Page 18 of Emergency Exit
Having uttered the magic words to ward off her mother’s strictures, Harper was set free to get ready. Thanks to following Ash’s schedule, she was ready a whole two minutes early. Usually, she was running around in a panic at this point. The deviation from her usual pattern was both soothing and frightening.
She perched on the arm of her sofa so she could take her weight off her feet but wouldn’t wrinkle her dress. She lookedaround her sparsely furnished apartment. She might not have been able to take many things with her in the move, but she loved every piece that had come with her. Seattle felt different, and maybe this was why—it didn’t feel like her usual pattern, but it felt like it was all hers.
Ash texted that parking was unavailable and she ran downstairs while he circled the block and hopped into his black sports car.
“This is a Porsche,” she said once she was buckled.
“Yes?”
“I just remembered,” she admitted.
“Ah! Well done!”
“But I forgot to look at the outside to see what Porsche’s look like.”
“There will not be a pop quiz later,” he said confidently.
“Do you ever have that dream that you’re in high school and there’s a pop quiz and you haven’t studied?”
“And I’m naked? Yes, I do.”
“Me too,” said Harper. “Usually, I have clothes, though.”
“Lucky you. I am told that it is a frequent dream among overachievers and those with imposter syndrome.”
“Oh. I just assumed it had to do with an overwhelming fear of failure and public vulnerability,” said Harper.
“The speed with which this conversation has veered off the rails and into uncomfortable truths is impressive,” said Ash.
“It really is,” agreed Harper.
He pulled up at a stoplight and glanced over at her.
“You said you were fine with weird,” she said nervously.
Ash burst out laughing. “I really am. Let’s not tell anyone else about the naked school dream, though.”
“Good call,” agreed Harper.
Once out of the car, Ash confidently guided her to a hotel event space where her first impression was nineties carpetingand noise.
“Okayyyyyy,” said Ash, looking around the crowded room.
“This is a lot of people,” said Harper. Somehownetworking eventhadn’t conveyed how many people there would be. She surveyed the bodies in front of her, trying to assess whether or not she’d gauged her outfit correctly. “I shouldn’t have worn green.”
“What?” Ash looked down at her in confusion and then seemed to check her dress. “You look professionally hot. Hot professionally. No. Those adjectives cannot go together without making enemies. You look professional and also extremely attractive.” He beamed as he found the correct combination of English words.
“They are all wearing khaki, black, and grey,” said Harper when he finally stopped talking.
“That is because they are white people,” said Ash. “In case you hadn’t noticed, the colors of our people are pumpkin spice and taupe.”
Harper couldn’t help laughing. “I believe that is also pejorative.”
“Pejorative or accurate? People who work in finance are mostly white, and majority boring.”
Harper giggled. “I think that’s correlation, not causation.”
“Maybe,” said Ash, sounding unconvinced. “But the point is that you look great and stand out in a good way.”
