“No, you don’t. You hate running into your students at Burger Barn, but you love their onion rings. That’s why we have to go now before the kids get back. So, get your life together, and I’ll meet you at the barn house at 7 on the dot. Deal?”

Deja sighed this time. “Fine.”

“Sound happier, please,” Toni directed.

Deja laughed unexpectedly. “Fine,” she said in a happier tone.

“Great. See ya,” Toni said and then hung up before Deja could respond.

Deja dressed up.

It was kind of pathetic because she literally just walked fifteen minutes to the roadhouse-style burger joint that was usually full of students and loud enough that some nights she could hear the commotion from her apartment, especially during homecoming weekend and right before spring graduation. But she hadn’t left her apartment in an indeterminate amount of time, and she wanted to celebrate the occasion.

She pulled her favorite black skinny jeans on and put on a pair of leather riding boots and a slouchy sweater that draped to show a little shoulder. Granted, she then covered that naked shoulder with her winter coat, wrapped her thickest knit scarf around her throat, and grabbed a hat and gloves on her way out the door, but it was the attempt at style that mattered.

The walk to the restaurant was brisk, in her pace and in the air, but it was nice to be out in the fresh air. Deja hated to admit it, but Toni was right; she really needed to leave her house more, and not just to run errands. Deja wasn’t going to tell her that she was right, of course, because no one loved being able to say “I told you so” more than Toni. Still, Deja spent the short walk realizing that she needed to stop treating herself so poorly.

By the time Deja arrived at Burger Barn, Toni was sitting at a table with a margarita in front of her and a bright smile on her face. Her face lit up when Deja walked in the front door, and she waved her over.

Deja began unwrapping her scarf from her throat as she walked through the dining room, and the closer she got, the more she noted just how rested Toni looked. Her vacation braids were piled messily atop her head in a cute style, her eyes were bright, no concealer needed, and her skin had a sun-kissed glow, because she, unlike Deja, had taken a break instead of working over the holidays.

“Hey,” Toni said when Deja was within earshot.

“Hey. You look amazing,”

“I feel wrecked. Ten hours traveling to get here, and I only slept for like four hours.”

“Oh my god, why didn’t you cancel?”

Toni squinted at her. “Why the hell would I do that?”

“So you could rest,” Deja replied with a frown.