Page 44 of Written By a Woman

“You’re one to talk,” I stared pointedly at his coffee cup before meeting his teasing expression, “You also require some water on occasion.”

“Nah,” he retrieved his mug with the freshly brewed coffee and took a loud slurp to emphasize his point. I just shook my head and laughed before leaving him in the breakroom to die of dehydration.

ChapterNine

ZAID

Weeks had passedsince the tampon/desk plant debacle where I almost blew it with Signe and exposed the fact that I had recently stalked her social media accounts, which would prove that I knew about her allergies and secret book.

Thankfully, my blatant lie that one of my sisters was allergic to flowers happened to pay off.

Things changed a little between Signe and I since then, in a good way. We said hello to each other almost every single time we passed one another. Sometimes if she was walking past my office to go talk to Jacqueline or Brandon or someone else, she would just knock on the door frame without even looking in to see what I was doing.

The first time she did this I startled in my seat, though now I recognized Signe’s two-knock pass every time it happened. She never waited for me to respond with a hello or a knock on my desk. Instead, she would knock and just keep walking.

It was very intentional of her, and it made my chest heat with something every time it happened. It reminded me that she was thinking of me, even if it was just as a platonic friend. For the moment. Hopefully not forever.

* * *

Fall had cometo Orange County.

Which meant nothing, because the weather still reflected summertime.

The days were mostly clear skies and eighty to eighty-five-degrees.

In a few weeks, the Santa Ana winds would start up, making fire season a risk, but again, fall didn’t exist here. Some trees would shed their leaves, but the desert-like climate usually still looked the same. People still went to the beach. Flip flops and shorts and t-shirts were still everyday wear.

Sun Steer’s holiday party in December would probably be at the beach again this year.

The Halloween party that Signe and Jacqueline worked on together was in our office, in the AC. It started right at the end of the workday so that families with kids could bring children to trick-or-treat desk to desk, or office-to-office in my case.

It also meant that I had to cut myself off to be present at the party. Meetings didn’t linger today, and the timer on my phone had just startled me out of a work-induced trance. I removed my glasses to rub my eyes after staring at my computer screen all day.

I silenced the alarm, only then hearing the noise coming from outside of my secluded workspace.

The office was loud and busy, two things I generally didn’t care for in a workplace setting because it became incredibly hard to focus on my tasks. However, I was happy to make an exception for today, because somehow the blanket of noise and adults and children happening outside my office made me feel a little bit like I was invisible in here. That being said, I was also aware that I should be going out of my way to not appear invisible to one woman in particular.

My phone vibrated in my pocket, so I shifted in my seat and pulled it out to see that Raina had texted me. Even though she was already here with Ben and Salma, who brought Zeki for the trick-or-treating thing.

Raina: Just curious, did Signe happen to see your costume yet?

Me: I haven’t worn it yet.

I hesitated before putting my phone down again, wondering why my sister was randomly texting me this. They had already brought Zeki to my office to trick-or-treat, and I wasn’t dressed up then. Why she was curious made me suspicious.

Raina: !!! DO IT! She’s going to lose her mind.

Me: …Is there a reason you suggested this costume that I should know about?

Last week at family dinner, Zeki was showing me his Spider-Man costume that he wore proudly until his parents forced him to change out of it for bedtime. When my sisters asked me what I was dressing up as for the company party, I told them that I probably wouldn’t. I planned to just wear my work clothes that day since I had meetings scheduled and needed to look professional.

Raina casually suggested I at least buy something simple like a scream mask, so that I wouldn’t be a party pooper and accidentally hinder company morale by not properly participating, but also so that I could still look professional throughout the day.

Raina: Do you want me to lie?

Me: Didn’t Salma tell you that I don’t want you two meddling in this?

Raina: I’d argue that it’s not so much meddling, as it is seizing an opportunity.

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