Bad Seed

She squealed into the phone. “You got it?”

“I freaking got it!” I screamed, not caring that there were other people on the street. “I can’t believe it!”

“I’m on my way,” Andrea said.

“What?” I blinked. “What are you talking about?”

“We have to celebrate!” Andrea said. “And I have the day off. So, I’m coming to town. I’ll see you in an hour.”

Andrea didn’t wait for my response. She just hung up and left me shaking my head in disbelief. Of course, Andrea was going to drive to Ennis. Why wouldn’t she?

She pulled into my driveway just over an hour later. I grinned as I threw open the door and greeted her with a hug.

“I brought sustenance,” Andrea said, holding up a bottle of champagne.

“Should we really be day drinking?” I asked skeptically. “We’re not in college anymore.”

“It’s not day drinking if it’s a celebration,” Andrea said, her tone serious. “Now, where are your glasses?”

I led the way to the kitchen and grabbed two glasses from my top cabinet. We settled on the couch, sipping our champagne and catching up.

I told Andrea all about the job and how excited I was. I thought about mentioning Michael, but I wasn’t sure how well she would take that news. After all, I moved to Ennis to get over my last relationship. Did I really want to admit that I’d already started another one? If that’s even what it was.

Luckily, the subject never came up. After I finished telling Andrea all about the new job, she grew quiet and introspective, two things Andrea was not.

“What’s up with you?” I asked, nudging her leg with my foot. “Drunk already?”

“No.” She shook her head and sighed. “There’s something I should really tell you.”

“Okay.” I sat up straighter. “What is it?”

“I ran into Joshua the other day,” Andrea said. She spoke quickly, spitting the words out before she could change her mind. “At that Starbucks by the hospital. I was there for… Well, it doesn’t really matter. I stopped in to grab some coffee and, boom, there he was.”

“Did you talk to him?” I asked.

Andrea nodded. “He asked about you.”

My stomach did a flip, but it was weaker than I expected. Hearing Joshua’s name used to send me into a spiraling depression. I hated thinking about him. Talking about him had felt like a unique form of torture. Now, it didn’t seem to bother me as much.

“What did you tell him?” I asked.

“Just that you moved,” Andrea said with a shrug. “I said you were doing great, but that you left Dallas.”

“And?” I pressed.

“He was shocked,” Andrea said. “I guess he really had no idea.”

“I told you.” I laughed softly. “He’s not really the type to check Facebook religiously.”

“Still,” Andrea said. “You’d think he would have by now.”

“Nah.” I shook my head. “Residency is too time-consuming, remember?”

“Whatever.” Andrea rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I just thought you should know.”

“Did you tell him where I moved?” I asked nervously. The last thing I needed was for Joshua to suddenly have a change of heart and show up at my doorstep.

“God, no,” Andrea said. “Why the hell would I do that?”