Page 5 of Throw Away the Key
She stood in a simple white tank top and distressed jeans ripped at the thighs and the knees, her richly moisturized skin peeking through. “Thanks, uh, I don't really put a whole lot ofthought into it,” Sadie responded awkwardly, adjusting a black bra strap.
“Well, it works for you. You're a very lovely young lady. I wish I could pull off such a short haircut like that.” Granny gestured toward Sadie’s hair.
Emma observed their conversation. It was true, Sadie’s fade had a hard part, her high cheekbones on display. Her face was bare of makeup, but her dark brown skin had a dewy glow in the light, making Emma wonder what skincare routine Sadie had put together. It was completely impossible to decipher her age–she could be anywhere between her late twenties and mid-forties.I wonder if she uses those viral TikTok masks.
“Don't you think she has a nice style?” Granny pointed at Sadie, whose dark eyes darted to Emma questioningly.
Emma nodded, smiling. “Yeah, it's very casual chic but with an edge. Your skin is amazing!”
Sadie snorted. “Thanks.” She crooked a brow and gestured around the room as her head tilted. “So, what do you say?”
Emma glanced silently at her best friend, who nodded, before turning back to respond. “If my paperwork goes through, I’d love to rent this place.”
“Well, I'll call to let you know. I have all your information at this point,” Sadie pulled open the door and moved to leave.
Emma held up a hand. “Thank you so much for your time. We really appreciate it.” Sadie nodded. “I'll lock up when y'all are done.” And she left.
“That's an attractive young lady,” Granny observed thoughtfully.
“I don't know, she seems a little irritated today,” Zora eyed her best friend cautiously.
Emma grimaced and tried to wave it off. “Maybe she’s got something going on. Or maybe she just has to warm up to people.”
“Everybody's got something, baby. Let's see what time says,” Granny smiled brightly. “Come on, my darlings. I'm hungry.”
Emma’s eyes lit up, ready to release her nerves and anxiety. As much as she wanted the apartment, she and her therapist had been working lately on releasing stress. She wasn’t always great at it, but she tried.What is meant to be will be.“You know what? Me too. Let’s go.”
CHAPTER THREE
The next day at the bookstore, Emma was making her way through the inventory, snacking on a chocolate croissant from the coffee kiosk.
“You're getting flakes of pastry everywhere,” Zora observed from behind her.
“I know, I know, I'm always making a mess,” Emma droned cheerfully. “I promise I'll clean it up. I even brought the portable vacuum out from the office, because I knew I was going to make a mess with this pastry,” she smiled.
“I love that you can find a silver lining in just about anything,” Zora replied, shaking her head in amusement. “So, any word yet on that apartment?”
“No, not yet, but I don't know, the more that I think about it, I wonder if the property manager really wasn’t feeling me as a potential tenant.” Sadie’s scowl and deep umber eyes were imprinted on Emma’s mind.
“Oh, I don't know about all that, like you said yesterday, maybe she had something going on–you just never know with people what causes their mannerisms to be the way that they are, but I'm sure she would warm up to you if you moved in there.
“Do you feel like you're really serious about it though? Because again, remember, you don't have to go anywhere. I would be happy for you to stay. We could even switch around the third bedroom so that you're further away and maybe you won’t be subjected to certain… activities,” Zora paused to search for the right word, blushing as she said it.
“‘Activities’ is an understatement, bookie. Sometimes it sounds like you two are having a true WWE Smackdown up in there.” Emma’s lips twitched as she bit back a laugh.
“Oh my god, shut up,” Zora groaned. “That's not the case.”
“Yeah, okay, whatever. You act like I can’t recite some of the dirty shit you were saying to your man.”
Zora’s cheeks grew bright red, and she averted her eyes. “I–”
“What are you two over here gabbing about?” Granny strolled in from outside, the sunny weather was the perfect welcome to an early spring. “I wonder if peak bloom is going to be early this year.”
“You think so, Granny?” Emma's face brightened. Visiting the cherry blossoms had become one of their favorite shared traditions–they preferred to go first thing in the morning to beat the tourists. As much as she wanted to be more attuned to nature year round, Emma was terrified of critters and had been traumatized while picking apples one fall. Admiring from arm’s length was much more her speed.
“Maybe, assuming we don’t get one last cold front. We didn't have a very cold winter and we've had lots of sunshine and nice temperatures, so I think we might see some blossoms starting to open up in the next couple of weeks.” Granny Marion was a litmus test for so many things, but she'd been in DC long enough to have a feel for the weather and some of the big happenings around town.
“I am so ready for springtime to officially be here! We'll have to make sure that we plan to go down there once we figure out what day peak bloom is supposed to be.”
