She pulls me in for a tight hug, squeezing me around the shoulders. After returning her hug, I pull away, looking around at the near-empty street. This intersection isn’t as busy as the streets closer to Logan’s restaurant. Vacant warehouses and office buildings line the street, the occasional small café peppered between them. A total of two people walk past us in the time Abby and I stand at the curb.
“What are we doing down here?” I ask her.
“Come on.” She grabs my hand, pulling me down the sidewalk. “I have something I want to show you.”
Abby drags me along a few of the vacant office buildings before halting us to a complete stop.
She raises her arms, showing me the building in front of us. “Ta-da!” she announces. “What do you think?”
The building in front of us is completely empty and the windows are fogged over. An old sign hangs above the front door, the words almost impossible to read. I think I make out the word ‘travel’ something. The inside of the building appears to be covered in a thin film of dust. A poster with a picture of an airplane flying over a tropical island hangs off the wall. Old travel brochures lay scattered across the floor and tops of desks.
“Um,” I take a few steps forward up to the dusty old window, peering inside. “What is it?” I close my hands around my eyes, pressing them against the glass to get a better look. The entire floor is matted old carpet, portions ripped, exposing the damp concrete underneath. In the back corner is an old computer, most likely straight out of 1995. The space is filled with old metal desks and wooden chairs.
“It’s my new office,” Abby says. “I bought it earlier today.”
I step away from the glass and turn toward Abby wide eyed. “Really?”
“Yes. Do you like it?” Her eyebrows arch onto her forehead as she stares at me hopefully.
“I mean...” I shrug, spinning back around to look through the window again. “It needs a bit of work, but I think it’ll be a great spot for your business once it’s fixed up.”
“Let’s take a look inside.” Abby reaches inside her bag and pulls out a set of keys. She unlocks the front door and as soon as she pulls it open, it hits me.
“Wow.” I wave my hand in front of my face. “It’s pretty musty in here.”
“It is.” Abby keeps walking farther into the space, seemingly unfazed by the smell. She leaves me by the door. With the way this place smells, I think it’s best if I keep myself near the closest exit. To be honest, this room gives me the chills. I can’t explain it. Dust particles float through the air, the small amount of light filtering through the dark windows highlighting them as they swirl in front of me.
Abby stands near the side wall, fanning her arms out. “I’m thinking I could put my desk over here.” She turns around, pointing to the wall. “And my logo could hang up here. What do you think?”
I look around the room, trying to imagine what it’ll look like when it’s fully operational. I peek my head around to get a better view of the entire space. There’s a small dark hallway leading to a back door, beside it is a small window. The window is covered in dust as well.
“I think it’ll be great.” I walk closer to where Abby is standing. To my right is an old wooden desk chair. I swipe my finger across the top, a thick film of dirt coating my finger. “Once you bring it into the twenty-first century.” I smirk at Abby, hoping she won’t be offended by my humor.
She laughs under her breath, walking toward the chair. She takes a seat and crosses her legs. The wood creaks as she sits back against it, shifting the old, stubborn wood. “What?” she asks me. “You don’t like it?”
I lift my leg and tap the seat of the chair with the tip of my shoe. Abby spins, the creaking wood echoing in the open space. The sound lingers and the chills I’d felt when I first walked in, reappear, prickling down the back of my neck. Abby spins completely around, using her feet to stop herself in front of me.
“I think this place is perfect.” Her violet eyes shine against the darkened room.
My phone dings in my pocket and when I pull it out, I read a text from Logan asking if I’d met with Abby yet.
I look up from my phone. “Hey, want to grab some lunch at Logan’s restaurant?” I point to my right. “It’s actually just a few blocks that way.”
Abby’s smile fades. She stands up and shrugs. “Sure.” The sigh that follows her agreement doesn’t go unnoticed.
“We don’t have to if you don’t want to. I just figured we were close by and Logan offered.”
“No, that’s okay.” Abby grabs her bag. “We can go.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course.” Abby hooks her arm in mine. “Logan said he’d treat me to lunch. Let’s see if he can stick to his word.”
My stomach twists with an ache I can’t explain. Something in Abby’s statement brings me back to what happened the other night with Logan and his mention of Natalie.
We leave the building and walk the three blocks to Bistro 59. As we get closer to the restaurant, the streets quickly begin to fill. It’s like night and day between the several blocks. Odd how just a few yards back lies a ghost town, a near-empty version of the bustling city everyone seems to know.
Once we make it to the restaurant, I swing open the front door, letting Abby in first. Hushed piano music plays overhead and the sound of quiet chatter follows suit. I didn’t tell Logan we were coming to the restaurant, only that I’d met up with Abby. I’d wanted to surprise him, hoping to keep the slow momentum we were
