Everything Is Blue

Chapter 21

 Of course, it had to be her. It couldn't have been anyone else in the entirety of St. Canard. It had to be the woman who's been at his throat for the last six months.

The next few days were relatively quiet.

Bud would drop by to check in on the project. Kimbra would make a snarky reply and poke fun at his company. They'd bicker back and forth until someone else told them to get a room. They'd avoid making eye contact after that.

Neither of them brought up the night on the rooftop.

He'd been struggling to bury his feelings for Kimbra down. Out of his mind. Every day, he became more afraid of finally letting it all out. He knew that she knew. She knew he felt something towards her. She just had to know.

He'd just not look her way; suppress his longing for her.

Bud really doesn't know what to say around her. You could tell her. A small voice inside Bud's head faintly said. He shook his head, trying to wipe it from his thoughts. The last thing he wanted was for them to drift apart again. Complicating their relationship with the words 'I love you'.

You could tell her. He repeated the words as though it were the most absurd notion he had ever heard.

It ran through his mind all day. While he looked over the project blueprints. When Kimbra teased him about the tacky pineapple socks he was wearing. During lunch, when Ainsley invited everyone out to that new Chinese place down the street.

Bud had so many opportunities to tell her. He wanted to tell her. He needed to tell her, but he couldn't.

Not now. Not yet.

"Shut it down, boys," Dr. Ainsley called out to his staff near the end of the day.

An array of whines and groans echoed through the facility. Bud's employees had never made a fuss about shutting down for the day. It made him question if he ran his company wrong.

"Can't we stay open a little longer?" Warden, a short gopher from Research and Development, stepped down the staircase, stopping at the last step. "Trent and I are so close to inventing an alternative option to pesticides for farmers!"

See what I mean?

Kimbra, with a handful of papers, raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn't ladybugs be an alternative option, Dr. Pitas?"

"No, it would not be an alternative option!" He moved his hands in the air to gesture something to reinforce his explanation, but his attempts went over their heads. "You know what? Never mind."

Warden huffed and stomped back up the stairs, out of sight. It made the corners of Kimbra's mouth curl up as she handed over the documents to the receptionist. Bud watched the pair engage in a conversation, Kimbra often pointing out areas of the papers. The receptionist would nod from time to time, filing each paper after Kimbra finished explaining whatever was on it.

"I'm surprised you stayed so long today." The elderly reptilian that Bud had now considered a friend, joined his side.

"I figured I'd start staying longer and more often since we're closing in on the deadline." Bud lied. He wanted to avoid admitting to Ainsley that he was in love with one of the employees and wanted to see her more.

"Smart," Ainsley nodded in approval. "I'll be glad when the damn thing is over with. Been worrying my mind about it ever since I approved it." He then looked over to where Kimbra was still talking to the receptionist, and back to Bud. "It's nice to see you two getting along better these days."