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I take a seat, still clutching my cat as he rubs his face against mine.
“I missed you too, buddy,” I say as I rub him from head to tail. “So…so…much.”
“Kendall, what in the hell happened on that island?” Maggie asks.
“What island?” Daphne, my other roommate, demands when she joins us in the living room.
“Right, sorry. I’ll start from the beginning,” Maggie says. “On Thursday Kendall asked me if I could pet sit while she was off pretending to be engaged to our boss.”
“What?” Celia exclaims.
I sit quietly, hugging my cat while Maggie catches them up through when we left Friday.
“So, what happened on the island?” Maggie asks me. “I spoke to you Saturday morning and everything was fine.”
I nod as I recall the details of that day. “Things were good that morning. Great that afternoon. Then the next day… the photoshoot. I thought it would be funny to have Monty wear a black speedo for our fake engagement photos.”
“Oh, I bet that was hilarious,” Maggie agrees with a bark of laughter.
“We kissed, and it wasn’t fake. It was very real. Then at dinner…he remembered my birthday.”
I can feel my roommates exchanging looks with Maggie. “It’s okay. I don’t make a big deal about it…”
At least my little brother sent me a card. A pop-up 3D card of a cat farting colorful streamers. He still knows me well, even if we don’t talk often.
“Kendall! We should’ve known,” Daphne says.
“I wish you had told us,” Celia adds.
“I’m such an awful best friend,” Maggie says.
“No, you’re not.”
“I’m so sorry, Kendall,” Celia says. “We’ll make it up to you. I’ll do dishes for a month.”
“And I’ll do your laundry for two months,” Daphne offers.
“No, it’s fine. Really,” I tell them. “I told Monty I quit. I can’t keep working for him after…”
“After? After what?” Maggie asks. “Did you sleep with him?”
“Yes!” I exclaim while burying my face in Mr. Jingles.
“Was it that bad?” Daphne asks.
“Or was it way too good is the question,” Celia remarks.
I nod. “It was amazing. Consuming. After the first time, it was like neither of us could get enough. We stayed up all night long.”
“All night? Wow. Get ’em Monty,” Maggie whispers. “So, what’s the problem?”
“It was just for one night. At least for him. I waited two years for him to finally kiss me, and I can’t wait any longer!”
“Oh, sweetie,” Maggie says as she wraps her arm around me. “Men can be such idiots.”
“I bet he’s a wreck like you are,” Daphne says.
“I doubt it. He just got out of a relationship. I was a… a distraction from her breaking his heart. I wanted him to have fun this weekend. To loosen up and get over her. To finally kiss me. It’s all my fault, really.”
