My Imaginary Ex (COMPLETE)

Chapter 14

"Go to room 2805. It's a meeting room. He's waiting there for you."

Marjorie could be her own GPS, I thought, smiling as I read her text message. It really was quite amazing what she could do in a short amount of time. And that is why she's a hotshot manager and I'm not. Yet.

Although I had to be given credit for actually coming up with a plan. Or at least, an idea for a plan.

I just wished I didn't have to go through with it.

I headed up twenty-eight floors to the meeting room. Their offices were warmer, homier than mine—the surroundings less angular. There was a lot more wood paneling, and the employees seemed a bit older. I had no problem with the guard on their floor; he let me through after I showed my ID.

I entered the meeting room.

"Hi, Ramon," I said.

He didn't seem to know what he was doing there. "Hey, Jasmine." He stood up to give me a quick hug. "Marjorie told me you were interested in the position on my team?"

"She did?" I marveled again at her ingenuity. If I could pick up some social skills from Lena, I could take some lessons on resourcefulness from Marjorie. "Um, no I'm not. I'm here to ask you about Zack."

I'd like to say Ramon and I went way back, but that would be a bit of an overstatement. It was true that among Zack's friends I knew him the best, but Zack wasn't a guy we bonded over. Mostly, my college memories of him involved an awkward tango and a barely acceptable cha-cha.

But by a certain twist of fate, he ended up in the same office as Zack, so he was the only person I could go to about this.

"I don't know anything," he answered automatically.

"Really? Nothing at all? Sit down, Ramon."

"I don't know what to tell you."

"I haven't even asked you anything."

"Look," Ramon said, sitting down but looking really uncomfortable. "You know how Zack is. He doesn't talk to me about any of his girlfriends. Well, except you maybe."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Do you know how he and Kimmy got together?"

"They just suddenly were. Together. I found out that he and Marjorie broke up, and then he started showing up to events with Kimmy."

The poor guy really seemed clueless, but surely he saw something. He probably didn't know what it meant.

"Do you think Zack is happy?" I asked.

Ramon shrugged. "I really don't know. He never says anything."

"Well yeah Zack never says anything. I was asking what you think. You've known him longer than anyone here at work."

The look he gave me was hard to decipher, but I recognized it. He's thought about this before. Ramon probably didn't want to betray his friend.

I need to ask the right question...

I tried this: "Is he different now?"

"Yes," Ramon said, and I must have gotten it right.

"Different how?"

"He started spending more time with us—when he isn't with Kimmy."

"When, recently?"

"Ever since they got together."

"When did they get together?"

"Last year. I think their wedding is supposed to take place right after their first anniversary."

Before or after he took me to the bed and breakfast in Antipolo? I wondered. It must have been before. Why didn't he say anything?

"Why is that different to you? What if he wants to hang out?"

He shook his head. "I can't explain it. But you know him, right? When things are fine, we never see him. He just does his own thing. But when he's like, tense or troubled..."

"He looks for his friends." Yes, I knew this.

"We hung out a lot this past year. It's not weird to anyone else but..."

"I understand." Not that it was evidence of anything, though. All Ramon and I had were our hunches, based on atypical behavior from a guy we'd known for almost ten years. But maybe he'd changed? I had, after all. Nine years was enough time for me to come out of my shell.

And then I tried this next: "What's Kimmy like?"

"She's... well, you've seen her."

"Yes I have," I said, bitterly. "She's gorgeous."

"Also very... look, I don't really want to talk about her."

"Why not?"

"She knows things. I think she has spies in the office or something. It's a good thing she's on a site visit today."

Marjorie timed this well. "We're in a meeting room. Do you think she has it bugged?"

"I don't mean that, it's just that Kimmy is very determined. We never really know what she'll care about, but when she decides on something, she won't stop until she gets it. It's a pain to compete with her for projects, so some of us just drop out when we know she wants it."

I was taken aback. "When did you lose your spine, Ramon?"

He laughed uneasily. "Jasmine, some things aren't worth fighting for. I can let go of a corner office or a business trip to Hong Kong. But I've put my foot down and competed with her over things that actually matter to me. Are you willing to do that?"

"What?"

"Why are you really here, Jasmine?"

"I need your help. Zack won't agree to see me. He won't even answer my calls." I leaned closer to him, in case Kimmy's spies had their ears pressed to the door. "I need to talk to him in private—and she can't be anywhere near."

"That's almost impossible," Ramon said. "She always knows where he is."

"Just set it up, please," I begged. "I need to talk to him. If he insists on marrying her, then I at least tried. But you're right. I'm putting my foot down. This is something that matters."

"I'll try," and Ramon echoed the words and the tone I used to answer Gerard.

Try? We have less than two weeks left! There is no try.

"I actually have an idea," I said reluctantly. "That might make it easier for you."