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The truth?
- Will
I reply back in seconds.
From:
To:
Subject: Re: Re: Re: hi
Always. The truth isalwaysbetter.
- B
Can my life take another person lying to me? Who knows. But also, what does it matter when this is a random person I don’t even know?
My stomach turns as I wait. This is ourcustomeremailing me, though. If Lena found out we were emailing on the side she’d… What, exactly? I mean, it’s not like there’s explicit rules about this, right? But... still, it doesn’t feel right.
From:
To:
Subject: Re: Re: hi
I’m not sure.
I guess I needed a friend.
- Will
My fingers hoverover the screen as I think of what I could possibly reply to that. He needed a friend? I know what that’s like, but what can I possibly say that would help?
In the end, I decide not to reply, but I toss and turn all night in my Murphy bed, going over his words in my head a hundred times over.
He needed a friend. And I guess I’ve been in more situations than I can count where I’ve needed support and been lucky enough to get it. But I’ve also been in situations where I’ve lost friendships due to things that have happened to me because of my bad luck that were out of my control. Like, right after Roger left, a few of my friends ghosted me after he swindled them out of some cash. They blamed me for bringing him into their lives and cut me out of it for good despite not having anything to do with his grifting. Which is why, despite not owing this stranger anything, the following morning the people pleaser in me can’t help but reach out to check in on him because I’ve been through some very lonely lows myself.
From:
To:
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: hi
Do you want to talk about it? I’m a good listener (or reader, I guess).
- Bridget
I feed Ginger her breakfast and get dressed. Once she’s done, she jumps with grace on the teal tufted reading chair I inherited from my grandmother. I, on the other hand, keep refreshing my app, waiting for his reply to come through—but nothing ever does. It isn’t until I’m back in the office, several hours later, that I hear from him again.
From:
To:
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: hi
Haha you’re sweet. But I’m good. Work is just a lot. This industry can sometimes be… well. You know.
You excited about the new collection? Haven’t received any emails today from you expressing how cool you think things are going lately.
