“See?” Hailey uncrossed her arms. “Come on.”
“Fine,” Charlie acquiesced.
“Thank you for coming.” Eva hugged a smiling Hailey.
“Sorry,” Ember said and embraced her friend. “Not sorry,” she said as she pulled back and offered her a wink.
They exchanged partners, offered more hugs, and said their goodbyes to the other guests they knew, including Hannah and Alyssa, before they headed outside.
“I’m over here.” Hailey pointed at her new Lexus.
She’d bought it about six months ago when she started traveling more for her job at a major Midwestern bank in their PR department. Charlie followed her to the car and climbed into the passenger’s side as had been her habit now for years. Charlie didn’t have a car herself since she lived and worked in the city. If she needed one, she could either borrow Hailey’s or now Eva and Ember’s. Almost a year prior, she’d started working at an architecture startup that focused on modern design and also redesigning and remodeling old warehouses and other historical buildings in the city to make them work for today’s companies. She was a Senior Manager of her department initially but had recently been promoted to Director of the Renew and Recycle team. That was more of an external title. Internally, they called her team the Historians, which still sounded funny to her, but they’d earned that moniker due to their primary focus on old buildings. While everyone else in the company was striving for modern and trendy, her team focused on updating the older structures while maintaining much of their old-world vibe. The combination of the two elements was something her firm was known for and something she really enjoyed about her job.
“Thanks for the ride,” Charlie told Hailey when she pulled up and parked in front of Charlie’s new apartment.
She’d moved in only about three months prior, when her promotion came with more money and she could afford the building with a doorman, concierge service, and other amenities she’d never dared to hope for when she was a mere city planner and on a government salary.
“Sure,” Hailey replied. “Hey, would you mind if I just crashed here tonight? I’m kind of tired. It would be easier than driving home. I have to be on this side of town tomorrow for work anyway.”
“You planned this, didn’t you?” Charlie pointed a finger at her. “You wanted to drive me home just so you could crash at my kick-ass apartment.”
“So, can I crash at your kick-ass apartment?” Hailey checked.
“Of course, you can, but you don’t have anything-”
Charlie stopped herself abruptly when she watched Hailey reach in the back seat and pull up a small overnight bag that Charlie recognized.
“Thanks.” Hailey smiled at her and turned off the car.
“You did plan this!” Charlie laughed and opened the car door. “You’re just lucky Mondays are not street cleaning days, Hailey Jean Grant,” she chastised.
“You know I hate that middle name,” Hailey retorted as they made their way to the front of the brand-new building and the doorman opened the door for them with a nod.
“That’s why I used it, obviously.”
“Smartass,” Hailey replied and hit the button for seven before Charlie could.
“Maybe you should just get a kick-ass apartment too. You make enough money. Why are you still in the hole?”
“It’s not a hole,” Hailey argued as they stepped into the elevator. “It’s a nice studio, and it’s rent controlled.”
“You had termites last year. You had to stay with me for a week while they fumigated.”
“It’s been fine since.”
“Yet you’ve stayed here like ten times since I moved in.”
“I’d ask if I was being an imposition, but I don’t care enough to worry about that tonight.” Hailey stepped out of the elevator first, and Charlie followed her down the hall until they reached a black door with a giant number painted on it in block lettering.
Charlie pulled her wallet out of the back pocket of her jeans. She’d been glad the engagement party was not a formal affair, since it enabled her to wear simple jeans and an argyle sweater she often wore to work with a collared shirt beneath. She pulled out the RFID key card all the apartments used, went to swipe it in front of the reader, but then she saw Hailey’s wide eyes.
“Go on.” Charlie passed Hailey the card.
Hailey waved it in front of the reader, heard the beep and smiled before passing it back to Charlie.
“Still so cool,” she said and walked inside.
Eddie, Charlie’s chocolate lab, met her immediately and began licking her outstretched hand.
“He likes you better than me,” Charlie joked and closed the door behind them.
“Probably,” Hailey teased and dropped to her knees to take Eddie’s face in her hands. “You like me better, don’t you?”
“I’m going to take him out. I’ll be right back.” Charlie grabbed Eddie’s leash off the table next to the door. The dog instantly chose her over Hailey. “Come on, buddy.” She attached the leash to his collar and opened the door back up to take him outside.
◆◆◆
When she returned and allowed Eddie to run through the expansive living room as he always did when he got back upstairs, she found that Hailey was already in the shower. Charlie liked the openness of the apartment. It was the main reason she’d leased it. Eddie had a lot of space to move around and even an area toward the side window that was his domain with toys, his food and water and his giant bed that he loved so much, he often tried to drag it from place to place in the apartment. Charlie didn’t want him doing that though, so she got him a blanket. Her precocious little man would take the blanket with him around the apartment instead. Sometimes, he’d encourage Charlie to drape it over him, and he’d wander around like that. It was one of his little eccentricities that she adored about him so much.
She let him run around for a few minutes while she sorted the mail she’d picked up on her way back in, found most of it was junk and tossed it aside before moving toward her room to change. She quickly found the sweats she’d slept in the night before on her unmade bed, exchanged those for jeans before finding a shirt in a drawer and tossing her dirty clothes into the hamper in her walk-in closet. She laid down on her comfortable plush mattress and turned on the TV.
“I forgot the pants.” Hailey had finished in the shower and stood in Charlie’s bedroom doorway wearing a Northwestern t-shirt and a towel under it around her waist.
Charlie knew she had underwear on, but Hailey and Charlie hadn’t ever been the kind of close friends that had seen each other naked or even close to it.
“You what?” Charlie laughed at the image of Hailey standing there half-dressed, with wet hair that was dripping onto the light gray shirt.
“I brought a shirt to sleep in and clothes for work tomorrow, but I forgot the pants to sleep in,” she explained her previous statement.
“Oh, bottom drawer,” Charlie pointed to the dresser that was on the wall opposite her bed.
Her fifty-two-inch flat screen hung on a wall over it. Other than the two bedside tables that she’d bought merely so that she could put these matching lamps on and maybe a phone and some water at night, there was no other furniture in the room.
“Thanks.” Hailey bent over, careful to hold the towel as she did. Charlie told herself she could glance for a second before returning her eyes to the TV. It would only be a second. It was more than a second, but no more than five, she convinced herself. Hailey’s legs were bare and freshly shaven, it appeared. Her skin glimmered. The towel she’d chosen, unfortunately, had been a large one that meant that even when she bent over, Charlie didn’t get much of a look. That was a good thing. For one, she shouldn’t be torturing herself like this, but she also didn’t want to objectify her best friend like that. She pulled her eyes back to the guide she’d just put on the TV, clicked it to her DVR list of recordings and watched Hailey slide on a pair of her flannel pajama pants before dropping the towel on the
bed for a moment to pull her shirt down correctly. “This TV is way too big for this room.” She pointed at the flat screen.
“This TV is the perfect size for this room.”
“Charlie, it’s massive, and this is the bedroom. Why didn’t you get a smaller one for in here? You should sleep in your bedroom; not watch a giant TV right before bed. There have been studies done on that kind of thing.” Hailey headed back toward the bathroom, which was just outside the bedroom, as she lectured, causing her voice to fade out toward the end.
“I heard you the first time you complained about it.” Charlie selected an episode of Chopped and tossed the remote next to her on the bed.
If Ember was the genius in their threesome, Hailey was the one that always knew about the recent discoveries or studies. She had no particular area of interest. She merely read about anything and shared it with people in her life. She’d be the first person to tell someone to decrease their salt intake because it was bad for them, and then read a second study and tell them the exact opposite. She somehow always managed to make it okay though. She was never annoying about it or even forceful or judging. It felt to Charlie as if Hailey just wanted people to know these things so that they could make their own decisions.
“What are you watching?” Hailey returned to the room and sat on the edge of the bed.
“Chopped. You want to watch it with me or will that interfere with your precious REM cycle, Hails?” Charlie teased, but she knew the answer already and moved the remote control to her table so that Hailey could climb up next to her.
Hailey did and quickly slid her legs under the large light gray comforter that matched the soft sheets beneath. Charlie made it to the entrée round commercial break before her eyes closed after several moments of her trying to combat sleep, with Hailey still sitting next to her engrossed in the episode.
CHAPTER 2
Hailey finished the episode of Chopped on her own since Charlie had fallen asleep beside her. She used all the stealth she possessed, which wasn’t much, to reach over Charlie on the queen-sized bed for the remote that was on the table. Once she nudged Charlie’s shoulder and felt the woman somewhat beneath her begin to turn, she recognized her mistake. She should have gotten up and walked around the damn bed to do this. She grabbed it though, turned the TV off, and didn’t risk putting it back in place. Once it was settled on the table on her side, she considered going out to the sofa to sleep for the night. That was her spot. She claimed that sofa two years ago when Charlie bought it from this local furniture store. The first time she fell asleep on it, she woke up completely rested. From that moment on, it was love. In all their years of friendship, Hailey had fallen asleep in a bed with Charlie maybe a handful of times, and only because they were in the hotels with Ember when they were young and couldn’t afford separate rooms.
Their trips were few and far between and were also not to glamorous places, like most college students seem to flock to over spring breaks or summer vacations. Hailey was not from a well-to-do family, and neither was Charlie. It was one of the reasons they’d both ended up at the restaurant where the three of them met. Hailey could see Charlie’s peaceful expression in the dim light of the room caused by the hallway light that was visible through the open door. Charlie always slept with the hall light on. She was thirty-one years old and was still somewhat afraid of the dark. Hailey had confronted her about it years ago, and when Charlie denied it, Hailey went to the nearest store to buy one of those light activated night lights that stay off until the room or space is dark, and then they turn on giving people enough light to see. Hailey had been proud of the purchase and of her demonstration of their greatness since this would save electricity and solve Charlie’s problem. But the next time she stayed over, the lights were still there but never turned themselves on because Charlie still used the hall light.
That was when Hailey determined Charlie was not a fan of the darkness. She hadn’t brought it up since, but they’d had many conversations over the course of their lengthy friendship. Hailey had managed to piece together a theory. Charlie had once lived in a bad neighborhood in the city. Her neighbors had been robbed, people did drugs in the open, and there were mentions of some peeping tom type situations. Hailey guessed the light was a comfort more than anything because she was a single woman living in a big city on her own. Her new apartment was definitely much more secure, but anything could happen since nowhere is 100% safe. By the time Hailey finished her thoughts about bed or sofa, she found herself lying down next to Charlie, and as if on instinct, her eyes closed, making a decision for her.
Hailey woke up to an empty bed. Charlie had always been an early riser. It used to drive Hailey and Ember crazy because even when they did take those trips, Charlie was up by six at the latest, ready to start the day. The two of them wanted at least three more hours to nurse a hangover or get the sleep they hadn’t gotten the night before because they’d been up talking.
In high school, Hailey had a friend or two. She wasn’t a leper, but she never tried to fit in or be popular. She wasn’t a joiner who participated in extracurricular activities. She tried track in middle school but found running in an endless oval to be boring and gave up on sports. She tried the spelling bee once at a teacher’s coaxing because her grades were good, but she didn’t really like speaking in public. And when one has to spell difficult words in public, it may not matter how great their spelling skills actually are. At one point, her guidance counselor suggested she run for class office. She’d thought it a joke at first, until the reaction to her laughter made her realize it was not a joke. Her guidance counselor thought she should stand up in front of the entire school and make a speech about why she should be in charge of things.
She didn’t want to do it. She really had no intention of going through with it, but her mother thought it would be a good experience for her and would help make her applications to college look better. She wrote a speech, had her mom review it for her, and then she practiced in her bedroom while standing in front of her mirror like a total tool, or at least that was what a seventeen-year-old Hailey thought she looked like.
When the day for the speeches came around, she tried to fake being sick, but her particularly astute mother knew what she was trying to pull and forced her to go to school by driving her there herself and then sticking around for the actual speech. She’d seen her mother standing at the back of the auditorium while the students all filed in. She waited backstage with clammy hands and with sweat forming in all the places sweat forms. She’d decided to run for class secretary because she honestly had no idea what that person did, but determined it wouldn’t be nearly as important as the president or vice president of the student body. It also meant she’d be running unopposed since no one else wanted that position. She’d hoped, not so secretly, that she wouldn’t have to give a speech after all, but because technically students could write in names on their ballots, there was always a chance they’d do just that, and she’d lose to someone who didn’t even want the damn thing to begin with.
That day turned out to be a pretty important day for Hailey though, for two reasons. One, she’d been able to get over her inability to speak publicly. It didn’t happen all at once, of course, but after no one booed her, she’d gained a little confidence. It led to an entire year of working with other seemingly confident students who had no problem speaking in front of others. She’d observed them carefully, and by the end of the year, she’d actually asked for opportunities to speak in front of the students. The second thing that happened that day was that Hailey met someone, and therefore, made a very important realization about herself.
After delivering her speech, walking off the stage, and practically running toward the bathroom because she thought she was going to puke, the door opened. There was another girl standing there. She went into a stall and emerged a few moments later while Hailey was standing over the sink, attempting to gain her composure. She’d seen her around a few times, but the two of them didn’t
share any classes. She didn’t know her name, what year she was in, or anything about her other than the fact that she was gorgeous. She had this dark-colored hair that she had pulled back into a tight ponytail. While she washed her hands at the next sink, Hailey watched her in profile. Her nose was strong as was her jaw. Her eyes were brown and matched her hair along with her somewhat pale skin. Her hands were sliding back and forth with a soapy lather, but Hailey could make out strong, long fingers. Her eyes followed up the girl’s arms to see some toned muscle there. She was clearly athletic.
“You were great, by the way,” the girl spoke up and moved to the hand dryer to push the button and dry her hands.
“Sorry?” Hailey moved her eyes back to the mirror to try to cover up the fact that she’d been staring at her.
“Your speech. It was good. I’m going to vote for you.” She continued holding her hands under a barrage of hot air. “I don’t exactly know what the secretary does, but the speech sounded nice.”
“I don’t either.” Hailey lifted an eyebrow.
“Well, I hope you figure it out, I guess.” The girl shrugged her shoulders, took a step toward Hailey and held out her hand. “I’m Emma. I’m a senior. I think I’ve seen you around. Before today, I mean. You’re a junior, right?”
“Yeah.” Hailey shook the soft and now completely dry hand in front of her and prayed that the clamminess on her own hand had been dealt with appropriately.
“Cool. So, if you don’t know what you’re doing, why’d you run for it?” She asked as their hands disconnected. Two girls entered the bathroom laughing and disappeared into stalls, leaving Emma standing in front of Hailey with Hailey having no idea what to say. “We can go out there.” Emma motioned backward with her thumb, seemingly reading Hailey’s thoughts, and Hailey nodded.
Emma held open the door for her. She walked through it past her until Emma was next to her. The hall was pretty packed considering it was between classes. Hailey had a free period, and therefore, had nowhere specific to be. She usually spent her free period in the library though, so her legs naturally pointed her in that direction, which would take her past her locker to get her things. Emma kept stride with her as she walked the twenty feet to her locker, proceeded to twist the padlock, and pull open the locker door.
Just Tell Her Page 2
