Chapter One
Sophia
“You still haven’t figured out what you’re going to do after graduation, right?” asks my friend Ava. The two of us have just met up and we’re heading off campus for celebratory drinks. It’s our last day of college, and a beautiful day at that.
“Oh, come on,” I groan. “Can’t we just enjoy this moment?”
“Answer the question, Sophia,” she insists.
“The answer’s no,” I say. “I haven’t figured out what I’m going to do. Besides paint, I mean. But it’s not like that’s going to earn me any money.”
I knew when I declared my major in art that I was setting myself up for a difficult future. But there simply wasn’t anything else I was passionate about. I mean, I guess I could have picked a more practical but still artistic major, like industrial design, which is what Ava did. But I had to follow my heart.
“The reason I ask,” says Ava, “is because I have the perfect job for you.”
“Yeah? What job is that?”
“Mine. My nanny job. If you want it, it’s all yours.”
I look at her like she’s crazy. Me? Take her nanny job? Not only do I not have any experience babysitting kids, but I’m always at a loss about how to interact with them. Ava’s never had an opportunity to witness it herself, but I’ve told her how awkward I get. I told her all about it when she first started nannying part-time at the beginning of our junior year.
“Hear me out,” says Ava as we continue to walk. “Because I’m sure you’re already coming up with a million reasons why you can’t do it. But Penelope is a really sweet kid. She’s not difficult to look after at all. And her dad, Lucas, is super chill. He pays well, too.”
“Even if Iwasinterested,” I say. “Why would he hire me? I’ve never been a nanny before. I’ve never even babysat.”
“He’ll hire you because I already told him how awesome you are.”
“Ava!”
She smiles guiltily. “What? It’s true. Listen. When I told him I was moving after graduation and that he’d have to find someone new to watch Penelope, he asked if I could personally recommend anybody. And I couldn’t just say no.”
“So you recommended me,” I say, shaking my head.
“Will you at least think about it?” Ava pleads. “I really think you’d be good at it.”
“Fine. I’ll think about it.” I sigh. “What would the hours be?”
Ava grins. “Five days a week. Eight-to-five each day. You’d start in three weeks.”
“Three weeks from now? But you’re leavingnextweek.”
“Lucas and Penelope are on vacation for the next few weeks. He doesn’t need anybody to watch her until they get back.”
“He seriously didn’t figure all this out before leaving?”
“He’s a busy guy.”
I let out a long, slow breath. “Okay.”
Ava’s eyes brighten. “Okay as in…you’ll do it?”
“No. Okay as in I’ll think about it.”
By the end of the evening, though, Ava has gotten me to agree to give it a shot. She’s skillfully persuasive like that. The following morning, I get an email from Lucas: he introduces himself, thanks me for helping him out, proposes an hourly rate, and asks if I’m available to start on a certain day. The hourly rate is higher than I expect, and I get a warm vibe from his email. Oh, what the hell. I write back and tell him that everything sounds good.
Over the next several days, as I help Ava pack up her apartment, she tells me everything I need to know about looking after Penelope. Shedoessound like a pretty independent, easy kid, and my nerves are somewhat put at ease.
But the moment that Ava leaves—she’s moving to San Fransisco to start a design internship—my nerves come right back. And as the days pass, and my first day of nannying approaches, I really start doubting my decision. I even start thinking of ways I can back out of it—but every excuse I come up with seems so lame.