Terms and Conditions by Helen J. Darling

Author:Helen J. Darling
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780999700341
Publisher: Bricolage Books

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We settled into a booth with cracked vinyl benches and graffitied paneling. The waiter, a friend of Tessa’s, substituted Yuengling in place of the $3 pitcher of PBR that was on special.

“This is my favorite dive bar,” she said. “I’ve been coming here for years. But their rent’s going up soon and they’ll have to move.” She spun her glass in her hands.

“Aw, that’s terrible.”

“It happens. I’ll go wherever they end up, but they’re so convenient right now.”

I nodded.

She shoved a tattooed hand through her Kool-Aid curls. “Okay, enough small talk. My friends will be here soon and you look like you’ve had more than the average bad day. What’s the matter?”

When someone asks this question, they’re just being nice. She barely even knew me—she didn’t want to hear the truth.

I shook my head. “Just a crappy day.”

She rolled her eyes. “You look like someone flattened your dog with a steamroller.”

“Really, I’m all right. I wanted to get out of the apartment for a while, that’s all.”

“Things are only going to get messier the more you drink,” she pointed out as I refilled my glass.

I took a sip and stared at her. She stared back, eyebrows raised.

“Okay, fine. I’m bummed because nothing is turning out the way I thought it would. I’ve been here two months, and I’ve applied for more than eighty jobs. Out of that, I’ve had exactly one worthwhile interview. I thought I aced it, but I didn’t get the job. I can’t even get a real apartment on my own. I mean, a permanent place, no offense,” I said, remembering who I was talking to. She shrugged.

“I didn’t think the basics would be this hard,” I continued. Now that she had gotten me warmed up, I was ready to sing my song. “When I was in DC, I picked out a building where I wanted to live, signed a lease, and moved in. Here it’s a test of will. All the jobs I can find I’m either overqualified for, or my experience doesn’t match their requirements precisely. My life experience counts for zilch.

“And to top it all off, I have no friends here. The only people I know in the city are you and the jerk at the sandwich shop and I can’t afford to do things to meet people. Meanwhile, I’ve been lying on social media because nobody wants to hear the truth and I’ve dug myself a hole I can’t get out of. All my friends from home are like, ‘Oh, Jane, I’m so jealous! When can I come visit?’ I can’t say, ‘Never, ’cause I don’t actually have that spare bedroom you think I have and I don’t have friends for us to go out with or money to spend.’” I drained my beer glass and set it down on the damp table. “What’s new with you?”

Tessa sat back and took a long sip from her beer. “Dude. That’s a lot.”

Something about her tone made me laugh. It felt not quite

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