Lost on the Way by Isabel Jolie

Author:Isabel Jolie [Isabel Jolie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Noctivity Inc
Published: 2020-09-03T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 23

Jason

I need to complete the statistical analysis for a project, grade a stack of projects, and draft an article. The only problem is that I keep staring at my laptop. This is such bullshit.

Maggie isn’t responding to my texts. I pushed it too far with her. Had no business blurring our friendship lines. She’s better off without me. I know that. It doesn’t mean it doesn’t absolutely suck.

There’s a tap and the door to my office, which had been set ajar, swings wide. Sam enters. “Hey, man!”

He’s all bright and cheerful, the way I guess someone who played around with some code and ended up with a billion dollars in his bank account would be. He plops down into one of the ancient wooden chairs across from my desk.

“I thought we were meeting at six-thirty? At the restaurant.” Yes, I could have fucked up, but I don’t think so. I spoke to Janet a few hours ago.

“Yep, that was the plan. But I wanted to get out of my office. Figured I’d come down and see if I could convince you to swing by Ten Twenty for a drink before dinner.”

I haven’t finished a damn thing today. I’ve started on a few things. Can’t focus. I want to curl up in a fetal position. I’m checking the time, thinking about all the shit I still have to do, when he continues in his chipper-ass voice. “If you need to stay here and finish grading papers, that’s fine. I have my laptop with me. I can work right from here, and we can head over to Pisticci’s whenever you’re ready.”

A bar might work.

“Someone’s been messing with your nameplate, man.”

What the fuck is he talking about?

He flips my desk nameplate around. Someone has penciled in the indented letters, coloring in the white areas. Whatever. “Probably a student. Probably did it while I was sitting right here talking to them, and I didn’t even realize it.” Fuck. I know why he’s up here earlier than planned. “If you’re here to find out if I’ve gotten the results back, I haven’t. I promise I’ll tell you when I do. Should be any day.”

“Hey, man, I know you’ll tell me. You seemed a little down, so I thought my smiling face might cheer you up.”

What I’d really like to do is smack his face. Somehow, smacking the smiling pretty boy would make me feel better. But that feeling is wrong. Sam’s like family, and I should be grateful someone out there cares. “You don’t need to worry about me. There’s nothing you can do, anyway, so don’t expend the energy.” Really. I’m in a no-win situation here.

“Are you out of your goddamn mind? That makes no sense.”

I stare at the books stacked along my wall. One day, I’ll get a bookcase. Maybe. Piling everything up on the floor works too. Sam’s here because he’s worried about the results I don’t have yet, but if he keeps pushing, we’ll end up talking about Maggie. Cancer’s a better conversation topic, and everyone knows that topic sucks.

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