube, bey-bey,” I said in a singsong voice, unable to help it, because in my head, I was singing to the tune of Salt-N-Pepa’s “Push It” hookline that went, “Ooh, baby, baby.” But of course as, “Ube, bebebaby…”

I explained, “It’s purple yam from the Philippines. Used in a lot of desserts. Life-changing, right?”

“Damn, Bane. You’re passing on your addiction.”

I grinned. Because even ube couldn’t negate that stupid nickname he had for me.

Sixteen Sunny

Bane was giggling like a kid eating the rest of her melted shave ice. She offered the last drops to me, but I let her drink them. Her lips were plump and red from the icy treat, her tongue equally red when she stuck it out.

I didn’t know why, but I wasn’t particularly interested in getting back to the group or even to the villa.

“You ready to go?” Bane asked, licking her lips. I wondered if they tasted sweet, if they tasted like cherry syrup and ube ice cream. If her tongue was cold like the ice she’d just consumed.

I cleared my throat. “Whenever you’re ready. Do you want to go to the villa or…a hospital? Although they’d probably wonder why you had time to stop for shave ice.”

“No one wonders that.”

“Hmm. Tell me where to go.”

“We have to pick up your friends anyway, right? They can’t all fit into the other car.”

“Sure they can.”

Bane twisted in her seat. “Why don’t you want to spend time with your friends?”

Could it be being surrounded by happy couples, including my ex? Seeing Sejal reminded me of how perfectly she fit into my family. And how crushed I was knowing that my parents still talked to her, called her, chatted with her about everything. Although she hadn’t gotten into details with them the way she had with her friends, I’d never felt so abandoned. All I’d heard for months from my parents was why not her? Why couldn’t I make it work? Why couldn’t I do better? Why had I ruined things?

It was never her fault. Always mine, and always mine to amend.

It made seeing my parents hard when all I wanted was for them to be happy.

The smart thing would be to say something. Tell my parents the truth and how things would never work out with her, how them bringing her up every conversation killed me a little each time. But therein lay the initial problem that had triggered Sejal. I didn’t speak. I let things float away because I couldn’t figure out how to express my emotions. But if I couldn’t chat freely with my own parents, then how could I do so with anyone else?

Speaking of which, I checked my phone out of habit. No updates on Papa.

“Why are you always on the phone?” Bane cut through my thoughts. “Can’t be work. They don’t call me.”

“You sound offended.”

“That you’re always on the phone or that work doesn’t call me?”

“Well, it’s you…so the latter.”

She shivered and for a second I panicked, thinking her heat exhaustion had returned, when she turned the vents toward me and crossed her arms.

“Are you cold now?”

“You’re not?”

I turned the AC down from full blast. “I was freezing, but you needed it.”

“Aw, you do care about me.”

“It’s more about how to dispose of your body in the case of your demise…”

She faced forward again. “Fine. Don’t tell me about the text slash call that you’re waiting for, or why you don’t want to be around your friends, or your breakup. I get it. We’re not friends.”

It wasn’t that. It was me. It really was; just ask Sejal.

I pulled out of the parking lot, remembering the two turns it took to get here along long stretches of highways, and returned to pick up half the group.

After Aamar and Maya slid into the back seat, since I was not allowing anyone to displace Bane, we headed to the monument.

“Are you feeling okay?” Maya asked, clearly worried.

“Yes, thank you. Much better,” Bane replied.

She explained heat exhaustion to them and how imperative it was to always carry water.

I pulled into one of many empty parking spots and touched the scorching dashboard. I looked at Bane and silently asked if she was okay to go out in this blistering heat with one rise of my brows.

She shook her head. “You go ahead. I’ll sit under a tree at Spencer Beach, right there.”

She cocked her chin at the bottom of the parking lot where it curved into a different parking lot leading to a small beach with plenty of shade.

“Are you sure?” Maya asked from the back seat. “We don’t want you to feel like we’re ditching you.”

Bane laughed. “No, it’s fine. I’ve been here plenty of times and I don’t want to slow you down or worry anyone. But it will be hot. I don’t remember there being any trees, so be careful.”