Page 22 of Losing Ansley

“Hey, man!” Fucking finally! I want to scream at him, but I keep myself cool because his hours have been crazy.

“Hey! What are you doing?” I ask, and he grunts like he just sat down.

“Nothing right now. I just got home from work. It has been a crazy schedule.” He explains, and I nod even though he can’t see. I need to know how Ansley is doing, but I also need to keep my cool.

“I can tell. Trying to get a hold of you and your sister has been hard. How’s Ansley adjusting?” I ask, trying to sound casual. Dylan chuckles.

“She was made for this. The girl is rocking it.” He exclaims. Pride swells within my chest. I knew she would, even if it took her from me. She deserves to do something that makes her happy. “She’ll be up there this weekend visiting her friends.” He tells me, and my heart stops.

“Really?” I ask, still trying to sound calm and collected.

“Yeah. She’s staying with Liv.” He mentions, and I try to come up with a plan on how I can run into her somehow. I half listen to the story he’s telling me about shooting in the city. He says something about getting hit by a car.

“What?” I ask.

“Not me. One of the cameras. The idiot wasn’t watching. But I’m glad it was the camera and not me, honestly.” He says, and I agree wholeheartedly. “Sorry to jump off so quickly, but I have to get a couple of hours of sleep.” He explains.

“Will she be coming in on Friday?” I ask him before he gets off.

“Huh? Oh… Yeah. She said something about them doing their girl’s night like they used to do.” I begin to form a plan in my mind.

“Alright. Well, I hope you get some rest. It was good talking to you for a few minutes.” He says bye, and I hang up, leaning back in my chair.

I stare at my computer screen. Fridays turned into a girl’s night, but it started as a night out for everyone in the office to unwind. It’s still an open invitation, so I’ll find out where they’re going this week. It’s a different bar and grill every Friday. I stand up and button my suit jacket.

Walking out of my office, I make my way to the break room. Usually, when people see me coming, they scurry away because I don’t particularly appreciate seeing them standing around chatting. This time I’m hoping they don’t. I consider asking Liv or Caroline outright where they’re going, but I’m afraid they’ll tell Ansley, and she’ll avoid me again.

When I walk into the break room, a few interns are chatting and munching on some trail mix that someone brought in. When they all see me, they stand to attention.

“Mr. Holloway! Hi sir!” I shake my head and wave at them.

“You’re okay. Don’t pay me any mind. I came in to grab some coffee.” They all look at each other in confusion and then awkwardly stand there as they watch me start the Keurig. I take advantage of their silence and turn toward them as the coffee begins to brew.

“Are any of you going to the office outing on Friday night?” They all share looks and turn back to stare at me. They all look terrified. Am I that hard on people? One of the interns speaks up.

“I… Ummm…” She stutters, and I raise an eyebrow. She takes a deep breath and tries again. “I’ve never been. I’ve heard it’s fun, though.” I nod and glance around at the other two.

“I’ve been a couple of times.” The guy says. I don’t know any of their names. I need to start learning people’s names. Ansley used to fuss at me all the time about being more personable. I guess she was right.

“What’s your name?” I ask the guy, and he looks at me, startled. I’m unsure if it’s because I asked or because he thinks I should know.

“Chris, sir.” I wave my hands at him.

“You don’t have to call me sir,” I admonish, and some of the fear he had in his eyes seems to dwindle. That’s progress. “Will you be going this Friday?” He shrugs.

“Maybe. It depends on my work schedule.” I stare at him in confusion. “Not this work schedule. I have another part-time job.” He clarifies, and I nod. I should know these things about my employees. Well, maybe not all the tiny details but at least their names. I’m going to start doing better.

“Do you know where it’ll be? I might join this week.” Chris shakes his head and glances at the other girl I haven’t paid much attention to.

“I think they’re going to that new pub that just opened.” I think about it for a second and remember a pub that opened a week or so ago. I know the owner.

“Great! Thanks…” I trail off and glance at her for her name.

“Katrina.” I nod.

“Katrina. Sorry, I’ll get better at remembering everyone’s names.” I turn to the first girl because she still hasn’t said her name.

“Lisa.” She says, and I smile. I grab my coffee and take a sip.

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