Lost Boy

Chapter Fourteen

"Many people, myself among them, feel better at the mere sight of a book."

-Jane Smiley, Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Novel.

...

"Hey." Startled, I looked up from my computer to find Ada, looking down at me with a nervous smile.

"H-h-h-ey." I awkwardly ran my fingers through my hair and brushed my bangs out of my eyes. I didn't know what to say. I just wanted us to be okay again. 

My hand was all healed since the accident, but we hadn't spoken once. She was awkwardly picking at the red nail polish on her hands, opening her mouth as if she had something to say, and then closing it as if she changed her mind. 

"I see your hand looks better." Was all she could say. But at least it was a start. I could work with that. 

I paused what I had been doing, dropping my pen and paper to the desk. "Yeah. It f-f-f-feels fine now. Just n-n-needed some ice." I smiled gently at her, and that was all it took. Once she knew I was okay and we were okay, she plopped herself on the chair next to me, flicking her hair over her shoulder casually and leaning on my desk. 

"Can I see your designs?" She asked, to which I nodded. "I bet they're amazing. Midcentury modern is so on trend right now, you can't go wrong." She laughed, taking the computer mouse from my open hand and scrolling through my concept sketches. "See!" She grinned at me, nudging my shoulder. "I knew it, they all look so good. You're definitely getting the promotion. Me on the other hand, I can barely get Dean to agree on a colour scheme, we are screwed."

I laughed, eventually closing the tabs on my screen when she was done looking. "He only l-l-likes monochrome. He n-n-never compromises." I had done my fair share of projects with Dean and I was used to his quirks. I checked the clock, realising that it was already time to go home, probably why Ada was at my desk. I grabbed my things and logged out of my computer, walking alongside her down the corridor and to the elevator. It was easy enough to fall into our old routine, meeting Scarlett and Dean on the way out. They must have been waiting for us.

The four of us stepped out of the elevator and walked to the parking lot, welcoming the breeze from the bustling city. Dean was whining about his car and Scarlett was taking photos of the sunset distractedly, leaving Ada and I stood together. We stayed in comfortable silence for a moment, watching the other two. I felt her turn to look at me, so I met her gaze with a soft smile, letting her know we were okay.

It was easy to move on that way, the four of us had been friends so long that they felt more like a family. Scratch that, they were my family, no matter how dysfunctional we were.   

 ...

One week later

"Hey princess!" I paused at my desk, the hot coffee clutched between my hands. It was cold today, so I had made a quick stop at the local coffee shop to grab the warm beverage. I looked up, meeting Tyler's intense grey blue eyes and signature smirk. 

I looked around confused. He hadn't bothered to show up at work all week, leaving me to work on the project alone, and now he just shows up out of the blue. "What a-are you doing here?" 

"Aw, did someone miss me?" He teased, flicking through the designs sitting on my desk, placed neatly into colour-coded folders. He stopped when he found the page for our project. I had loosely sketched a few different concepts, having been alone in the office all week meant I had made quite a bit of progress. 

"I had t-t-to do the project alone. You left me." I scowled, placing my things down and coming to sit at my desk. He was trying to intimadate me, toying with me to make me nervous, but I didn't let it show. I pretended he wasn't there, ignoring his presence. He looked annoyed, tilting his head in confusion when I continued to work as normal, not giving him the attention he craved.