The Dr Pepper Prophecies by Jennifer Gilby Roberts

Author:Jennifer Gilby Roberts [Roberts, Jennifer Gilby]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: (¯`'•.¸//(*_*)\\¸.•'´¯)
Amazon: B00CP6GWZE
Publisher: Jennifer Gilby Roberts
Published: 2013-05-08T07:00:00+00:00

**

The doorbell rings and I don’t have to answer it to know who it is. I just have a sixth sense about these things. Plus it’s now Monday evening and three days is our standard cooling off period for major upsets. Although it’s usually me coming to find Will.

I open the door. Will is wearing my favourite cream shirt and an embarrassed smile. A part of me actually wants to laugh, but another part has the bizarre urge to cry.

'Hi,' Will says awkwardly.

'You stole my opening line,' I say, holding onto the door.

God, this is weird. I don’t think I’ve ever been this uncomfortable around Will before.

Will doesn’t seem to know what to do with his hands. He puts them in his pockets and takes them out again, then tries holding them behind his back. That’s a sure sign that he’s nervous.

'Just so you know,' he says, looking at his battered Nikes, 'that’s not what I usually do at work.'

He blushes bright pink. It’s like sunset-on-face.

'It was a one-off. She turned up, we had a disagreement and then we…' He coughs. '…we made up. She had this fantasy…anyway.'

I can’t think of anything to say. Quick, find something.

'Your receptionist thought I was a hooker,' I blurt out.

Will’s head jerks up and he stares at me.

'Why?!' he exclaims.

I move back from the doorway and let Will in.

'I’d guess someone in your office has a lot of visitors for last-minute meetings,' I explain, 'and now she thinks you’ve joined the club.'

Will looks intrigued. 'I should pay more attention to the office grapevine,' he says. 'I had absolutely no idea.'

We look at each other. At least we’re making eye-contact now.

'Are we okay?' Will asks suddenly. 'I mean, has this…changed anything?'

'Of course not,' I say.

Of course it hasn’t.

It hasn't changed a thing. Barely a ripple in the fabric of life. Like…nuclear war, for example.

'It was just a bit of a…surprise, that’s all,' I add. 'I mean, why should it change anything? This isn’t a big deal, it’s…something to laugh about, really. The look on your face!'

I force a laugh.

Will is nodding. Doesn’t he know it was forced?

'You’re right,' he says. He smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. The sparkle in them is missing. 'We should laugh about this.'

We look at each other again.

'Or,' I say eventually, 'we could not talk about it and try to forget it ever happened.'

Will considers this for a second. Then he nods emphatically. 'I like that idea,' he says.

I breathe a sigh of relief. All this stuff about how you should talk about things is crap. I personally believe that repression is a vital part of any long-standing friendship. Particularly with members of the opposite sex.

Maybe now things can get back to normal.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.