“Addy! Welcome to the slums,” she exclaims.
I roll my eyes.
“Oh please. We both know this isn’t the slums. That’s accounting.”
Jemima laughs.
“You have a point. I don’t understand how they can get anything done in the basement with no windows, too! There’s no air either. How do they even breathe?” But Jem doesn’t wait for me to finish. “So what brings you down to my neck of the woods? We haven’t seen you in a while.”
I nod and sit down gratefully at my old stool.
“I’m at a standstill when it comes to ideas. I needed to get out of the office for a second and just switch up the scenery.”
Jem looks sympathetic.
“How can I help?”
I bite my lip for a moment.
“Well, I need to not think about work right now.”
My friend immediately brightens.
“Girlie, you’re in luck because I have some gossip for you!”
This time it’s my turn to brighten. I forgot how much I need human contact, and even these few minutes have been beneficial.
“Gossip? What is it? Something juicy, I hope.”
But then Jem frowns.
“I don’t know, Ads. Should I be gossiping with you? You are the boss now.”
My shoulders slump.
“Come on, Jemima. I’m going crazy here. Do you have any idea how lonely it is sitting by myself in that office? I really miss our good times!”
Jem relents a little.
“Yeah, it must be hard. I know that’s not what I would want, and you were the social butterfly too, helping so many people all the time.”
I curl into myself even more.
“Exactly. Being in an office is torture, and to be honest, I’m thinking about moving back out here, but I’m not sure it’d work out.”
Jem tilts her head at me curiously.
“But why not?”
I bite my lip hesitantly.
“You don’t think my being here would stifle things? I don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable.”
Jem laughs.
“You could never make anyone uncomfortable, Addy. You sat with us for years! Yes, things have changed, but not that much. I think we all miss you down here, anyways.”
I nod happily.
“Good. I’ll think about it because I’ve missed you guys too. Now, you promised me some gossip.”
Jem grins devilishly.
“Oh, right! I went on a date last night.”
I roll my eyes because going on a date is not exactly news for my friend. She goes on a lot of dates, and runs through guys in New York like they’re water. Thankfully, nothing has changed.
“Okay, I’ll bite. How was it?”
Jem melts a bit, her eyes going dreamy.
“We met online. His profile pic was like, Leonardo di Caprio hot.”
I nod, impressed.
“Oh, damn. That’s hot.”
But then Jem squints.
“Yeah, but that’s the problem because this was no Leonardo. My date looked more like Jonah Hill in real life.”
I cringe.
“Ugh, sorry girlfriend. But do you mean current Jonah Hill or the old Jonah Hill? Because he’s been working out a lot the last couple of years.”
Jem shakes her head woefully.
“No, I mean Jonah Hill from Superbad. Complete with brown frizzy hair and a disturbed expression on his face.”
I have to laugh at that.
“Yikes. So what happened?”
Jem sighs.
“I stayed long enough for dinner because I didn’t want to be totally rude. But Jonah tried to get an invite into my apartment. Obviously, I turned him down and said goodnight. Then I called my friends with benefits for a hook-up instead.”
I laugh.
“At least you got a free meal out of it.”
But Jem is put out.
“But that’s not what I want! I don’t want free meals! I want a guy who actually looks like his pictures! Honestly, why do I bother trying to meet people online? They’re never as good as they seem on the app, and really, I should stick to meeting guys at bars like I used to.”
I grin.
“Didn’t you meet your friends with benefits online though?”
Jem sticks her tongue out at me.
“No, for your information, I actually met him in a bar. And he does not look like Jonah Hill. No FWB should because why would they be FWB if they did?”
Of course, I’ve never had a friends with benefits relationship, but Jem has a point.
“You’re right. Good thinking. And hey, the date may have sucked, but at least you got laid.”
Jem grins evilly.
“True. And Doug is really good in the sack.”
I sit up.
“But why don’t you date him then? He sounds like he has potential.”
Jemima rolls her eyes. “Doug definitely isn’t dating material because we just didn’t start off that way. Plus, he wears pants with palm trees on them, and I can’t be seen in public with someone dressed like that, even if underneath, he’s totally hung. Besides, I’m not exactly a one-man kind of girl either. I like playing the field. You’re only twenty-five once! Carpe diem!”
I shake my head.
“Carpe diem indeed. Just stay safe, girlfriend. You know there are a lot of crazies out there.”
She grins.
“I know, but so long as they don’t look like Jonah Hill, then I’m good with dating them. But what have you been up to? How’s your love life?”
I find myself blushing. It’s been torture not talking about Marcus with anyone, but that’s the way it is. Of course, my roommate knows, but that’s because I couldn’t keep it from Megan. She knows when I don’t come home to sleep, and lately, it’s been a lot. I’ve practically been living with Marcus, and it’s been heaven.
But at work, I’m very discreet.
“Oh, you know, the same,” I say vaguely.
Jemima eyes me curiously.
“What aren’t you telling me, Ads?”
“What do you mean?” my voice is about an octave too high because I’m terrible at lying. God, why did Jemima have to start asking me questions? It was much easier to talk about
