“Well . . .” Mia pondered, choosing her words carefully. “I was thinking, moving is so much work, and you have so much going on, and . . . well . . . I mean, I know you can handle everything yourself — you’re very capable — but if you wanted to stay at my place for a bit, it’d be really nice to have some company.”
“I appreciate the but offer, but . . .” Cierra trailed off, thinking about her options.
She was in no financial position to get a place on her own, not anywhere she wanted to live that was acceptable and within a five-mile radius of Manhattan. But what would others think? What if Mia or her friends picked up on the fact that she was broke?
“. . . I think I will consider it. Moving is a ton of work, and I don’t want to rush into a place.” She grinned at her friend. “And even though it’d be anenormoussacrifice, I guess I could rough it here for a bit.”
Mia, for the second time since Cierra arrived, stood dumbfounded. “You’re not pranking me, are you? You’ll actually consider it?”
“I’m being serious.”
“You promise?”
“I promise!” Cierra said, and held three fingers up, miming “Scout’s honor.”
“Ho. Lee. Shit. We are about to have so much fun! It’s gonna be like college again! And you’re single?! We have so much lost time to make up for,” Mia exclaimed.
“Hold up, I still have to get a job and an apartment, remember?”
“Yes, of course, we’ll do that, too. But as part of staying here, you are obligated to attend at least one social function with me, once a week. No exceptions.”
Cierra held a finger under her chin in thought, then walked over to her friend and held her hand out. “You have yourself a deal, ma’am.”
CHAPTER FOUR
IT ONLY TOOK one afternoon for Cierra to move all her essentials into Mia’s place. And while she was grateful to have that part of her life sorted, the job market was rough; finding a new job that didn’t make her want to jump off the Chrysler Building had been more of a challenge than she’d thought. June was only a few weeks away, and she was no closer to finding a decent job than she had been when she quit. But she did have one thing to look forward to: an official first date planned for later that week with Julian. He’d responded the very evening she reached out, immediately suggesting a place and time.
Currently, it wasn’t even eight in the morning, and Cierra was on her computer at her makeshift office overlooking Central Park when her friend waltzed in from yet another night out on the town. Mia looked as bedraggled as Cierra felt. It wasn’t like Cierra hadn’t made any progress on the job search in the time she’d lived with her friend. She’d had more than a few interviews that went well, and from any standpoint was on the right track, but the thought of going back to her past lifestyle filled her with dread.
Wake up when it’s still dark. Commute to the restaurant. Go over the menu. Have no say in the menu. Work every night and weekend. Never commit to any social plans or enjoy downtime when the rest of the world is. Get stuck making a salary barely enough to cover a one-bedroom in the Bronx (which she wouldnot be doing). Let others entice you with promises of becoming Executive Chef. Become Executive Chef, only to realize that now there are new egomaniacs to deal with — investors! Focus more on the business side of things and forget the joys of the kitchen (all for a say in the menu and better pay).
This thought cycle had consumed Cierra all morning. Already, she had declined two job offers, but she couldn’t afford to be this picky for much longer.
“Morning,” Mia mumbled, half asleep, as she grabbed a cold ice blue Gatorade from the fridge. “Man, last night was fun. The band was amazing, and I met this dope group of people.”
Cierra listened as Mia recounted her amazing evening, which coincidentally sounded like most other evenings.
“I got invited to this party on Saturday. All my new friends are going to be there, and youhaveto come.”
The last part made Cierra’s ears perk up. “What do you mean I have to come?”
“Look, we made a deal. In exchange for living with me, you agreed to go out once a week.” Mia clasped her hands together like a lawyer. “I have no choice.”
Cierra groaned. Not because she didn’t enjoy an evening downtown, but because she always got self-conscious in social scenarios with any of Mia’s “new friends.”
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to come — I have that date with Julian, remember?”
“Nice try — your date is on Friday. Dinner is the night after.”
Mia was more on the outskirts of the friend group that Cierra and Harry shared, so whenever Cierra got looped into Mia’s more rogue rich-bitch shenanigans, she felt like an intruder. She didn’t know how to contribute to conversations about international boarding schools or skiing accidents or, her favorite, transformative spiritual experiences.
“What is it? Scared you’re gonna have too much fun?” Mia teased.
“I’ll come,” Cierra conceded, feeling defenseless against her friend’s only condition of tenancy, “but you have to lend me an outfit.”
In the twilight of the following Friday night, Cierra’s room had become a wrecked zone of clothes and shoes. It had been over six years since she’d been on a first date, and if she watched one more TikTok on what she should wear, she was going to scream.
Julian and Cierra had been chatting for the past few days and had even quickly FaceTimed once; he cheekily demanded proof he wasn’t being tricked. That’s what he told her with narrowed, playful eyes, before admitting that he was really just excited and wanted to catch up ahead of the date. It was cheesy, but Cierra ate it up like fondue. And he was even better looking than she had remembered.
