Out on a Limb

Sarah and Win chat while Sarah helps Win close the café. Win is cautious about Bo, recalling that Jack hid his ugly side at first. Sarah suggests that Win invite Bo to their game night so that they can get better acquainted. Win wants her relationship with Bo to remain uncomplicated by sex. Sarah wonders if the baby might have a little hand, too, and Win decides that while that wouldn’t be a bad thing, she’ll wait until they know more.

Win reflects on how, while she has a trusted position at the café, she declined a promotion to assistant manager since she keeps thinking she won’t stick around. Dressed warmly against the winter cold, she spots Bo in the lobby of the clinic and thinks he looks very put-together in comparison to her bulky layers. He makes a joke about her baby bump and then takes a photo of the two of them. Win climbs the stairs quickly and then modifies her pace to match Bo’s, feeling insensitive.

The other woman in the waiting room seems very smug about her pregnancy, and Win privately nicknames her “Fertile Myrtle.” When the woman asks about Win’s pregnancy, Win pretends that Bo is a random stranger she just met, and he plays along. When she sees the image of the fetus on the screen, Win feels amazed and honored.

The baby is active, and the ultrasound technician cheerfully says that Win will have her hands full with this one. Win thinks, “Hands are kinda the issue here, lady” (94). Hearing the baby’s heartbeat affects both Bo and Win. Win invites Bo to Sarah and Caleb’s, and he agrees that it would be a good idea for them to get to know one another. They decide that they will be friends in this endeavor and banter about competitive friending.

Win and Sarah wonder how Bo is winning at their game of Catan. Caleb and then Bo join them in the kitchen. Win accuses him of using “some sort of sexy Jedi-mind-trick shit” (100). Sarah suggests playing strip poker, but Win declines. Sarah presents Bo and Win with a basket of gifts. Included is a set of cards called “Twenty Questions to Fall in Love” (102). Sarah tells Bo to ask his mother about him as a baby, and Bo reveals that his mother died when he was young. He laughs when he discovers that one of the presents is a vibrator. They divide the gifts in the basket. Bo claims the book for fathers-to-be and a T-shirt that says “Call Me Daddy.” He makes a larger pile for Win, saying that she’s doing all the work. Win feels the nausea return and runs to the bathroom.

Sarah, who admits that she isn’t good with illness, sends Bo into the bathroom to tend to Win. He carries her things to the car and then drives her home. As Win begins her mental calculations about how to carry everything, Bo insists on helping until Win recalls the broken elevator. She acknowledges that his ability to access her residence will be important. Bo says that he wants to spend time with the baby, too, and suggests that she move into his spare bedroom. Win is cautious, remembering how Jack behaved when they lived together. He criticized and shouted at Win even when she paid most of their bills. Bo wants to help with the pregnancy and newborn stages, and Win agrees to consider his offer.

Sarah and Caleb arrive to help Win move. Sarah, while helping box up Win’s plants, references having another set of hands and suggests that Bo could be the Marcie to Win’s June. When Win worries, Sarah encourages her to think of the worst-case scenario, which Win realizes isn’t likely to happen. Bo has been approachable, friendly, funny, and sweet.

Bo’s house is appealing and tidy and prompts both Caleb and Sarah to make a joke referencing Snow White. Win is curious about Bo’s collection of vinyl records and delighted that the refrigerator has an ice dispenser. She sees that Bo has cleared out a smaller room that could be the baby’s nursery.

Sarah and Caleb explore Bo’s bedroom, and Win sees his collection of comic books. Caleb finds a knight’s armor and rope in Bo’s closet. Sarah finds a new, unwrapped package of condoms, but Win insists that she is not planning on having sex with Bo. In the bathroom, which Win observes does not have a bathtub, Sarah and Win reflect on how they grew up sharing a mirror. Win recalls being impatient to grow up and live her own life but reflects, “[T]hat never really happened. I just got older. And now look at me. Nothing to show for it” (133).

Win unpacks, makes herself at home, and then calls to tell her mother that she is pregnant. June asks about the father, not about how Win is feeling. June recalls consuming root beer and pretzels during her pregnancy, and Win jokingly asks if that’s how she got her hand. Her mother tells Win that raising a child is scary and wonderful on endless repeat. June says that she’ll talk to her boyfriend about whether he will let her come visit Win. Win hides her hurt that her mother’s many boyfriends always seem to matter more than Win does. Win collects the mail, noting the name Robert Durand. She gets drawn into reading Bo’s comic books.