Splitting Our Odds Into Evens

Green with Envy

Joshua saw Bonnie, Damon, and Davina exiting the apartment from a distance, so he came out of his car. With a few steps, he rushed to embrace Bonnie.

"You look beautiful," said Joshua. Bonnie was wearing a black dress with a deep v-neck that stopped right at the tip of her cleavage. To complement her attire, she wore a pair of sleek black boots that were elegantly tall, elevating her overall appearance.

Bonnie smiled as she pulled out of his grasp. "You don't look too bad yourself." She couldn't lie; he cleaned up nice. Fresh cut. Tailored suit. Shiny shoes. All the goods of a well-dressed man.

Damon cleared his throat, catching the attention of Joshua, waiting for Bonnie to introduce them to him.

"Oh! These are my friends. Damon and Davina. And, guys, this is Joshua...my co-worker/only friend at the job," Bonnie gesticulated. "You can call them the two D's if that'll make it easier to remember their names."

Joshua, as well as the two D's, narrowed their eyes. Calling them the two D's was bizarre.

"I mean, you don't have to call them that," Bonnie said. "It was just a suggestion."

Joshua nodded repeatedly and blew a raspberry. "Yeah, of course. I totally knew that."

Bonnie's lips pursed, and she gave a subtle nod. "Right."

Joshua offered his hand to Damon in greeting. "Nice to meet you, Damon. I'm Joshua."

Damon shook Joshua's hand while giving him a quick inspection. "I know," he said.

Davina noticed that Damon was giving Joshua unfriendly looks, so she nudged him, and he released Joshua's hand. Damon briefly glanced at Bonnie, who seemed uneasy about the situation.

"It's nice to meet you, Joshua," Davina said. "Bonnie's told me a lot about you."

Joshua blinked back, shocked yet excited. She must like me if her friends already know about me.

Bonnie had spoken to Davina about Joshua, but not in an I'm crushing on him way, but in a he's a good co-worker way.

"Do you mind if my friends ride with us?" Bonnie asked.

"I don't mind at all," Joshua said.

They walked to the car and entered.

After turning the key in the ignition, Joshua handed Bonnie some flowers previously tucked under the seat. They were crushed.

"They're flowers," he said. "Well, they were once. I got them caught up in the car door. I brought them for you."

Bonnie expressed appreciation while observing the ruined plants with a furrowed brow. "That's nice of you," she said.

"I know they're a little damaged-"

Bonnie raised her brows at that. A little? They were just about dead.

Though, Joshua barely recognized the confusion on Bonnie's face as he was rambling.

"I slipped on the floor when I got out of my loft, then I waved my arms around, but that turned out to be not so good because I had the flowers in my hand. So, I tried to hold them over my head, but by then, I'd already pulled the door closed, and-"

Bonnie shook her head. "It's okay, it's fine."

"And, of course, they were in the door, like, caught. And they were all messed up, so I tried to fix them up a bit, but-"

Bonnie put a hand on his shoulder. "There's no need to explain."

"I just wanted to-"

"It's fine!" Bonnie snapped. They both reacted softer now. "They're great. Thank you."