She catches my vibes at once. “And before the day was over, you asked him where you stood…”

Nod.

“He freaked out.”

Nod.

“You went on the defensive and lashed out.”

Whimper.

“Richard got mad, too, the argument escalated, you both became petty, hurt each other as much as you could until you stormed out of his house, banging the door behind you. How am I doing?”

I drop my face into my hands and shake my head.

“Awhooo,” Chevron comments.

Nikki sighs. “And all this in front of the dog?”

Face still hidden, I nod.

“The poor thing is traumatized.”

I give her a look of desperation.

“Come on,” Nikki pulls me into a hug. “Everything will be all right.”

“How?”

“You two just have to talk.”

I snort. “Yeah, because Richard is so good at expressing his feelings.”

“Give him time. You ambushed him when he wasn’t ready. You should’ve let him get more used to you.”

“I know I was supposed to wait. But what if I don’t want to? What if I want to tell him how I feel when I feel it? Why is that so wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong. But it’s wrong to expect Richard to be on the same page right away. Give him some time.”

“Oh, he has all the time in the world.”

“Meaning?”

“I’m not taking another step toward him. Not one.”

“So you’re just going to pretend the past forty-eight hours didn’t happen?”

“Exactly. If Richard changes his mind, he knows where to find me.”

***

Monday morning, I put on a brave face and go to the office. I wear a simple blouse, black capris, and sneakers to be switched with wedges in Brooklyn. Because Richard doesn’t like wedges. I don’t want to spark any extra tension, sexual or otherwise. I just want to get through the day, ignore him, and be ignored back.

I sit at my desk, bend my head low, and will myself to stare at my screen and just my screen. I don’t even blink when Richard walks in. He supplies a generic, “Hello,” that leaves me free enough not to reply, and then moves on to his office without a second glance in my direction. At least from what I can tell using only my peripheral vision.

So he’s going for an avoidance strategy, too. Very well! I am the queen of avoidance, I can keep my silent treatment going for weeks if I want to.

Mon, June 12 at 8:37 AM @PinkPanther has logged in

R u mad at the boss?

I guess not everyone is willing to ignore me though.

Mon, June 12 at 8:38 AM @PoshSpice you are now logged in

I don’t want to talk about it

We’re not talking

Okay

I don’t want to talk

Write

Or even think about it

???

Leave it alone

No can do

Please let it go

I might start crying

And I’d really rather not

Oh!

Yeah, oh!

You slept together

I’m logging off