Jeremy was busy with meetings all day, making him easy to avoid. She left early to get home before he would, but that turned out to not be necessary. He was late, and the anticipation of waiting tied her stomach into knots. She tried sitting on the couch. She tried sitting on the stairs outside….
“I don’t think you’re supposed to be in here, Miss Garcia,” Jeremy teased. His tone made it clear he was making the obvious assumption about why she’d corner him alone in the men’s room. She didn’t mean to be nervous, but there must have been something in her expression to make his eyes go wide…
Victoria was curled up on Jeremy’s couch, wrapped in a throw blanket with her laptop on her knees. She was catching up on email, only dimly aware of the game Jeremy was playing. It seemed to involve a lot of horseback riding through the desert. “I should probably mention,” he said, apropos of nothing, “I’m…
Victoria wasn’t trying to be clingy, but it seemed to be happening regardless. Being in a church surrounded by strangers turned out to be extraordinarily uncomfortable, and she was dealing with it by staying as close to Jeremy as she could. It didn’t help, either, that he was in the process of trying to break…
Victoria: Want to meet me in the storage room in twenty minutes or so? Jeremy: We probably shouldn’t Victoria: Why? Jeremy: I think they’re onto us Victoria: What? Victoria: Fuck. Victoria: The nerd guys. Jeremy: Will and Darren Victoria: You knew who I meant. ◦◦◦ Jeremy: I told them not to mention it Victoria: That…
Jeremy tapped his controller thoughtfully against his knee. Outside, rain continued to pour. “I could just not play,” Darren suggested. “Just be on a team with me,” Will countered. “I’m not making Jay play with a bot.” “The bots aren’t that bad.” “What, you think I’m worse than a bot?” “I didn’t say that.” “I…
Jeremy: Coming over tonight? Victoria: Can’t. Jeremy: K ◦◦◦ Victoria: Apartment hunting. Jeremy: ?? Victoria: My building got condemned. Jeremy: ????? Victoria: Yeah. Victoria: The plumbing was always pretty fucked up but now no one’s getting water. Victoria: Nothing is working. Victoria: Instead of fixing it I guess they’re just going to… not? Jeremy: Are…
Victoria’s steps slowed on the way back to her apartment. Someone was waiting outside for her—heading toward her to intercept her path. It had been Jeremy’s goal that they’d meet at the sidewalk, so that the two of them could walk together back to her building. Instead she stopped, and he was forced to join…
Jeremy: I just watched Josh sneak into accounting to steal a cruller Jeremy: Which he then dropped Jeremy: And then ate anyway Jeremy: He thinks no one saw but now we both know his secret ◦◦◦ Jeremy: Are you avoiding me? Victoria: No. Jeremy: Well that got a quick reply ◦◦◦ Jeremy: You’re pretty clearly…
Victoria agonized over whether or not to open the door to her apartment. She was in her pajamas, her makeup was off, and more importantly: she never let anyone into her apartment. The deciding factor, ultimately, was a concern that the idiot at her door might walk drunkenly into traffic. “Jeremy,” she said when she…