Cora

I don't go to Kenny's for dinner. I'm supposed to, but I said I would, and I don't. I end up stopping by to see Mimi right after I quit. The look on her face when she sees me breaks my heart, but when I explained everything, she sighs, grabs my hands, and tells me I was listening to my heart and that she can't advise otherwise.

Not helpful, Mimi. I need more guidance than that. 

I try to distract my mind by going back to the dinky little studio that I'm barely staying afloat in. I shower. I take my time to let my curls do their thing with all the various sprays and techniques I have picked up over the years. Looking in the mirror, I smile because they are stunning. I even give myself a pedicure and follow it up with a manicure, but after all that, I can't shake the overwhelming sense of dread and loneliness building inside me. I know I did this to myself. That job at the Rowan Laurel just so happened to best thing that happened to me as of late. Knowing there wasn't somewhere I can work to put my sports medicine degree to work locally hurt. I couldn't leave Mimi. She needs me, and hell, I need her. I know there are other options for me. My sports medicine degree was supposed to be my opening for personal training. It was supposed to make getting my certification easier. And yet, four, almost five years later, I haven't done jack shit with a degree I always felt so strongly about. All I did was improve my appearance, which is good. I needed to do that, but it wasn't doing anything for me beyond the physical aspect and that's the problem. Not even modeling helped me feel better and even those jobs were few and far between.

I realize I should probably pack up my apartment because it's only a matter of time before I pick up my phone and dial Alexis to bail me out of hot water again. I'm not ready for that call.

However, I am ready for the call to initiate girl's night. I mean, I need somewhere to flaunt my hair and nails. Pair it with a killer dress, heels, and just the right makeup and I'm set for a fun night out.

This is the call I make instead of calling Kenny to cancel. He knows I won't be there, not after today. It's how we've usually been and I'm not proud of it, but it's our reality, so there's that. His sweet wife, Lilliana, would drop food by for me tomorrow just to check in on me. That's the usual turn of circumstances.

Alexis answers quickly. She always does. That's why I can rely on her for anything. Our friendship goes beyond her old money.

"Chick-a-dee!" she exclaims. "What can I do for you and your royal sexiness?"

I chuckle. Always our running joke that I'm a dude magnet because I'm "one fine, sexy-ass Mexican." I remind her that I'm only half but she tells me not to demean myself. Once a Mexican, always a Mexican.

"Drinks, babe. I need drinks. All of them. Hot guys are a perk, but fair warning, I will get aggressive if any of them get too handsy with me," I answer.

"Copy that, gorgeous," she replies. "I will come armed with the best dress to suit your perfect curves, per usual, because not just any dress will do for your no words ass."

I chuckle again and roll my eyes. Only she can get off with talking about my ass that way. "Thank you, per usual," I say. "Make sure to get some sexy strappy heels, too."

"Oh, I most certainly will," she declares. "Can't just put you in anything. I'll be by in an hour. We'll get sexy together and have the men kissing our feet."

"And where are we going?" I ask. 

"Minutiae," she answers. 

I lower my phone from my ear, hit the speaker button, and do a quick search of the club. Minutiae is new, but popular. It has raving reviews on G****e, all over their social media, and even lots of influencers documenting their time.

"You still there, bonita?"

"Yes," I say quickly.

I'm more interested in seeing who owns this club. It's in Brooklyn, but it's pretty swanky. The About Us page on their website says it's owned by a company that goes by Ford Vance. I swear I've heard that name before.

"What's the hold-up?"

"Do you know who Ford Vance is?" I ask.

"Sure," she chuckles. "Old money. He's friends with my mother."

I try to G****e Ford Vance, but all the results yield nothing. If this person exists, then where is he?

"Have you met him before?" I ask.

"No, not personally, but there are pictures of him and my mother together when they were younger at family events. He was always close to our family. Mother was the one who suggested I go check the club out for her. She's too old to enjoy these things and lives vicariously through me," she laughs. "You're looking too much into this though, chick-a-dee. Let's just go and have fun tonight. It's Friday. You sound like you really need it. Let's just enjoy tonight with some booze and guys."

I shake my head. She's right. I'm looking too much into it like always. I obsess over information. I want to make sure I know what I'm getting into. It took me longer than I wanted to admit to deciding on Stony for college. I needed to be close to Mimi even then. It took me even longer to break down and go to Kenny for the job I quit this morning. It's just ever since I lost my parents, I felt like I needed to question life and it's just become a defense mechanism.

"See you soon," I decide to say.

"That's what I'm talking about!" she cackles. "See you soon!"

I hang up and toss my phone on my bed. I move to sit at the small table by the window and I stay there until Alexis arrives, losing myself in my thoughts. I'm not proud to admit that I feel the guilt creeping in from quitting. It was a rash decision. They were just testing me and I guess I passed. Kenny, knowing everything about me, probably already worked a deal out with Mr. Dabney-Aparo to keep my job secure. I'd reach out in a day or so. I still need space. I need some time to breathe. It's just a natural response. 

Alexis, however, is the one to pull me out of my slump. Her knock brings me back to the present and I hug my robe as I stand to answer the door. She has two dress bags in one hand and her rolling makeup kit with two shoe boxes on top in her other hand. She looks me up and down and whistles in the way I've always wished I could, with just her lips. I blame my inability to do that because mine are plump and they get in the way.

"Fuck," she sighs. "You're so goddamn fine. Why the hell are you single?" she asks, walking inside my apartment.

"Because men are pigs," I answer, closing the door and joining her. 

The dress bags are already lying on the bed and she places a shoe box next to both of them. She takes a step back and clasps her hands together in front of her. "Your dress is on the right and mine is on the left, but you need to see your dress right now because it's so cute!" she exclaims.

I smile and shake my head as I approach the bag. I unzip it and inside is a gorgeous mini dress. It's sequined and it's a beautiful shade of cream. I know there is a technical term for its color, but I don't care. It has long sleeves that billow out by the wrist. It's going to be figure-flattering.

"It will fit your hips and ass, I promise," she says. She must be sensing my excitement. "I know the designer. She caters to the more elite, perfect female bodies like yours," she teases, nudging me in the side.

I chuckle and look at her. Her body shape is similar to mine. She and I enjoy working out together. She whines about not being able to get her ass to look like mine, but she has a curvaceous body like mine. 

"Who's the designer?" I ask, moving to open the shoes.

"Iva Howard," she replies.

Iva Howard. My brain can't wrap its head around that name. I look at her with big eyes. "Seriously?" The tone of my voice says I'm dumbfounded. I love Iva Howard's work. She truly knows what a woman's body looks like. I can't afford anything from her, but Alexis knows I love her and here, I have an Iva Howard original.

"I'd kill to model for her," I sigh, unwrapping the paper from around the heels. They're cute match strappy heels. The heel isn't too high and they look comfortable. 

"I'll try to put in a good word for you," she remarks, removing my hands from the heels. She moves me to my makeshift vanity and has me sit down. "Now, let's complete your look. The goal is to make sure you look so good that the men have to scrape their chins from off the floor."

I smile at her in the mirror and lean back. Alexis is a professional makeup artist. I'd trust her with my face no matter the time of day.

"So why the need for tonight?" she asks, opening her case up.

I sigh. This is the question I have been dreading. "I quit my job," I reply. "Kenny thought it was a good idea to make my thirty-day test cleaning the penthouse suite with the owner of the hotel brand showering while I cleaned."

"Shut up!" she exclaims. "Elias Dabney-Aparo is the single sexiest silver fox I have ever laid my eyes on. Those laugh lines, mysterious eyes, those fucking glasses, and his stubble," she sighs, losing herself in some kind of fantasy.

She's not wrong. Elias Dabney-Aparo is pretty fucking sexy. All fucking confident in a suit when I went to learn my fate in the company. But he also did smell very good when I ran past him in a hurry after he exited his bathroom in just a towel. I wanted to ogle, but I was on the clock and it was disrespectful. 

"Well, protocol says I shouldn't be in the room if it's occupied," I explain. "And I did it anyway. It was just a test, but if it wasn't a test, I would have been written up. I told them that I couldn't continue with the company in good conscious knowing that something that should be punished regardless of the circumstances isn't going to be punished. I shouldn't have gone into that room. I should have been better prepared."

"You panicked," she replies. "I'm sure Kenny told you last minute that this was your job for the day and you couldn't just tell him no. Don't beat yourself up about this. Kenny's probably worked some kind of deal with the boss man to secure your job."

"That's what I'm afraid of," I sigh. "I don't need him putting himself in jeopardy to save me. He does it too often. I'm almost fucking twenty-six. I can handle my own battles."

"I know, I know," she says. "But maybe let the big boys talk this one out and see what happens. You need a job."

I groan. "I know. I'm on the verge of having to move out and back in with you for the millionth time," I whine.

She kisses my head. "And you'd be welcome, chick-a-dee," she replies, squeezing my shoulder.

I squeeze her hand on my shoulder and sigh. "I know. Thank you," I mumble.

She smiles warmly. "You're more than welcome. Now let's shut up so I can make you look perfect," she chuckles.

I crack a smile. Genuine friends are hard to come by in life and I'm grateful Alexis Albrecht is my only true best friend. Not sure what I'd ever do without her.