Me too! I’m glad you brought it up with time because I don’t know if I’ll have that weekend off, so I’ll request it now
Isabella 8:33 a.m.:
Perfect.
Val, make sure Brooke stays home this time. I don’t want a repeat of last time
Valeria 8:33 a.m.:
Camila 8:35 a.m.:
I’d be honored. Thanks for the invite!
CHAPTER NINE
VALERIA
Valeria wakes up to a mess of limbs draped over her and a soft snore tickling her ear. It’s become her new normal these past few days, waking up tangled in Brooke’s arms, warm and content.
Valeria hasn’t gone home in days. After she went to Camila’s house, she briefly stopped at home, grabbed a few of her work uniforms, and FaceTimed the girls to apologize. They all reacted the way she expected. Alejandra was pretty disappointed. Lily and Isabella told her they understood, even though their facial expressions said the complete opposite, and Clara nodded as she massaged Alejandra’s tense shoulders.
Valeria knows she keeps disappointing them; she knows they’re sick of being on this roller coaster with her and that they only endure it because they love her. And she’s somehow gotten Camila to hop on board, which Valeria kind of hates because now their friendship revolves around Brooke and how close she is to fucking everything up.
Since she and Brooke got back together, Camila’s updates on Miso have become less and less frequent. Sheseems to be more focused on Valeria’s emotional well-being than anything else—which she gets and appreciates—but she wishes they could go back to talking about Miso and recommending shows or sending TikTok’s back and forth—anything but her impending heartbreak.
Brooke turns in bed until her sleepy eyes land on Valeria. “Morning,” she says before leaning in to give her a quick peck.
“Morning.” Valeria nuzzles into Brooke, not ready to leave the warm cocoon they’ve made. It’s always the hardest part, and Valeria likes to put it off for as long as possible. They lie there for a few minutes, holding on to each other until one of their alarms goes off and they’re forced to get up.
“Coffee?” Brooke asks, letting out a breath.
“Yeah.” Valeria trails her into the kitchen.
The rest of their morning is the same as always—Brooke showers while Valeria packs their lunch. Brooke steals half of Valeria’s toast after insisting she wasn’t hungry, and they go about getting ready for work. Moving around each other without thinking, the whole thing is easy and as comfortable as breathing.
By the time they’re both ready, Brooke is fussing with her hair in the hallway mirror while Valeria double-checks that the stove is off, even though neither of them used it that morning.
They slip into their jackets. Brooke grabs her bag, Valeria grabs hers, and they meet at the door at the same second, like it’s choreographed.
“Ready?” Valeria asks.
“Yeah,” Brooke says, locking up behind them as they step into the hallway.
They kiss goodbye and head in opposite directions to their cars.
Valeria loves easy mornings like this. It’s what she misses most when they’re apart.
When she gets to the vet clinic, she pulls into her usual spot and heads inside, tossing a “morning” to the opening crew before slipping into the back room to stash her things.
The first half of Valeria’s day rushes by in a blur of exams, vaccinations, and reviewing stool sample results. Not the most luxurious of jobs, but she loves it. She’s wanted to be a vet for as long as she can remember. When she was a kid, her parents always made sure there were plenty of animal books in the house. Valeria used to spend hours flipping through them, memorizing every breed of cat and dog, making notes on their personality traits, assigning each of her family members a pet that best fit their personality and lifestyle.
But no matter how many notes she had or how emotionally prepared she was for the job, nothing could have prepared her for how absolutely physically exhausting it is to be a vet. By lunchtime, Valeria is wiped out almost every day, and today is no different. She’s been on her feet nonstop, and all she wants is to go home, flop onto the couch, and wait for Brooke to show up so they can curl up together and watch a movie. For now, lunch will do.
She heads into the back room and grabs her lunch bag. She is very anti-microwaves—something her mom instilled in her that she can’t break—so she usually brings a sandwich or a protein shake to get her through the day. Today it’s a shake. She grabs the container, dumps the powder into the almond milk she packed, and starts shaking it while she scrolls through hermessages.
There are a few from the girls, mostly TikToks. She’s got a few more from Brooke, who’s complaining about a meeting she has in a couple of hours. Valeria replies the way she always does, reassuring her and reminding her what a badass she is.
Right as she’s about to set her phone down, it pings with a message from Camila.
