You Again

Book 2: Part 9

Astrid walked into the building where she worked and went straight to her private office. She sat her purse down and got right to work. 

Since the meeting with the mayor, things have been going great for her. The press conference (that would now double as a Town Hall meeting) was taking in place in two days. She had also been chosen to be the Orlando Chapter's official spokesperson. So whenever the media had a wildlife question that needed to be addressed, Astrid was at the top of their list. This new position also came with a pay increase that she greatly appreciated. To celebrate, she was going out with Gia and Darius for dinner and dessert after work.

As Astrid went over a company wide email, there was a knock on her frosted glass door. "Come in," she said. Jeff popped in and smiled. "Bagels and tea in the break room". Astrid nodded and said, "I'll be right there". Astrid closed the email, got up from her desk and walked into the break room. As she walked in, environmentally friendly streamers were thrown and they yelled, "Congratulations". Astrid smiled as she looked around. There was a handmade banner that read: Congrats on your Promotion! There was a cake on the table along with recycled paper plates and napkins. 

Sven walked up to her and smiled as he clapped. "For so long I've felt as though the Orlando government has turned a blind eye to us and our suggestions. But when Astrid joined the team and we got the response from the mayor, I was beside myself. I want to thank you for coming to this company and giving the wildlife of Orlando the attention they deserve". Knowing a hug would be inappropriate, Sven opted for a firm handshake and a warm smile instead. "Speech!" someone said in the small break room. "Uhh," Astrid hesitated. "Just something small," Kelly said. 

"Ok well, working for this company has been quite the experience. You're all great people to work with and I'm more than grateful to call you guys my colleagues. I think now in this next phase we prove to the city of Orlando what we're really about. We care passionately about the animals here and we're their biggest advocates. It's our job to create suitable environments for them and for us. So thanks for this surprise, it really was unexpected and I'm really excited to see what's in store for us".

*****

Astrid pulled up to The Osprey Tavern where Gia and Darius were already waiting inside for her. She was greeted by the host at the door and escorted to the table that Darius had reserved earlier in the week for them. As she sat down and got comfortable, Darius and Gia noticed something different about her. 

"Look at the cake they got me at my job," Astrid said as she pulled her phone from her purse. As she scrolled for the photo, Gia and Darius whispered to each other. "Do you think...?" Gia asked. "Let her tell it," he whispered back.

Astrid showed them the picture of the cake and they looked impressed. "That's a really beautiful cake," Darius said. "I know! I wasn't expecting it at all". She put the phone flat on the table in view of her friends. "So how has everyone's day been?" she asked. "Mine went great," Darius said. "My play debuts in three weeks and the private showing for reviewers went splendidly. They praised my strong writing skills and called it a great debut". 

Astrid and Gia clapped for him. A tradition they started during school was if someone came to them with good news, they would give them a round of applause. Good news should be celebrated and that was their way of doing that.

"How about you Gia?" Astrid asked. "Just fine. I have to fire someone for reasons I'll be able to explain after the firing takes place. I will say that police will be on hand in case it gets rowdy," she cackled. "Should we clap?" Darius asked. "Drama deserves a clap," Astrid said. The two of them clapped and smiled. "And you Astrid?" Gia asked mostly to see if she would bring up what she and Darius were suspecting. "Just my promotion and the cake. Seeing my dad was nice as well". Her friends nodded with pursed lips. "Sure there's nothing else?" Gia asked. "Stop," Darius muttered as he hit her leg under the table.

"Not really," Astrid said. Astrid was trying her hardest to keep what happened from Gia, but there's no hiding anything from her. Once Gia suspected something, she was going to get to the bottom of it. "I ask because there's a certain glow to your skin and you're much more peppy than you usually are". Darius rolled his eyes as he called the waiter over to take their orders. He could sense Astrid didn't want to mention it and needed to keep Gia off the topic. Once the waiter left, Gia resumed pulling information.

"Not that I'm calling you dull or anything but your aura is really so different today". Astrid crossed her ankles under the table and smiled nervously. There's no use in hiding it. She knows. 

"A few days ago I went to Aaron's house and we had sex," she admitted. Gia shrieked causing some of the patrons to look over at their table. Darius apologized to them on her behalf. "I knew it!" she exclaimed. "That's the 'I just got fucked' glow," she said as she rolled her neck. "Well we don't need to announce it to the whole restaurant," Astrid hissed.

"I'm sorry. I'm just very excited for you". Darius cleared his throat before he spoke. "So does this mean you guys are officially a couple again?" he asked. "Nope. We're still taking things at a comfortable pace". Darius nodded slowly as he sipped his drink. "So fucking came before having the exclusivity talk?" Gia snapped. Darius hit her leg again. "Let them figure it out," he said as he sat the glass on the table.

"You mean you guys haven't had that talk yet?" Darius questioned knowing that Gia didn't possess the compassion needed for Astrid to open up. "No. I will come clean and say that he and I had the discussion about why I left and it went very well". Gia and Darius smiled at her. "Well what was said during the talk?" Gia asked. "Well I got some things off my chest as did Aaron. It was really just a very productive talk". Gia eyed her, very unsatisfied with her vagueness.

"Give me an example of what was said," Gia said in an attempt to pull more information from her. "Not like it's any of your business, but I told him that I love him". Gia and Darius squealed in excitement. "You finally did it!" Darius enthused. "Five years later," Astrid sighed. "Wait," Gia said. "You said love. Present tense". Astrid nodded. "So you do still love him?" she questions. "I do and he still loves me too".

"Woah! Major development there!" Gia said. "I kind of figured he loved you back then," Darius said. "Ok know it all," Gia hissed. "Think about it. He asked Astrid to come to the draft with him with the assumption that she would follow him to wherever he was drafted. You only ask that of someone you love". Gia sat back and thought about it before she began to nod. "Ok so you have a point. That still doesn't make you any less of a smart ass".

"I know you don't want to hear this Astrid," Darius said, "But I think you should have a talk of exclusivity with him. You guys have established that you loved each other then and still do now. That's five years of holding onto a love not knowing whether you two would see each other again". Astrid sipped on her drink as she let Darius' words digest. "And you guys fucked so I'm assuming that chemistry is still there," Gia chimed in.

Astrid sat her drink down and took a deep breath. "It's what I want. Another shot with him and I know he's on board but I don't want to rush it," Astrid explains. "This is a love story five years in the making. It's time to stop denying what should've been yours from the start".