Run Away Baby

“Yes! For real.”

“Okay. Well, sorry to be the bearer of bad news.”

“I wouldn’t even call it that.”

And she meant it. Good for Derek Johnson. Good for Shelly Riley. They could study fish together. Look at plankton under microscopes. Whatever it was they did. Good for them.

She’d never been without love. It was impossible for her to imagine anything so bleak ever happening to her.

Chapter 6

Abby was fairly certain Danielle hated her. Most recently, they’d had an argument about Abby’s inability to properly load the dishwasher in the break room. Flashbacks of the conversation played in Abby’s head like a movie:

Danielle: Abby, come in here. Did you do this?

Abby: Wash the dishes, you mean?

Danielle: Is that what you’re calling it?

Abby: Well, yeah. What would you call it?

Danielle: Why would you wash this plastic lid? Why wouldn’t you recycle it?

Abby: I don’t know.

Danielle: What about this thing? You melted it. You can’t put this kind of plastic in here. It gets too hot.

Abby: I don’t even know what that was.

Danielle: Exactly. Because you ruined it.

Abby: Sorry.

Danielle: And what’s with all this stuff still sitting in the sink? You could have fit it in. The whole top rack is empty.

Abby: I didn’t even realize that part came out.

Danielle: Is this your first time using a dishwasher?

Abby: My first time in a while.

Danielle: Did you even use detergent?

“So, yeah, I don’t know what her problem is,” Abby told Randall, simplifying matters down to a few evasive sentences that slanted in the direction of her not being incompetent.

“She’s jealous of you,” he said, not looking up from the wine list at Le Chardonnay. “They’ve got a new Cab on here. Let’s try it.”

“I doubt that she’s jealous of me. But seriously, isn’t my presence lightening her workload? I’m folding her papers and stuff.”

“That’s right, Sugartitties.”

“And since I’ve got my own office, I’m pretty much out of her hair the whole time I’m there.”

“She’s a jealous whore. Don’t let it get to you.”

“I won’t. I mean, it’s not. Not really. Clark hasn’t said anything about me to you, has he?”

“No.”