By the time the sun was starting to set, still brightening the sky but beginning to settle down, Bonnie came home.
Wes and I were in the living room watching a movie from the 80's that gave off a nostalgic vibe. I had spent the day hanging out with Wes, exchanging weird stories (many of which involved Bonnie). He created a comforting environment on my first day there while Bonnie was gone, which I was thankful for, given how anxious I was to leave my hometown.
"Hey Bon, how was work?" Wes asked as she walked through the front door.
"Aside from a kid peeing on my carpet, it was pretty good," she chuckled, taking off her jacket. I held in my laughter, wondering what kind of job she must have for kids to be peeing on her carpet.
I then realized that I didn't actually know what Bonnie did for a living. I contemplated asking her right then and there, but I didn't want to embarrass myself so soon. I didn't want Wes to look at me like some spontaneous idiot, moving across the country to my childhood best friend's house without even knowing what she did for a living.
"Are you guys hungry?" Bonnie asked, leaning over the couch. Wes' face instantly lit up. "Leo should be home soon. I was thinking maybe we can all go to Vivian's job and have dinner together?"
"That sounds great!" I exclaimed. I had met everyone individually since my arrival, but this will give me the opportunity to see what they're like as a group. "How soon is he coming home? Should I start getting ready now?" I asked, trying to fight my anxiety. Bonnie nodded, and I instantly stood up.
"I'll help you," she said, following me into my bedroom. Bonnie closed the door behind her and sat on my bed. "Damn, you're already done decorating? It looks awesome," she chuckled, followed by a sharp gasp. She jumped up and ran to the dresser. "Is this the Medusa doll?"
"It is," I grinned. The doll was a dark green-skinned figurine with scattered scratch marks and a dirty white cotton dress. We found it long ago while exploring underneath a bridge, spray painting the walls with silly little doodles. "I could never get rid of her." I opened my closet and turned to Bonnie. "How should I dress? Is it a fancy restaurant?"
"More casual," Bonnie responded, making her way towards my closet. She rummaged through the shirts that I had hung up. She pulled out three shirts and laid them out side by side on the bed. "One of these with jeans, maybe?" I took a look at the shirts she had spread out, smiled, and grabbed the one in the middle--a dark green tee with a chart of different types of insects. I slipped on some black jeans and a pair of combat boots. "You smell nice," she commented, chuckling.
"Oh right," I laughed. "Yeah, Wes and I smoked a little bit earlier."
"That's great, so you guys are getting along?" she beamed. I instantly felt relieved, although I had no reason to be worried about her reaction of my smoking.
"Yeah, he's pretty chill," I said, sitting in front of my mirror to put on makeup.
"You've met everyone now, right?" Bonnie asked, and I nodded. "What do you think?"
"I'm not really sure what to think of Vivian," I replied, scratching my head. "She was being nice to me, but I just caught a weird feeling that she didn't like me."
"She was probably just embarrassed that she was so hungover when you met her," Bonnie said, which was relieving. I suppose I was so anxious that the idea of that slipped my mind. "What about Leo?"
"I like his vibe!" I responded confidently. "I only met him for a second before he left for work, but I can already tell that we're gonna get along well."
Bonnie smiled, and I could tell that she felt relieved. Just as I was worried about not clicking with the roommates, she was as well. I wonder if her anxiety was as bad as mine for the matter. I felt a wave of guilt, realizing that I had heavily been thinking about myself during this time. I've been so focused on how drastically my life is changing, that I hadn't even considered how this is going to change Bonnie's life. After all, I felt that I was impeding on her household and disrupting all their home lives. I had just hoped that Bonnie allowed me to move in with genuine ___, and not out of pity.
