The Price of Love

Everything You Could Want

Meredith

I could hear the slamming of the front door at my spot on the couch, followed by cursing and grumbling. I ignore it, preferring whatever was on TV to hearing Izzie complain about her job for the umpteenth time. I stare at my bowl of ice cream, hoping she would silently grovel. I understood her frustrations, but listening to her complain is tiring. Most times, she would find George and talk to him, but this time, I wasn't so lucky.

"I'm so sick of this!" She starts. I pause my show and look at her, holding out the rest of my ice cream to her. She sits down and takes my spoon.

"My boss still refuses to give me a raise. I've worked more hours than anyone! I've taken unpaid overtime, I take opening and closing shifts, I've covered for everyone, and I've worked harder than anyone has! I deserve a raise." She stabs angrily at her ice cream.

"You'll get it sometime." Izzie snorts. "He probably hasn't given anyone a raise since he first opened the restaurant."

Her ranting is cut short by another of my roommates bursting through the door. Izzie and I turn to see George walking in with handfuls of groceries.
"George! You'll never believe what happened at work today..." she says, handing me my ice cream back and going to help George with putting away groceries, while she talked about whatever grievance happened this time.

I unpause my show and was about to take another bite of my ice cream when Cristina sneaks up from behind and snatches the spoon out of my hand. She climbs over the back of the couch and sits next to me.

"I thought you had work today," she says through a mouthful of ice cream.

"I got switched to the night shift," I sigh. Normally working at a bar was fairly easy, but a nightshift on a Friday night is always brutal. There's always someone's spilled drink to clean up, tables to wash, and dishes to scrub, all happening simultaneously.

Cristina grins smugly. "I got tomorrow morning's shift." I frown.

"Why do you get the morning shift?"

"Because I'm the best. Why else?"

"Because you're sleeping with our manager," I supply. She rolls her eyes.

"Teddy doesn't even care about me outside of her bedroom."

"It must be pretty good sex then, to get you the morning shift."

"At least I'm actually getting laid," she says. "You're just pointing it out because you're jealous." And in part, I was. It's been forever since even the most tender of human contact. I say to myself that I'm too busy for a love life, that I'm fine being on my own, but every part of me knows it's not true. But still, I hammer it into my own head until I believe it.

"I'm not jealous."

"When was the last time you got laid? Three months ago? Four months?"

I refuse to answer.

"Five??"

I sigh. "I don't have to tell you anything."

"Fine, then I'll just have to assume you're a virgin."

I laugh at that. I'm not a virgin and she knows it.

"I'll take you drinking with me tomorrow. That way I can get you out of this rut."

"It's not a rut," I protest.

"It's a rut. Come on, I've never heard you say no to a hookup. You know you want to," she baits.

"If you think I'm putting up with whatever this is," I gesture my hands at her, "all night, then you're mistaken."

"Suit yourself," Cristina says. She gives me back my spoon and leaves.