The Employee (Girl x Girl)

4

I had picked up a tub of ice-cream on my way home. Now I cradled it in my lap which was insulated from the cold by a throw as I watched old episodes of Law and Order. It had been my favourite show for years and watching it now and again brought a soothing nostalgia that kept the tears at bay. It made no sense to be so hurt over someone I barely knew, but knowing that didn't make it hurt any less. I would probably never see Kristen again.

Half way into my third episode and three quarters of the way down the tub of ice-cream, I heard a knock at the door of my apartment. I wanted so badly to ignore it, but I knew whoever was on the other side would have heard the TV and would know I was home.

I stood from the sofa with a groan and went to the door. As I walked I tried to perk myself up, seem less affected in case it was Alice. I didn't want her to see me pining over a girl I had known for all of about two seconds. Although my pyjamas would likely give the game away even if my face somehow didn't.

But it wasn't Alice. It was Kristen. And as soon as I saw her my heart was going double time, hope blooming slowly, the darkness of despair dissipating. I think I might have been grinning because my cheeks started to hurt and she was laughing at me. And then she was kissing me, nudging me into the apartment and closing the door behind us.

We stood there and held each other for a very long time. And then she pulled away and looked in the direction of the TV, saw the throw and the ice-cream and then looked down at my pyjamas.

"I can't believe you really thought you could pretend you didn't want me."

I laughed. "I wasn't doing a very good job, was I?"

"Absolutely not."

She kissed me again and we snuggled on the couch and watched law and order together for the rest of the evening.

I got a call from Alice later. She wanted to know that everything was alright between us and that I would be back at work the next day. I tried my best to keep the bliss I was feeling out of my voice as I assured her that all would be right again tomorrow.

Kristen had watched me take the call.

"Are you going to tell her about this?" she asked.

"I'll tell her tomorrow. Do you know any other college graduates that might want a low paying job as an assistant for two small business owners? It might help her take the news better."

Kristen laughed. "Can't say I do."

"By the way, try to aim a little higher for your next job. You can do so much better."

"I don't know, I didn't stay there long but I can honestly say something really great came out of my old job."