“Alice, I’m not so sure this is a good idea.”

“Tina, you don’t think any of my ideas are good. But you know that not all of them are bad. Law of averages.”

Tina snickered. “Right, right. The thing is, I can’t remember the last good idea of yours, or the last successful blind date I’ve been on. So combining the two understandably gives me pause.”

“Tina, I’m your friend. You trust me, right? I know your likes, dislikes, and everything in between. I get you.”

Tina felt her eyelids going to half-mast. “Uh huh.”

“And I want what’s best for you. I’m not going to set you up with a loser.”

Tina sipped at her iced coffee as she and Alice ambled down the sidewalk and considered this briefly. “The problem, Alice, is that you don’t think anyone is a loser. You’re always looking for the good in people, looking at the bright side of every situation -”

“Exactly! And who better to get you out of the rut you’ve been in than me? I’ve been where you’ve been. You’ve seen me through a bunch of bad break-ups…”

“Don’t compare your flings to my nine years with Bette, Alice.”

“I’m not,” Alice protested. “But I’ve been through every facet of a break-up. I know the stages. You’re in stage five, you’ve become embittered toward love and romance.”

Tina snorted.”Sounds like a terminal case.”

Ignoring her, Alice went on. “And the only cure for that bitterness is to start dating again and see that there are plenty of fish in the sea and true love hasn’t left you forever.”

Tina rolled her eyes at Alice’s dramatic flourish, but she had to admit that she was feeling bitter. She had thought that this time, everything with Bette would be perfect. Well maybe not perfect, but she’d thought they were in a place where they were past petty squabbles that turned into full-blown fights, complete with throwing up the past, distrust, and all the ugliness that went with it. Tina didn’t deny her part in the fracturing of their relationship. It just seemed that they couldn’t agree on anything, big or small. Irreconcilable differences, is what they called it in divorce proceedings. She and Bette weren’t at that point yet, though. Tina had taken Angie and left once she and Bette had agreed that the negative energy and constant fighting were having an affect on Angie and neither of them wanted that. They had worked out a visitation schedule, and they were calling it a trial separation. Tina had lost hope as the months dragged on that the “trial” was going to become permanent.