It had been a last-minute decision to stay in the city for a few more days after tomorrow’s interview.No stone unturned,I’d thought, remembering Noah’s advice. I haven’t yet figured out what I’m going to do with all the time, but for once, I don’t mind not having a plan. This is all about feeling things out anyway. Besides, the mural is nearly finished, and I’m confident I’ll complete it next week without any rush. I have time.
Morgan wiggles her fingers at me as she rolls the car’s window up. “We’ll be here.”
The flight is long, but I sketch the time away as afternoon bleeds into evening. On my tablet, Noah’s van and tent are tucked into the trees, glowing in sunset colors of orange, yellow, and pink. When the city comes into view through the tiny plane window, thousands of lights sparkling like beacons against the night, I look up on instinct. That familiar tug of awe blooms between my lungs.
Whatever my feelings for New York may be, the glittering view of the city from above will never get old.
To avoid my Craigslist roommates, who dislike me almost as much as they dislike each other, I drop off my things in my dusty bedroom and immediately leave. Even before I went to Heller, I didn’t spend much time here, opting instead to busy myself with after-work happy hours, runs in the park, and late nights in the office…Okay, so mostly late nights in the office.
But if I’m going to give this job every last opportunity to woo me, as Noah suggested, then my first step is a romantic night of taking myself out to dinner.
I start the evening five blocks down from my apartment at my favorite rooftop sushi bar. It’s by far the most impressive date night spot that I know of, with happy hour cocktails to die for and little candles lit on every table, and yet I’d never invited any dating app boys here. I saved this spot for every time Liam visited me in the city. We’d pay extravagant prices for half a dozen drinks and nearly every app on the menu, then play a game of guessing which other diners were tourists and which were locals. It was usually easy to tell based on who was staring out toward the water, trying to spot peeks of Manhattan.
After a half hour’s wait, I’m seated at a small table against the railing; it’s the best view you could ask for. There’s a thin sliver of open air visible through the last cluster of buildings in Queens, and I’m able to see far enough through the clear night to pick out the twinkling yellow lights at the top of the Empire State Building.
I remember the first time Liam and I visited New York on a high school field trip. After the afternoon showing ofWicked,we’dboth stared up at the massive skyscraper. I pointed at the top. “We’re gonna live up there one day, you and me.”
Liam rolled his eyes. “There aren’t apartments in the Empire State Building, Sadie. Nobody lives there. Anyway, it would be the worst place to live in the whole city.”
“Why? Everyone would be jealous.”
“What if the elevator goes out?”
I pressed my lips together. “That’s a fair point.”
I smile at the memory; it makes me miss Liam. I can’t help but feel like I’m looking at New York through his eyes now. The city is always worth admiring, but there’s something about it that also feels inaccessible and intimidating. At least I can admit that, laid out before me as it is tonight, the skyline paints a pretty picture.
It’s almost as pretty as the view of Central Park from my new office.
Well, whatcouldbe my new office.
The next morning, after I’ve drifted through coffee at my favorite café, a sticky subway commute into the city, a crowded but scenic walk up Madison Avenue, and a truly perfunctory last interview with Addison’s boss and the marketing director, Cary, Addison shows me to my office.
It’s gorgeous. It’s immediately clear to me that it’s the cherry on top of their offer.
“It used to be Cary’s office, actually,” Addison chirps, her heels clicking as she circles the desk, an expensive cloud of perfume trailing in her wake. The fact that she makes it a good six paces before the wall stops her is a testament to how massive the space is. At Incite I’d been given only an open-office cubicle. “But when they moved our team down to this hallway…I asked them to save it for you.” She beams at me.
“It’s beautiful,” I say truthfully. “I love it.” And I do.
“I’m going to run downstairs to grab some coffee. Can I get you anything?” Addison asks.
“No, thank you. Is it okay if I just…?”
“Of course,” she purrs. “Take a look around.”
As her heel clicks fade away, I look outside. The window takes up the top half of the wall to my right, and for the first time, the buildings don’t crowd outside my window. Instead, I can see almost the entirety of the southern half of Central Park, all open air until my gaze hits Central Park West. It’s strange to see it from this angle, like I’m peering down at New York’s little slice of manicured nature through a telescope, admiring it from the sky rather than immersing myself in the greenery. It’s a little green snow globe. Grass globe.
I sit down at the L-shaped desk and run my palms along its dark wood as I cast my gaze around the room. It’s almost easy to imagine myself working here; the wide desktop monitor is dark now, but I pretend it’s bright with my bold presentation drafts, open reports, and full inbox. The office is currently bare, but just as I had with Alchemist’s wall, I picture what it might look like if it weremine.The first thing I’d do is put lots of plants in the window, let them soak up all of that uninterrupted sun. Next I’d hang the photos and posters I’d painstakingly framed over the years, though none of them are my artwork. I didn’t want to risk clients asking questions about them; it felt too intimate for them to even witness my art at all. I’d fill up the desk space with all of my best pens and stationery, and maybe add a few books to the shelves. I’d have space for a few pics of me and Liam, of my parents and their foster fail, Meatball, on vacation.
Maybe I’d take a picture with the D&D crew at the Renaissance Faire, all dressed up and grinning. Something to remember our summer by.
Just like Noah,I think ruefully.Surrounded by so many pictures and memories, but thousands of miles away from the people we made them with.
Then I remember that if I take this job, I won’t be in Texas long enough to go.
I’m considering snapping a picture of the office to save when Addison returns with her coffee and two of my potential co-workers, Imani and Derek, in tow. I recognize them from the team interview—Cute Side Bun and Lego Man—and they both beam at me from the doorway.
Imani’s the first to speak. She has on adorable wide-leg red pants and a sweater vest. She juts her thumb back down the hallway. “Hey, neighbor. I’m right next door.” She flashes a conspiratorial grin. “Pretty, isn’t it? This office is half the reason I even agreed to work here, honestly.”
