“What about your apartment? Is unemployment enough to pay your rent?”
“I haven’t looked into it yet. I don’t know.”
“You can stay here if you need to.”
I’m not going to lie. I’ve thought about what it would be like to live in this house. It’s a thousand times nicer than my apartment, and Tina and I have lived together before, so I know that we’re compatible. At least we were before our careers took us in different directions and our financial situations became a bit lopsided.
“Thanks,” I tell her. “But you’re talking about marrying Ryan. You don’t need to start your marriage off with a third wheel living with you and making things awkward.”
She grits her teeth like another thought just occurred to her. “You can’t move back in with your parents.”
I think about that. My parents would welcome me back with open arms, but they would also treat me like I’m still in high school. I lived with them for a few months right after college, and they reinstated the ten o’clock curfew I had when I was seventeen. I tried to fight them on it, but I didn’t win. Their house, their rules. I’ve been living on my own ever since. It’s lonely, but at least I’m in control of my life.
“I’m not planning on it,” I tell her.
“Do you have any money in savings?”
“Not a whole lot.”
Not anything, actually. I was the lowest person on the totem pole at work, and my pay reflected that. I was living paycheck to paycheck and dining on cheap bags of ramen noodles. Sometimes I would treat myself to the ones that came in a cup, but that was a rare occasion. I think about the homecooked meals my mom made when I was living with them. Maybe a ten o’clock curfew wouldn’t be so bad. It’s not like I ever go out that late these days anyway… I shake the thought out of my head.
“You’re stressing me out, Priscilla. Can I please just give you enough to make it through the next month? How much do you need?”
“Nothing. I’m fine.”
Her eyes go wide. She glances toward the front door, then back at me. “Is that why you walked here? Did you sell your car?” She lowers her voice to a whisper as if we aren’t the only two people in the room. “Did it get repossessed?”
“What? No. I just felt like walking. I’m serious, Tina. I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”
I can tell by the look on her face that she’s not going to drop this. I finish my glass of wine and head to the kitchen for a refill. When I return, her expression has changed from worried to thoughtful. I’m afraid to ask what’s on her mind.
“What if you started your own business?” she asks.
“We’ve already been over this.”
“Okay, but hear me out. I can be your first client. I wouldn’t be donating or loaning you the money. I would be paying for a service. Then you can use the profits to keep your business going.”
I’m about to protest out of habit, but I stop myself. It’s not a bad idea. If Tina paid me to organize an event for her, I wouldn’t feel like I’m taking money from a friend.
“What event do you need me to organize? Something for work?” I think about all of the tech conventions she and Ryan go to. If they wanted me to help organize something like that, it could help me break into a new niche.
She shakes her head. “The proposal. To Ryan,” she adds, as if I need clarification.
I’m already envisioning all the things I could do for a tech convention, so her answer surprises me. I pinch my lips together. “I don’t know. I’ve never done anything like that.”
“Come on, Priscilla. I’ve seen the things you’re capable of. You could make it so magical. I want a flash mob and fireworks and big white horses and all kinds of amazing things. I want to recreate my parents’ proposal story, but make it my own. You could take my ideas and turn them into a real thing. I wouldn’t even know where to get started. I know you can do it. Please?”
I want to accept, but I’m hesitant. I’ve been known to make impulsive decisions that I regret later—hence why I’m sipping wine in a fluffy white robe and my clothes are in the wash. But when she brings up her parents, it’s hard to say no. Tina’s parents died in a car accident when we were seventeen. She spent the last year of high school living with me. It’s one of the reasons we’re still so close. It’s also why she’s been trying to pay it forward to me ever since.
“I’ll think about it,” I tell her. As much as I would love to help her plan this, the thought of getting in business with a friend seems a little daunting. It could go great, or it could go very wrong. I also want Tina to think about this, too. If she’s offering this impulsively, I don’t want her to regret it later.
“Okay. I won’t pressure you,” Tina says. I can tell by her smile and the way she leans forward that she’s itching to talk more about this. “Just don’t say anything to Ryan.”
“Of course not. Where is he, anyway?”
“Out with Oliver. They’re at a bar or something.”
“Oh.” The mention of Oliver makes all my senses stand on edge, like he might walk around the corner at any moment and I need to be aware of my surroundings. The conversation isn’t about him, but now his name is all I can think about, repeating itself over and over again in my head. I bring my glass to my lips, taking a long sip to avoid having to say anything else. Tina watches me. I don’t know why I bother with not saying what’s on my mind. She can read me too damn well.
