The moment Lisa's earbuds died she was annoyed. Roseanne refused to use headphones, so now she was stuck listening to ABBA. Even if it was emanating quietly from Roseanne's cellphone, it was just loud enough to be un-ignore-able. Like the tiniest mosquito buzzing in her ear but evading capture.
By the third time Super Trooper came on, she'd reached her limit. There was no way she could concentrate on prepping for her first full trial with so much distraction.
Spinning around in her office chair, Lisa turned toward the mini fridge they inherited from a neighbor who'd gotten a new one. Maybe a little caffeine boost might help.
As soon as Lisa noticed the can of warming soda sitting on top of the fridge, she flared her nostrils. Several options on how to handle the situation raced through Lisa's mind. She could go with passive aggressive, her default. But she'd been working on relying on that less. Direct confrontation was a possibility, but they'd established something of a détente. Lisa wasn't eager to rebuild their Berlin Wall or return to open hostilities.
"Is there a reason you took my drink out of the fridge?" Lisa tried her best to sound casual and breezy but heard her mother's nag in the sharpness of her consonants and the pitch in her tone.
Roseanne didn't stop typing as she responded. "You had two in there. I needed the space for my lunch."
Lisa tightened her jaw. "If it didn't fit, you could've put it in the normal-sized fridge in the kitchen."
The storm of clicking keys stopped. "I could say the same thing about your multiple cans. It's not like you have two mouths. Why don't you put the extras in the kitchen if they don't fit in there? Or just switch the extra in when you drink the cold one. Who cares?"
"First of all, I care. Obviously. Second, that communal fridge is a science experiment, and even if it wasn't, I've had several sodas and a Greek yogurt stolen. A concerning thought considering where we work, but none of that is the point." Lisa was building up steam. The hiatus from bickering had built up a reserve of unvented irritation. "We should be able to share an appliance without you taking over like you always do."
Roseanne scoffed before turning around slowly like some deranged mega-villain. All she needed was the Persian cat in her lap for her dramatic petting pleasure. "Darling, I don't think our marriage counselor would condone accusatory language. It's not conducive to productive dialogue."
Lisa glared. "Who hurt you? Did the wolves who raised you not nuzzle you enough?"
The ringing of Roseanne's office line cut off whatever she was going to come back with. "Park," she answered after picking up the call. "Oh, hey, Officer Perry. Thanks for calling me back."
When Roseanne turned around to refile through some papers as she talked to a witness in her case, Lisa turned back to her warm soda. With a smirk, she switched her drink with Roseanne's lunch. Let's see how much she liked unilateral decisions about her property.
Returning to her work, Lisa found it easier to drown out the sound of Roseanne's voice than it was to ignore her music. Minutes later, she was deep in research when a buzzing sound drew her attention to her pocket, but it wasn't her cell that was ringing.
From the corner of her eye she glanced at Roseanne, who didn't miss a conversational beat while she shot off a text. Impressive.
Second later, the cell rang again, this time buzzing loudly against the desk. Roseanne snatched it, openly vexed by the continued calls.
"Officer Perry, I'm so sorry to do this to you, but can I call you back?" Roseanne said when the phone rang yet again. "Thanks. Yes, I know you just came off a double. I promise I won't be long."
