V & V (wlw)

Chapter 13 - The one where they get drunk

Veronika was unemployed, but when you've got money, it's called being financially independent.

She was sat on the dining table with her computer on, going through her emails before she swore off work for the holidays. Dinner was already cooked, and she had stored it in a little drawer meant for keeping food hot – imagine that.

The door opened and in walked Victoria, taking off her tie. It endeared Ron, the way she undoes the knot properly instead of pulling the whole thing off to unravel it.

"Good evening," she said, stripping off articles of clothing as she walked.

Ron returned the greeting as she snapped her computer shut and moved it to the kitchen island. "Do you want to eat now?"

Victoria said yes and had moved to wash up before they sat down for dinner. She emerged just as Ron was finished setting the table, looking wretched in her shirtsleeves.

"How was work?"

"I've not been working." Victoria rolled up her sleeves before she served them both. "Been hashing things out with the estate. Alan was surprised."

Alan was Vic's deceased grandfather's estate agent, a wizened old man despite being only barely 50. They had been married for a little over a month now, and Victoria had introduced them to each other some time ago.

Ron said, "How did it go? Put greens on your plate, please."

Victoria ladled leafy stuff onto her own bowl with no small resentment. "Sound. He didn't have to say it, but we both knew when my parents find out, there'll be proverbial shit going down."

"But it's fine. The process will continue as usual. We're good." Vic began spooning broth into her mouth. "How was your day?"

"I never realized how much time my job took out of the day. I was actually bored, Victoria. Anyway," Ron gestured to her laptop some distance away. "Wrote and revised some stuff, emails, you know how it goes."

Vic speared a piece of meat onto her fork and chewed thoughtfully. "Your manuscript? The one about vampires?"

"Themes be damned, yes, it's vampires."

Victoria rolled her eyes. "Vampire adjacent. Consumption and the act of acquiring as connection. The choice between forcing a beloved into a forever existence with you or struggling to live in a world you never thought you'd be a part of. The horrors of love, et cetera."

The more Vic spoke, the more Veron's terror grew that the other woman had actually read the thing. And the final blow:

"I loved it. You have a wonderful hand with characterization and voice."

Something very much like heat travelled from Veron's chest all the way to her neck as she said, "Thanks." And — "You read the whole thing?"

"Over a few weeks, I didn't have proper time to sit and read. Do you have an agent?"

"I do, yeah."

"And you're still not published?"

"No," said Ron, grazing the tip of her tongue over the edges of her top teeth.

"You should be." Victoria didn't notice her discomfort. Was she uncomfortable? Or did she just not know how to take compliments from someone like Victoria? Who was Victoria to her, anyway?

Your wife, she told herself. So she had no reason to be weird about it.

Victoria paused eating and eyed Ron like she was a spider and Vic didn't have a big enough cup to trap her in. Tentatively, she began, "Do you want —? Want me to help —?"