AnaBGR
You don’t even know what the job was. Maybe I wasn’t meant to be an Etsy overlord.
StanleyP
I know you applied for a job in radio, Ana. IMO, anyone who has listened to your podcast and doesn’t immediately want to see what you can do with actual resources is an idiot.
I stood in the dark for a moment, reading and rereading StanleyP’s words. He had no idea how much they meant.
AnaBGR
Thank you. You said you have news too.
StanleyP
It’s nothing.
AnaBGR
Friends don’t let friends pass up an opportunity to gloat.
StanleyP
When you put it like that...
AnaBGR
I insist. Give me some good news.
StanleyP
My project is a go. I signed the contract today. My boss is convinced I know what I’m doing, enough to give me the seed money to take a real leap. We open at the end of the month. I still have some complications to take care of, but I’m excited.
AnaBGR
As my people say,mabrook! I remember when you first started talking about this secret project of yours.
StanleyP
It was one of your podcast episodes that inspired me to take the leap.
AnaBGR
I’m almost tempted to break our pact and ask for details. But I won’t.
StanleyP
How about this? When my project goes live, I’ll send you a picture of what I’ve been working on, and then you can decide what to do with that information. Deal?
It seemed a neat solution to the problem of moving forward or not. If he sent me a picture of something strange, such as a collection of severed doll’s heads, that would be a clear sign not to take the relationship any further. I also liked the idea of a deadline for making a decision about us. End of next month—four weeks away. Far enough away to feel comfortable, yet close enough to stay relevant.
AnaBGR
Deal.
I put my phone away and walked home, contemplative in the humid darkness.
Chapter Eight
