Page 12 of When Our Stars Aligned

Alex leans forward with his elbows on the table. “There are two groups of guys at the station. The married guys and the single guys. I am now the oldest of the single guys.”

“So?”

“So, I used to enjoy being part of the single guys’ group, but lately, I don’t know. I look over at the married guys and they all seem so…happy and content. I guess I’m starting to feel a little restless. I think I’m getting ready to settle down.”

“Allthe married guys are happy?” I find that hard to believe based on my short-lived experience.

“Well, all but Mickelson; his wife seems pretty bitchy. But anyway, I listen to the guys, and they talk about things they did with their wives on their days off. They show each other picturesof their kids learning to walk or their kids’ little league games and shit. I want that too.”

“Hey, guys!” Carter appears from behind me.

“What are you doing here? I thought you had a date with Kayla tonight.” Alex takes a pull from his beer.

“Nah, we’re done. She’s moving up north to take care of her grandmother and we both agreed we’re not long-distance relationship material. It’s all good, though. It’s not like she was the one, ya know?” Carter does not do one-night stands. Out of the three of us, he’s the relationship guy.

“Please!” Alex scoffs. “You wouldn’t know ‘the one’ if she was living right next door.”

“Speaking of living next door, I spent a lovely afternoon with our new neighbor.” Carter raises his hand to get our waitress’s attention.

“No shit! You and Legs?” Alex raises an eyebrow.

“Legs?” I snort.

“You’ll see!” Alex gives a wink.

Carter shakes his head at his roommate. “There’s nothing going on between us. We have definitely friend-zoned each other. She had never seen the Pacific Ocean, so I offered to take her.”

“Well, look at you being all kind and neighborly. What did she think of the Pacific Ocean?”

“She thought it was great. We took a walk along the beach and talked for a while. She told me a little about her life on the East Coast and her job at the university.”

“You took a walk on the beach? Sounds romantic.” Alex waggles his not-drawn-on eyebrows.

“Nope. She’s beautiful and sweet, but we are most definitely just friends.” Carter turns his attention to me. “Have you met Aly yet?”

I shake my head, playing with the label on my beer. “Didn’t even know her name until you just said it.”

“Aw, come on, your front doors literally face each other and you still haven’t met her?” Alex sits back in his seat. “She’s cute too. I’d ask her out but—”

“Yeah, yeah, we know the Alejandro Jones Clause,” Carter teases. After the debacle with the girls’ previous roommate, Michelle put in a clause stating that any future tenants would be evicted if they had sexual relations with Alex. “Pretty sure she’s not interested in you anyway.”

“What?” Alex feigns shock. “I’m a delight!”

“Anyway,” Carter turns back to me. “You really should go over and introduce yourself. She just made a huge cross-country move and only knows the girls and me…plus the delight sitting next to you.”

“I’ll think about it,” I lie. If I happen to run into her in the hallway or something, I’ll introduce myself, but I’m not going out of my way to meet new people. It’s a miracle that I go out with Alex and Carter or have the occasional dinner at the girls’ place. Up until I moved into my condo, I had my family and my best friend, Travis. Throw in the occasional nameless one-night stand and that’s the extent of my social life.

9

Aly

I step out of my car and take in a deep breath of fresh air. I swear the air smells cleaner out in Oregon. Beaute has a lot of farms, so the smell of cows and other livestock was always prevalent. Everyone said I would get used to it, but I never did.

Today is my first official day as an employee at Starboard Beach University. The summer semester doesn’t start for another week, but I need to sign some paperwork and get my faculty ID.

I went for a swim this morning and pushed myself harder than yesterday. I purposely made myself tired to keep my nerves at bay. Also, Angry Butterfly Guy was back and I didn’t want him to think I was a weak swimmer.

White and yellow daisies line the path that leads towards the administration hall and I hope the sight of my favorite flower isa sign of good things to come. I check in with the receptionist and wait for Dr. Conway, Head of the Education Department. She is the one who contacted me about the position after reading my dissertation online. We’ve spoken several times on the phone and through Zoom meetings. We seemed to click well during our chats, so I’m hoping things will go well in person.

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