Page 54 of Friend Zoned

Greenwich: Anywhere without you is terrible.

I send a sad face and he sends a kiss blowing emoji. He arrived in Cleveland last night. He’ll be gone for a week for a series of away games. It’s the first time in two weeks that he’ll be gone that long, but that seems to be how crazy his schedule is. We talk and text throughout the day. We even manage to eat dinner together most nights even if it’s via FaceTime. Despite how busy he is, I never feel alone. I miss him when he’s gone overnight, but he never seems far away.

There’s a soft knock on my office door right before Eve pushes her way inside. She’s a tall, big woman in her mid-forties. She has a short, blonde bob and blue eyes behind big oval glasses. She comes in and sits on the chair before stretching both legs as if she’s exhausted.

“Only twenty more years until I can retire. If I had a flat stomach and a tight ass, I’d marry one of these old rich men that come through here.” She throws an arm across her face.

“Are things that rough in the event planning business?”

“They weren’t until recently. I don’t mean to bring up old wounds,” she whispers. She lowers her arm and sits up straight. “But how did a nice girl like you ever marry that condescending blowhard? It’s all I can do not to punch him in the throat. I gave him the middle finger about six times today. It was over the phone, so it wasn’t very satisfying. I hate him,” she announces.

I chuckle and shake my head. HowdidI end up married to that douche?

“I was stupid. No other explanation.”

“Well, I don’t mean to gossip.” Bullshit. She lives to gossip. She purses her thin lips and leans closer to my desk. “The whore looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but here. I could see it on her face the minute she walked into my office. After about ten minutes, I pretended I needed to get something off the printer, but I stood behind the door and listened.” She stops, probably for dramatic effect or for me to ask her what she heard. I love my co-workers. They are a good group of people, and they are loyal. What they fail to understand is that I don’t care about Quintin or any part of his life.

“What did you hear?” I finally ask her. If I don’t, this conversation will never end.

“They were whisper shouting. She accused him of being unable to let you go, and that she doesn’t want a baby shower here. He told her too bad, and since she has no friends or family to throw it, he has to. How sad is it not to have a single person to throw you a baby shower for your first child? And to add insult to injury, your man can’t stay away from his ex.”

I roll my eyes, but Eve continues. “She told him she doesn’t know how much more of this she can take, and that he’s not keeping his promise.” I let out a snort. “Tell me about it,” Eve says. “The man couldn’t keep the vows he made to hiswifein front of family, friends, and God, and this bitch thinks he’s going to keep his word to his side piece. Girl, bye.” She fans her face, and I giggle. That’s one of the phrases Layla taught her. “Layla’s right. Men ain’t shit.”

“Why does he keep calling you about this? What’s the big deal about this stupid fucking shower? All he has to do is show up.”

“Girl, you know why. It’s because of you. It’s kind of pathetic how a man can blow up his entire life, lose his wife, downsize to some mediocre chick, and still try to insert himself in your life. Anyway, this should be interesting. I’m working that day, so I’ll play interference because you know he’ll be asking to speak to the manager.” She sighs, and I do the same. “You sure you don’t want to take a sick day? At the very least, you should let Layla call June Bug.”

“I’m positive. I’m not using my time for him. Honestly, I don’t care. He’s the one who looks bad, not me.” I ignore the comment about June Bug.

She leans over and gives me a high five. “When am I going to meet your new man? Any guy who sends sushi for your colleagues already has my loyalty. Layla’s met him. All she says is I’m gonna shit my pants when I meet him.”

“Layla talks too much, but I’ll introduce you to him soon,” I tell her.

She winks at me and stands.

“I need every single detail when the douchebag finds out.” She finally walks out of my office, but a few minutes later, there’s another knock. This time, it’s a food delivery.

I have no idea what it is since we didn’t talk about food today, but I grab my phone and call him. He picks up on the third ring.

“I still hate it here,” he says. “Guess what I’m thinking?”

“I can’t even begin to guess.”

“I want to do something crazy like have taco Tuesday on a Wednesday

“That’s insane,” I tell him. “I mean, is it even legal?”

“Probably not,” he says. “But I want it anyway.”

“If my man wants taco Tuesday on a Wednesday, that’s what he’s going to get. Thank you for sending me lunch.” Despite the noise in the background, the call gets quiet. I open the plastic bag and when I smell the familiar jerk chicken, I’m suddenly not sure it’s from Aiden. He has no idea I like this type of food. I check the receipt, and it’s from a place I’ve been to with Leah.

“I didn’t send you lunch,” Aiden says.

I sigh and say, “I realize that now. It’s from Leah. It’s from a Jamaican place we both like.” I push the plate away, suddenly losing my appetite.

“Forget her. I’ll send you something. Get rid of that,” he tells me.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve lost my appetite. Why can’t these people just leave me alone, Aid?” I lean back in my chair and stare at the ceiling.

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