Page 87 of Paradigm

“Either way, if you don’t have a job there and you can’t get one here, you and I both know what the right decision is there. It is your decision; I’m aware of that, but you are a practical person, Eline. You know that if you get a job here, you’ll be much better off in the end.”

“I know,” she said.

After they exchanged goodbyes, she hung up the phone, flopped down on her sofa, and sighed. Her brain was once again muddled and foggy, and she was so confused. Logically, the right decision was to move back home. She could find a new place after she found a new job. She could live with her parents until then, which wasn’t ideal, but she did miss them, and they’d leave her alone, understanding that she was an adult in her mid-thirties. She’d probably make more money at this new company her dad knew of, too, and she’d be in charge of engineering, which wasn’t exactly something she wanted, despite what her father believed. Eline loved QE. She wanted to be in charge of that, not all of engineering for an entire company. She’d also never mentioned wanting to start something from scratch, so she wasn’t sure where he was getting that from, but she could do it and probably enjoy it.

Eline was also embarrassed. She didn’t want to have to rely on her parents to send her money so that she could stay. She didn’t want Arlowe to have to buy her groceries or even offer her to move into her house. Eline didn’t want them to take those steps until they wanted to. She wanted to be able to celebrate moving in with Arlowe, or Arlowe moving in with her, and not feel like she was accepting defeat when they were finally a couple living together. She had a lot to think about, and she needed to talk to Arlowe about all of it.

CHAPTER 27

She used the key that Eline had given her to get into the building this time. It was easier than making Eline buzz her in and then waiting to open the door for her. Arlowe knew that it wasn’t a real relationship step that they were taking because Eline was ready to give her her key, but it still felt nice, being able to go to Eline’s apartment, park in the guest spot that she now considered her own, and let herself in. It meant good things, she thought, as she pushed open the door, holding a paper bag in her other hand.

“Hey, babe,” she greeted as she closed and locked the door behind her. “Where are you?” she asked after turning around and not finding Eline anywhere.

“In here. Coming,” Eline yelled from her bedroom.

Arlowe walked into the kitchen with the bag and began setting the items she’d bought on the counter. She’d picked up some half-and-half for their morning coffee, some ice cream that they both liked, and some croissants that had looked decent from the grocery store’s bakery. She knew they weren’t fresh, but they could be dipped into that morning coffee and taste just fine. She’d also bought eggs, because they’d eaten all the ones she’d bought earlier that week, and a few snacks.

“What’s all this?” Eline asked when she walked into the kitchen and into Arlowe’s now-waiting arms.

Arlowe kissed her and said, “Food.”

“Arlowe, I have food. You went to the store the day before yesterday,” Eline replied.

“I noticed you were low on a few things, so I picked them up on my way here, and I was thinking that we could order in tonight. I’m too tired to cook, and I’d rather just snuggle up on the couch while we wait for someone else to make and deliver us food than make you cook.” She kissed Eline again. “So, I was thinking burgers, but I’m open to whatever. I can just pull up the app on my phone, and you can add whatever you want while I put this stuff away.” She pulled her phone out of her back pocket and handed it to Eline. “You know my password.”

Eline smiled and asked, “Has it always been your password, or did you change it back when we got back together?”

“It’s always been that way with every phone. When it was still a four-digit password, it was just the month and the day because we used to argue about how the day followed by the month made more sense in formatting.”

“Why must this country do everything that makes sense so differently? Who was it that first said, ‘Doing things in multiples of tens makes perfect sense, but let’s make another confusing system anyway,’ and why?”

“I don’t know that that was us, specifically. We did steal a lot from the Brits,” Arlowe said, causing Eline to chuckle. “Anyway, when they switched to fingerprints, I didn’t switch and kept your birth month and day as the actual password, but when they switched to six-digit numbers for passwords, I just added the year.”

“I did the same,” Eline shared.

“I know. I figured you did, I mean.”

“Arlowe, are you trying to buy me food for my kitchen and order me dinner on your phone because you’re worried about me and money?” Eline asked.

“What? No.” She laughed nervously and let go of Eline. “I just thought you could use this stuff, and I already have the app on my phone. I have, like, a ten-dollar credit, too, because they messed something up for me last time, and I got a refund. So, it just made sense to use my phone.”

“Arlowe…”

Arlowe sighed and said, “Okay. Yes, maybe a little. But I am staying over every night, so I’ve been eating your food. It’s only fair.”

“But you’re not really doing it for that. You’re doing it because I lost my job.”

“Yes, Eline. I have a job right now and a paycheck coming in. I’m also practically living here without living here, so I thought I’d buy some stuff that we can share.”

“I don’t want you to have to do that, Arlowe,” Eline said, crossing her arms over her chest. “That’s not how we should start again.”

“Babe, it’s the situation,” she replied. “If our positions were reversed, you’d do the same for me, wouldn’t you?”

“Yes, but–”

“Is it a pride thing?” Arlowe asked.

“It’s an everything thing,” Eline said and walked out of the kitchen.