When 1:45 rolled around, I grabbed my purse and signed out of my computer. On my way out, I told Lily I was taking my lunch break. Then I walked down the Chicago streets until I was in front of Paula's Place.
Quinn was waiting for me at one of the outdoor tables.
"How'd the interview go?" I asked, sinking into the empty seat across from her and setting my purse on the ground.
Quinn folded her menu and set it down in front of her. She was smiling. "Good. I don't think we can use her story though."
"What, why? What was it?"
"It was about her damn dog that she trained to jump through hula-hoops." She blew out a breath. "I swear, I need to stop listening to the NBC journalists. They're a bunch of privileged assholes." Our waitress set down two glasses of water. Quinn's eyes followed her as she walked away.
I smirked. "Yeah, just because you slept with one doesn't mean they'll give you good leads."
Quinn looked back at me. "Hey, best fucking sex of my life, and she said this one was a good one."
"Mhm, and she also said she'd call you back," I smirked, head tilting.
Quinn's lips curled. "You know what, fuck you. When's the last time you had sex with anyone? Yeah, I thought so." I rolled my eyes.
"I don't need sex to be happy."
Quinn picked up her glass. "Pft, that makes one of us."
I guffawed. "Yeah, I know." The waitress came back, smiling sweetly. She took our orders and walked away. Quinn stared as she left. "You see, you can't go two minutes without gawking over that girl." Quinn was anything but ashamed. Proud even.
"Okay and?"
I smiled and sipped the water. "I think you should ask her out."
Now, Quinn's smirk turned into a genuine smile. "Really?"
I shrugged. "Why not? You only live once anyway."
"Okay, maybe I will." She laughed. "Look at Audrey Briar giving out dating advice."
"Hey, there's a first time for everything."
Quinn saluted me with her drink. "Amen to that."
〜〜〜〜〜
Walking inside the apartment after work, I found Knox sleeping on the couch. He was splayed out, one hand across his chest, another laying above his head. I noticed how cold it was in the apartment. Knox was wearing a shirt and loose pants, so when I passed him, I threw a blanket over him too.
In my room, I dropped my stuff off and changed into sweatpants and a jacket. My stomach growled at me as I walked to the kitchen, but while I was ravaging the fridge (Knox must've gone to the store) my phone rang and distracted me. I looked at the caller ID and picked up the phone.
It was a FaceTime call from Nya.
"Hey, girl!" She exclaimed. She was sitting on her couch with her bonnet covering her hair. A wine glass sat in her hand.
"Hi! How was your day?" Phone in hand, I scanned the fridge again.
"Ugh, don't even get me started. Elise had me running errands for her. Like, she had me go to the store for her and get her some fruit because it would 'give her inspiration'. Then, I had to go to the dry cleaners and pick up her suit for her fashion show this Thursday, because she was 'busy'. She and I both know that bitch does nothing but sit in her office and act important. I bet she couldn't even thread a stupid needle." Elise is Nya's boss. Obviously, there's some... tension between them. "Also, this bitch made me get her coffee, which I was perfectly happy doing, but then she sent me back twice, because she wanted it cold, not hot and without whipped cream--which she failed to mention."
I had found a plate of covered food in the fridge, had already heated it up, and was sitting at the table eating by the time Nya was done. "I'm sorry, Nya. That sucks."
"Yeah, it's like–I know I'm an intern, but I'm not going to run fucking errands for you 24/7. I don't get paid to do your damn chores." She scoffed. "I'm supposed to be a big-time fashion designer, but instead I'm stuck being a low-level intern."
I scooped another piece of chicken into my mouth. In between chews, I said, "Hey, forget about her. Before you know it you'll see your designs on the cover of Vogue and Elle. We just got out of college–It's only a matter of time before a big fashion company will be knocking on your door."
"I fucking hope so."
A moment later, I asked, "Where's Rikland?"
"At the station. He has to work late this week." Rikland Anglo: Nya's firefighter boyfriend. I'm not even ashamed to admit the man was hot. Like straight out of a book, hot.
I smiled. "And how has living with him been going?"
This made Nya break out into a large smirk and a small eyebrow quirk. "It's been... fun."
I cringed. "Ew, Nya."
She laughed. "What?! I didn't say shit. Blame your dirty ass mind."
I grinned, laughing with her and continuing to eat my food. Eventually, Nya spoke again, but I didn't notice until she had called my name twice. "Hm?" I asked.
"I asked if you'd like to go out this Saturday."
I paused eating. "Oh. Where?"
"I don't know," She shrugged. "Shopping? Clubbing? Lunch? I don't know. It's just felt like forever since we've been together." I chuckled.
"Nya, we saw each other yesterday."
"Yes but we didn't see each other today," she whined.
"Okay, fair point. Only because I love you, I guess we can go clubbing." She squealed and shook her phone. Having finished dinner, I stood and washed my plate in the sink. Nya was still celebrating by the time I had put my plate in the dishwasher.
"Okay, okay, I need to find the perfect clubbing outfit. Of course, Rikland is coming, and Knox better come."
"He has work Saturday."
"So we'll go Friday."
"I have work on Friday."
"Only until eight."
"I work until ten on Fridays."
She paused. "Why?"
"Because I think the managing editor spot is going to open up soon, and I want them to consider me for the promotion-"
"Girl, how long have you worked there?"
"About two years."
"And how many hours do you log a week?"
A pause. "52 hours."
Nya's brows creased in shock. "How many do they pay you for?"
Another pause—longer than the first. "40."
Nya scoffed. "Girl, you're fine. You can spare two hours." I gave her a hard look, contemplating. "Please? Please?" I can never say no to this girl.
I groaned. "Fine, but I hope you know I'm not happy about it." Nya smiled and laughed.
"You know you love me." I tried resisting a smile but failed as always.
"Ugh, yeah I do." She laughed again and swigged her wine.
"Anyways girl, I have to go. I'll text you tomorrow." I smiled.
"Okay. Love you, babes."
"Love you, too." Then we hung up.
I sighed and set my phone on the counter, looking over to Knox who was still passed out. I left for my room, pulled up my computer, and sat on my bed. Once there and settled, I opened up the doc to my story. I stared down the little blinking line, looked at the last edit--around 24 hours ago--and tried to write, but I found I couldn't. For inspiration, I wrote a random fight scene in a separate doc, but my mind was still blank by the time I got back to the doc.
So, I stood and brushed my teeth in the bathroom, then walked around the apartment and got a glass of water. Back in bed, I continued staring at the line until I couldn't anymore. I grabbed a book instead and read until I found myself drifting off to sleep.
The rest of the week fell in the same fashion as Monday. It was long and tiring with my only comfort spent at home. I still hadn't written anything. Well, on Wednesday I typed the letter "I" just to erase the last edit four days ago icon and make myself feel better. It didn't.
I barely saw Knox between our work and his classes at the culinary school downtown. I missed his cooking. Lord knows I can't cook for shit—not that I'd ever admit that—so I had to settle for Starbucks and McDonald's for most of my breakfasts. Luckily, Knox got off work at two and his classes on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday ended at seven, so he still found time to make dinner.
It was this silent agreement we had. He'd cook, I'd clean—Knox does a good job cleaning up his own mess in the kitchen though—and we'd both be happy.
On Friday, I finished my work early and left the office at eight sharp. We were meeting up at 9:30 for drinks at a local sushi bar, then heading to the club after that. Knox and I even made arrangements to take an Uber there because we knew that more than likely, we would be way too wasted to drive.
Once home, I only had an hour to get ready. Knox was on the couch, watching TV. "You better hurry," he said, head unmoved. "You take years to get ready."
I gave a mocking laugh as I threw my bags down. "It's called being a woman, Knox. All you have to do is put on some cologne and you're all set."
"Hey," he called after me as I rushed to the bathroom, "I also brushed my hair!"
From the bathroom, I scoffed. "Wow, congratulations for having basic hygiene! Do you want a medal for your noble efforts?"
"Well, I was thinking more of a large cash prize, but that works too."
〜〜〜〜〜
It was ten by the time Knox and I made it to the sushi place.
I was wearing a black jumpsuit that I'd bought for our winter office party that took place in a few months. The wide pant legs covered nearly all of the wedge shoes I had on, and the neckline was loose and dipped down into a 'v' shape. The spaghetti strap sleeves were bejeweled with pearls. I wore a simple necklace and pearl bracelet to compliment it.
Getting out of the Uber, I heard Knox's door slam. "You just had to curl your damn hair?" I stepped onto the curb and waited for him, smiling.
"Of course. With this neckline-"
"Forget I asked," he mumbled, eyes-rolling. We walked to the door together, but Knox made sure to keep two steps ahead so he could open the door. I thanked him quietly, and we continued on to find our table. Nya and Rikland were sitting side-by-side at a table that sat four in the back corner of the restaurant. They were snuggling and laughing but stopped when they saw us.
Nya stopped smiling. She crossed her arms. "You're late."
Knox let me go first. I sank down into my seat. "Yes, but I'm here now."
"Half an hour later." I reached out across the table for her hands, smiling. She reluctantly set them in my outstretched palms.
"How can I possibly make it up to you?" I asked. Nya thought about this.
"Well... I guess you can buy the first rounds of sushi," she grinned faintly, "and get me a glass of champagne." I sat back.
"Deal." I called over the waiter and ordered what we wanted, which--to start with--was a serving of California rolls, spicy tuna rolls, and nigiri.
The champagne came first (while we were discussing our days and catching everyone up). I hadn't seen Rikland in a while, so it was refreshing to catch up. He was wearing a black button-down shirt--the top three buttons were unfastened--and correlating black pants. It honestly complimented Nya's attire--a sparkly, red dress that cut off at her thighs and hugged her body to accentuate her natural curves. The sleeves were off the shoulder, squeezing her arms just under her shoulders and hugging down to her wrists.
"Wait, Knox, isn't your birthday coming up?" Nya asked, setting her glass down.
He nodded. "Yep. A few weeks." Damn. I still need to get him a present.
Nya smiled. "We should totally have a party."
Though Knox grinned, he shook his head. "Believe me, I'm good with making a steak dinner and watching a movie."
The waiter set our plates down in the center of the table. Nya scoffed but reached for her chopsticks. She looked at me and said with her mouth full, "You're gonna let him cook for himself?" I laughed and sipped my drink.
"Are you kidding? He wouldn't let me cook even if I begged."
Knox took his chopsticks and tried picking up a California roll--we were still working on his chopsticks skills. "Do you blame me? The last time you cooked, you damn near burnt down the kitchen."
"I just got distracted and forgot I left the pizza in the oven," I defended, smiling.
Now, Rikland spoke. "Well, I haven't had your cooking yet-"
"That's on purpose," Knox mumbled in his glass.
"-so I think you should make dinner and, to keep it exclusive, Nya and I could come over and celebrate."
Knox said, "I really-"
"I love it," Nya cut in enthusiastically. She turned briefly to me. "I hope you know that I'll have Burt's Place on standby for two large pizzas 'cause I love you, but you can't cook for shit."
I looked over to Knox who smiled sheepishly. "Well, I guess I'm having a party." Cocking a brow, I smiled into my glass. Little known fact, Knox doesn't particularly like his birthday or parties.
A few minutes later, Rikland said, "Tesoro, It's getting late. We should probably leave before the club runs out of alcohol." Translation: Tesoro=sweetheart (for those of you who aren't a hot Italian firefighter).
Nya nodded and finished her champagne. "Yeah, we should." Rikland stood up and held out his hand for Nya who grabbed her clutch and let him pull her up. After paying the bill, Knox did the same for me, and together, we left the restaurant.