Page 8 of At Your Door

“Let me see.” I can hear her groan in defeat, but I don’t care.

It’s kind of blurry because of how dirty my peephole is, but even through the dust, I know Eleanor’s right.

The first girl I see is a tall brunette; her hair is so long it almost matches the length of her black mini-dress. Hooked on her arm is a shorter tan girl with a head full of curls. Whatever they’re laughing at makes them double over as they walk past my door.

I pull away for just a moment, “What did you see? Did you hear them say anything?”

“No, you pushed me away before I could, but I did hear the two girls call her Griffon,” Eleanor says.

I’m tempted to open the door just to get a peek at how she looks. I wonder if she is still in that same green vest from before. But I know I could be risking further embarrassment and I think I’ve had enough of that for a lifetime. So I back away and let the voices fade into nothing as they walk down the hallway. But my mind can’t stop roaming through all the places Griffon could be going right now.

Who are those girls she's with?

Maybe they aren’t her friends—maybe one of them is her girlfriend?

Or are theybothher girlfriends?

Is that who I heard with her Friday night?

I don’t even realize I’ve zoned out until El’s fingers snap in front of my face.

“Hellooo? Earth to Mia!”

I finally turn to see El standing before my door with arms crossed over her chest.

“What? What is it?”

“Uhhh, I think you have some explaining to do, don’t you think?”

I turn away and head toward the couch. “What do you mean?” I ask, trying to sound confused.

“Youknowwhat I mean! We’ve been hanging out all weekend, and notoncedid you mention how hot your neighbor is. You made it sound like she was some crazy weirdo you couldn’t stand to be around.”

It’s quiet for a moment. “Well, I wasn’t really focused on her looks when we first met. May I remind you of the situation I was in?”

El just rolls her eyes and sighs before joining me on the couch.

“We can’t be losers for the rest of our lives, Mia. We're 25, I still live at home with my parents, and we've been working at the same café for four years now. Something’s got to change! How can you deny what the universe is literally giving you? I mean, did you see how tall she is? Jesus, you could climb her like a damn tre—"

“Okay, enough, El! I get it. I want change too, but definitely not like this. Now can we please just drop it for tonight? I just want to forget about all of this,” I interrupt.

She waves her hand in my face. “Fine, fine, I’ll drop it for now, but you're not escaping this, Mia. She literally gave you a dildo!”

“Which I will be giving back,” I say, pointing my finger at her to make it clear.

“Ugh, why?” El groans.

“El, I can’t actually have her thinking I would use that!”

She doesn’t respond, but her lips are tight. I move to turn on the TV, ending the conversation. I’m about to click on Netflix when El stops me.

Her voice breaks the silence. “But what if you did?” El asks.

“Huh?” I turn to face her again, the remote still loosely in my hand.

“I mean, what if youactedlike you used it?” It’s still silent as I stare at her blankly, wide-eyed.

“Let’s be real, I don’t think she’d actually expect you to use it either, but what if she justthinksyou did?”

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