“Because she has sway and she likes your stuff,” Jean said, as if it were that simple.
“Liked.” Libby leaned hard on the finald.“I’m sure she hates me now.”
“Time heals all wounds. I figured she was over it.”
Libby doubted three and a half weeks was long enough to change anyone’s mind. It certainly hadn’t made a dent in herfeelings about a certain reserved yet secretly tender and romantic photographer.
“And?” Libby forced herself to ask. Might as well take her medicine.
“Unknown. She hasn’t gotten back to me. Which is weird, considering I told her you had a job offer from another magazine. I figured there was no way she’d back down from a challenge like that.”
“Please tell me you’re joking.”
Jean dropped her bag on the floor. “Even if that would be a lie?”
“No more lying! I can’t handle it. And besides, I want to get a job on my own merits. Not by tricking people.”
“Hmmm.” Her roommate moved into the kitchen, pulling a packet of ramen out of the cupboard. Libby watched her fill a mug with water and stick it in the microwave to heat.
“What?”
“Where are you applying for these hypothetical jobs?” Jean asked, smashing the packet of ramen with her fist.
“I don’t know. I was thinking freelance to start. Build my portfolio.”
“Why not someplace on the mainland? There are a billion times more opportunities there.”
Libby would have been less taken aback if Jean had suggested job-hunting on the moon.
“Not that I’m trying to get rid of you,” Jean said, as if she could hear the frantic whirring of Libby’s thoughts. “I just want you to open your mind to the possibilities. In case you thought that was something you couldn’t do. Because you could. Be the one to leave. If you wanted. You would be okay.Wewould be okay. And if it doesn’t work out, at least you know you can make a mess and come out the other side in one piece. More or less.”
There was so much packed into Jean’s words. How well she knew Libby, and the exact shape of her fears. A silent acknowledgment of the fight neither of them had forgotten or wanted to repeat. The much-gentler-than-usual nudge:Have you thought about this?
And of course Jean was right. Even when Libby was angling for a job with Hildy, she’d never given serious consideration to moving far away. Deep down, Libby saw herself as a person who got left, not the one to venture out on her own.
Her mind was ever so slightly blown. Jean was often surprising, but never more than when she used her powers for good.
“She did like my story,” Libby said, chewing her way through a new thought buffet.
Jean nodded, her expression saying,And?
“That means someone else might like it, too. It’s not impossible.” She glanced at Jean, collecting another nod of encouragement. “Because that really came from me. Not just my life but who I am.” Some of the best parts of Libby, even—things she wasn’t ashamed of. Her curiosity about human beings. The urge to understand how they live and why. Wanting to share those stories with other people.
She fixed Jean with a serious look. “We still can’t lie.” It was important to reinforce these messages as often as possible, in the hopes that someday they would stick. “I have to tell Hildy the truth.”
“Fine.” Her roommate shrugged as if this had been her goal all along. “You two can sort it out. I’ll forward you the email.”
From: [email protected]
Re: I’m sorry
Dear Hildy,
I am writing to respectfully request that you disregard the email from Jean. On the off chance you didn’t delete it unread. To be clear, I do not have a job offer from anyone else.
I apologize for taking up more of your time. And everything else.
