Jordan smiled, and nodded his head, “that’s good to know, and I’d hope that I’m not just a football player.” He knew that football wasn’t for everyone, but he had been sure that Max would have told her something. “That sounds pretty great,” he said, “so all you wanna do is travel?” he asked, “what about after that? Any other plans when it comes to work?”
"Nothing concrete yet, no," she told him honestly. She was going to come back home eventually and help her dad run the business, but whether or not she was going to do that for the rest of her life remained to be seen. Paige caught Denise waving at her from across the room then. "One second," she excused herself and met her friend halfway. Paige knew what Denise wanted to say even before she opened her mouth. "I can see myself home," she assured her. "Have fun." She headed back to Jordan, watching as her friend left the party with Max. "I should probably head home myself," she told Jordan. "It was nice meeting you. Best of luck with going pro."
“Right, I have heard that word before,” he replied with a smile. “I’m not just a football player, I got something inside here,” he said as he tapped a finger against the side of his head. A breath left his lips, “I hope so, I didn’t get drafted but I’m playing on hitting a few tryouts to see if I can make it that way.” He rubbed a hand against the back of his neck, “and yet you dated a football player,” a laugh escaped from his lips, “so what’s your plans for now?”
Paige put her palms up. "I assure you I'm not one to perpetuate stereotypes," she said, nodding her head at him in acknowledgement as he shared his next steps with her. She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. She may have dated a football player and she may have attended every game, but that didn't mean that she'd paid attention at those games. "I'm going on a road trip across the country," she answered him enthusiastically. "Eventually, I'd like to travel the world."
“Well, that depends on who you ask,” Jordan replied with a laugh. “All I know i that there were a few of them, but we were a lot of players at the team.” His hand moved over his head, a small smile played on his lips. “And sure, Max wasn’t the worst, I guess he just needed, and maybe still does, to grow up.” Jordan couldn’t keep the laugh from leaving his lips as he heard what she said. “True, and here to hoping I’m not that full of myself, but you kind of need to be if you want to be the best.” He almost spit out the drink he had in his mouth, “Nah, not a God, just a half god, or whatever those are called, you know the kid of a human and a god,” he said with a laugh.
Paige nodded her head at him in silent agreement. Max did need to grow up, something she was sure her friend Denise would realize soon enough. "I think the word you're looking for's 'demigod'," she responded, laughing herself. "So what are your plans now that you've graduated? Are you going pro? I'm not really sure how the whole football thing works. Actually, I'm not really sure how the whole sports thing works."
“Yes, exactly,” Jordan replied, a smile playing over his lips. “Okay.” Maybe that was the reason to why she seemed a bit familiar but it he had most of the time not paid that much attention to who his teammates were dating. “Just so you know, not everyone on the team acts like your ex,” he said with a small smile, “if he acted like an ass.” It didn’t take him long to follow Paige through the crowd she seemed cool and Jordan did want a bit of a company. “So who’s your ex?” he asked as he reached for a drink.
Paige laughed at the assumption. "Were most of your teammates 'asses'?" she wondered, shaking her head at him. "Max, and he acted like an ass at times, but overall, he treated me well. I just couldn't be with someone who was so full of themselves. Just because you're a football player doesn't make you a god, you know?" She was about to take a sip of her drink, but then stopped midway. "You don't think you're a god, do you?" she asked him. She didn't want to offend him.
Jordan nodded his head, “Maybe, I guess we will find out at some point,” he replied with a small smile. “That’s a half glass full answer,” Jordan said, “but I don’t think there’s gonna be a best dressed one,” he laughed a little, taking a look around the room. “Nice to meet you, Jordan, and I am,” he replied, “or was, since you know, we don’t actually go to this school after today,” he said, “you did graduate today right?” he asked. “Well, that’s good, and hopefully I was playing pretty well when you saw me play.”
"Right," Paige responded, amused by her own blunder. "You were on a the football team." She supposed the fact that she had graduated today had yet to sink in. "I was mostly paying attention to one of your teammates because I was dating him at the time, but I'm sure you played well too," she reassured him with a smile. She looked toward the kitchen. "I'm going to grab myself another drink," she announced. She started to make her way through the crowd, encouraging Jordan to follow.
Jordan looked at her with smile on his face. There was something familiar about her, but he had no idea on why. “Probably another party or so but then again, it’s probably not as big, and you gotta go to the biggest party after graduation.” A small laugh left his lips, “Well, I’ve been told that you should dress to impress so here I am,” he replied, “but yeah, never got a chance to change, Nate never gave me a chance to change, maybe I should just have dropped the tie and jacket in the car with my parents.” He took a sip from his drink, “Jordan and you’re?”
There was an amused look on her face. "Do you? Hmmm, must be one of those unwritten rules," she responded, the tone of her voice teasing. Paige nodded her head at him in acknowledgement at the mention of Nate. Nate she knew. He hung out with Max sometimes. "Look on the bright side," she started. "If there's an award for best dressed tonight, you'll win for sure." She stuck out her hand a little for him to shake, trying not to elbow whoever was standing beside her. "Paige. You're on the football team, right?" she questioned, seeking confirmation. "I've seen you on the field."
Jordan wasn’t sure on how Nate always knew where the best parties were, or at least the largest ones. This one seemed to have all of the graduating class present. He shook his head, “Nate!” he called out almost running up to him, maybe he should have changed out of some of his clothes, wearing a suit and tie, probably not the best idea but he could work with it. “Jordan, you gotta keep up, I just saw Max we gotta say hey, and have a few shots since it’s the last time we’re all together.”
He reached for the glass and titled it back, the liquid was burning his throat, as it went down. He was never going to get used to the feeling. He was surrounded by his former teammates, and a smile played over his lips he was going to miss this. “Hey! isn’t that your ex?” he asked pointing at a couple of girls, as he stood by Max, “Yeah, she wasn’t exactly fun,” Max replied, reaching for another shot. Jordan shook his head, grabbing a beer, “and her friend seem to be heading over here,” he said, “I’m gonna make the rounds and see who’s missing.”
“Sorry,” he said, looking up when he bumped into someone. “Seems like there’s a lot of people around.”
Paige was closing the sliding door behind her when she bumped into someone. She looked up and found herself looking at a familiar face. She had no idea who he was, but she did know that he was on the football team. "Don't worry about it," she responded with a smile, trying to move past him. Unsurprisingly, the crowd kept her in place. "Apparently, there are no other parties in town," she joked. "I'm guessing you didn't have time to change?" He looked nice in his suit and tie, but that was hardly the appropriate attire for an out of control party like this.
Jordan let out a breath. He was finally done with school. The only reason he had decided to go to college in the first place was because of the scholarship he had been offered, it would give him a chance to play football for a few more years, and if he was lucky, he’d get a chance to go pro. He held on to his diploma as he walked over to his parents, and there were photos being taken. All he wanted was for all of this to be over. He wanted to head out with his friends.
“Jordan,” Nate yelled as he ran up to them. “We’re gonna leave now, I heard about the best party in town, we gotta have one last party before you leave and travel the world.” Jordan laughed, shaking his head, “it’s a road trip, which I’m not even sure on how long it will be.” He turned this parents, “mom, dad, you remember Nate right?” he asked, with a smile. “And it seems like I gotta leave,” he said with a smile, giving his parents a hug, before he left with Nate. Who somehow knew where the party of the night was being held.
Paige laced her fingers through Denise's, afraid she might lose her in the crowd. She let go only when they'd managed to get out onto the porch. It was so much quieter out here. "I feel like the entire graduating class is in there," Paige commented, taking a long drink of her beer. Her friend laughed, leaning against the railing. "You're probably right about that," she responded. "So Max's looking good, huh?" She wriggled her eyebrows as Paige made a face. "Yeah, but looks can be deceiving," she reminded her friend.
Denise laughed, tilting her head to the side. "Oh, come on. He couldn't have been that bad," she said. It was then that Paige realized that Denise was stealing glances at him through the sliding doors. "Oh my God!" Paige exclaimed. "Are you into him?" Denise turned bright red. "What?! No way!" she retorted. "He's your ex! I would never!" It was Paige's turn to laugh. "Girl, honestly, go for it," she encouraged her. "We dated for like a month." Denise remained hesitant. "Really?" Paige nodded. "Yes, but don't say I didn't warn you. He's kind of full of himself. You know, football player, thinks he's a god." Denise winked at her as she headed back inside. "Well, he certainly looks like one.” Paige rolled her eyes at her playfully and waved her off. “Catch you later.” She took another long drink of her beer. She’d rejoin the party soon enough, but right now, she didn’t mind being alone.
Paige could hardly stand still for the photos. Finally, she had graduated! Finally, she could go out and see the world! She would have started her journey sooner, but her dad had insisted that she finish college first. In a week, she was going to be in Newport! "I am so proud of you," her dad told her when they had a moment alone. There was a pause before he added, "Promise me you'll come home soon?" Paige laughed softly. "Of course, Daddy. I promise," she responded, pulling him into a tight hug. Her dad and her had been a team since she was six. She was going to miss him too, but she'd never been outside of Boston. The time was right for her to spread her wings.
"Yo, Paige," Denise hollered at her from across the field. "You ready to roll?" Paige rolled her eyes at her friend's theatrics and then turned to face her dad. "I'll see you at home?" He nodded at her, placing a kiss on the top of her head. "Be safe." She ran to join her friends, eager to celebrate a new chapter of her life.
TAGGING → Melanie Tremaine & Sean Preston
LOCATION → A fancy, shmancy restaurant
TIME FRAME → Christmas Day
GENERAL NOTES → Chatzy para
Melanie "I'm telling you," Melanie reiterated as they continued to follow Josh and Emeline. "He's going to propose! Why else would he take her to such a fancy restaurant?" She pulled on Sean's arm abruptly, dragging him behind a group of carolers. "I thought Em was going to turn around and spot us," she explained her actions, peering between carolers to keep her eyes on the happy couple. She relaxed once they'd gone into the restaurant. "We're going in, right?" she asked her usual partner in crime.
Sean "He won't," Sean said looking at Melanie, "he's not ready for that kind of commitment." He shook is head, and he was stopped in his tracks when Melanie pulled on his arm. "So let them spot us," he replied, he still wasn't sure on why she was so sure about Josh proposing, it wasn't really anything that pointed in that direction from what Sean could tell. He glanced over at the couple, yeah, they were happy but there was no way that Josh would actually propose. "Of course we are," he said looking at her, "and if you're so sure, wanna make a bet?"
Melanie rolled her eyes at him. "Oh, he's ready," she insisted. "He's crazy about her. They're crazy about each other!" She headed for the restaurant in response to his confirmation, although she stopped in her tracks when she heard his question. "Sean, Sean, Sean," she started, a look of an amusement on her face. "You know I'm always up for a bet, especially one I'm going to win for sure. What sort of stakes were you thinking?" Melanie was confident that Josh was going to propose to Emeline today. It was Christmas after all. How magical would that be?
Sean sighed, running a hand over his hair. "But just because you're crazy about someone," Sean began looking at her, "doesn't mean that you're ready to get married." He couldn't help but to give her a pointed look. "Oh, I know all about your gambling," a laugh leaving his lips. "But you're not gonna win this," he pressed his lips together, "there's no way that he's proposing tonight." Sean let out a breath, he was sure that Josh and Emeline were going to get married but there was no way that Josh would pop the question tonight. "What about either pranking the department or asking our boss out."
Melanie raised an eyebrow at him. "Pranking the department," she decided. "You probably want to ask our boss out." She opened the door to the restaurant, gesturing for him to step inside before following him in. Would they be lucky enough to get a table? It was Christmas, and a fancy restaurant like this was probably fully booked. "Table for two?" she requested uncertainly when the hostess addressed her. Melanie frowned in response to the muffled laugh the hostess gave her. "On Christmas?" she said incredulously. "Yeah, I don't think so. We're fully booked." She mustered up a smile and pointed toward the bar. "We'll just grab a drink then. Thanks for your help," she responded, muttering under her breath once the hostess was out of earshot, "Not."
Sean knew that he shouldn't be surprised with Melanie picking the prank. He turned to her, "So, it's not my fault that she's hot," he replied, a big grin playing on his lips. Sean stepped inside the the restaurant, he looked around, so maybe Melanie was right, maybe Josh was going to propose tonight, not that he was going to tell her that. He just needed to keep an eye on them, and make sure to intervene if it looked like Josh was about to pop the question. "We'll have a better view on them from the bar, and they won't be able to spot us," Sean said taking Melanie's hand, "and I promise to pay for your first drink tonight." He lea her to the bar, "and be nice, maybe we'll get lucky and score a table later." He walked up to the bartender, turning to Melanie, "What do you want to drink?"
Melanie had to nod her head in agreement. Their boss was pretty hot, she supposed. She let Sean lead her over to the bar. He was right. The view from the bar was pretty good, and being at the bar rather than a table did lower their risk of being spotted. Suddenly mollified, she answered Sean, "Hmmm, a Vodka 7, please." While she waited for her drink to be made, she stole a glance at Josh and Em. They looked so incredibly happy. Melanie wished she would find somebody who made her that happy one day. "Thanks," she said, taking the glass that was offered to her and taking a nice long drink. "You know, he's probably not going to propose until dessert," she told Sean, turning to face him now.
Sean had an easy smile playing on his lips, of course she had asked for that, it was after all the drink of her choice, he himself had gone for a beer, his go to choice. "You're welcome, the next one's on you," Sean replied. He looked over at their friends, they did seem happy, and at times he was jealous of them, not that he would ever let them, or Melanie know. "Well, he won't be proposing at all, so we won't have to worry 'bout that," Sean said taking a sip of his beer. "So how come that you're obsessed with them getting engaged? Wanna go to a wedding?" he asked, "you know that there are easier ways to do so right?"
Melanie nodded her head at him in acknowledgement. Melanie could not wait to win the bet. Josh and Emeline would be engaged by the end of dinner. She was sure of it. Her gut had been pretty reliable over the years. "I'm not obsessed," she responded with a scoff, frankly a little offended by the use of the word. She took another sip of her drink, lips pursed in contemplation. "Well, you can only date so many guys that end up with your friends before you give up on your own love life and start living precariously through theirs," she commented loud enough for only Sean to hear.
Sean tried his best to hold back a laugh. If there was one thing that could describe Melanie's interest in their friends relationship it was obsession. "So why aren't you dating anyone?" he asked, looking at her, "and I don't believe what you just said," he looked at her. "I can live with being single without living through my friends," he raised his eyebrows, "and aren't you too young to give up on your love life," he pressed his lips together. "You know," Sean began, he wasn't sure on if this was a good idea, but it wouldn't hurt to bring it up, "we could make a deal," he took a sip from his drink, "if we aren't married by say 30, or maybe 35, we will get married." He glanced over at their friends, it seemed like they were about to order, and nothing indicated that they were going to get engaged.
Melanie shrugged. Who knew? She rolled her eyes at Sean. "We're not the same people," she reminded him. Even though she laughed at his suggestion, she was also touched. "Thank you for the offer, but if I'm not marrying the love of my life, I'd rather stay single for the rest of my life," she admitted, finishing off her drink. She ordered another one for herself, stealing a glance at Josh and Em when Sean did. Move on to dessert already!
Sean "Well, of course we're not the same people if we were it would be boring," he replied a smile playing on his lips. "Okay, I just thought you wanted a chance to get your mom off your back." He had been pretty sure that she would agree to his suggestion, maybe he should have worked on the presentation a bit more, but it wasn't like Melanie was the only one he could ask that from. "But you should know that the offer will stand for a few more days." Maybe she would change her mind if Josh and Em would get engaged tonight, against all odds. "So what do you think they'll have for dessert?"
Melanie was handling her mother just fine. "A slice of pie to share," she answered him after a moment of contemplation. "Apple pie, of course." That, or a slice of chocolate cake. She beamed when Josh and Em ended up ordering exactly that. "If I'm right about dessert, I'm definitely going to be right about the engagement," she told Sean, already feeling very much triumphant. "Wait for it..." Melanie watched her best friend closely, not wanting to miss her reaction to Josh's proposal. Hold on. Why did Em seem nervous? Before she could think too much about why, Emeline answered her unspoken question by proposing to Josh. Melanie's mouth fell open. What in the world?!
Sean shook his head. He had no idea on why Melanie always seemed to know what people were going to order. "That's just creepy," he said looking at her, "how do you do that?" he asked, "it has to be some kind of superpower." A small breath leaving his lips. He looked at the table, a frown appeared on his face, it looked like Emeline was a lot more nervous than Josh, maybe something was going on. Sean was about to turn to Melanie, and tell her that he thought that Em might tell Josh that she was pregnant, when his jaw fell. Emeline was the one proposing. That hadn't even crossed his mind, "Um..." he began, "what does that mean?" he asked, watching Josh smile, and a sporting a big grin, it did really look like they had gotten engaged, "I get that they'er engaged but it wasn't Josh that asked."
Melanie could not believe that Emeline had proposed to Josh! Not that there was anything wrong with that, but she'd just lost the bet! "I guess we're both losers," she responded, slightly miffed. Her disappointment disappeared quickly though because she soon realized how selfish she was being. Josh and Em were engaged! Suddenly, she was tempted to go over there and join in on the celebration, but she didn't want to interrupt their moment. "I'm so happy for them," she commented, trying not to get emotional. "They're...perfect for each other."
Sean smiled nodding his head. He guessed that Melanie was right, they had both lost. "But I was closer to winning," he said looking at her, "since I did say that Josh wasn't going to propose." He shook his head and finished off his beer. Looking over at them, they did look happy, and he couldn't help but to smile. "You know we can't say anything about this right?" he glanced over at Melanie, "and not mentioning how Em was the one that proposed, they gotta tell us themselves." He rubbed a hand against his chin, "yeah, they're pretty great."
Melanie rolled her eyes at him. "Details, shmetails," she retorted. "We both lost, end of." She nodded her head in agreement afterwards. "Yeah, of course," she said. "Anyway, let's get out of here and go somewhere where we can actually get some food. We can brainstorm prank ideas on the way." Melanie laughed softly to herself, suddenly thinking how awkward if would be if they both had to ask the boss out instead. She'd probably choose Sean over her. Probably, but that was a bet for another day.
“Yes, exactly,” he replied, “not that I’ve actually watch The Notebook more than once,” he grinned at her. Josh was sure that she knew exactly how many times he had seen the movie. He was really glad that she would do this with him, if there was one thing Josh wouldn’t do it was force someone to do something they didn’t want. He held on to her, his arms around her and he nodded his head, “Yeah, ready, I’m always ready,” he said pressing a small kiss against her cheek. And he waited, and waited, and it finally happened, they were falling down, Josh had a big smile on his face. He saw the look on her face when they had finally come to a stop after bouncing up and down a few times. “I knew you’d like it,” he replied smiling at her. “And we’re so not dead. So you’re happy you did it?”
Emeline laughed. "Yeah," she responded with a small nod, and she was glad that she'd shared such a wonderful experience with him. She looked down at the water below them and then up at the people who were watching them from the bridge. "We're not going to hang here forever, are we?" she asked half-jokingly. Josh and her were back on solid ground soon enough, thankfully. As much as she enjoyed hiking, now Emeline was dreading the hike back. That jump had zapped the energy out of her. She slipped her hand in Josh's, peering over the railing with him as another brave person took the dive off the edge. Maybe they would stay awhile (if only to catch their breaths).
Josh smiled, he was still not sure if he would actually get Emeline to agree to jumping with him, but the important part was that she was there with him. “Yes,” he replied, nodding his head, “I’m sure that you’ll like it, and we’ll do it together.” He shook his head, “We’re not gonna die,” Josh said, giving her hand a small squeeze. “And here I thought you’d think it would be romantic, like the whole thing, you jump, I jump from Titanic.” A big smile spread on his face when he realized that Emeline agreed to it. “Awesome, let’s do this,” he said taking her hand, and began to lead the way. “You ready?” he asked, as he was tucked into the harness.
Emeline rolled her eyes at him, but there was amused smile on her face. "If you're a bird, I'm a bird?" she offered another example. Seeing how excited Josh was, she was glad that she'd agreed to experience bungee jumping with him. Emeline insisted that they double check that everything was secure before she answered him, "Okay, ready." She closed her eyes and held onto him tight, waiting with bated breath for the fall. When the fall finally came, she opened her mouth to scream but no sounds of distress came out. High on adrenaline, she actually started to enjoy herself about halfway down. As they bounced to a stop, Emeline laughed. "That was...kind of fun actually," she admitted, looking at Josh. “Wait, we’re not dead, right?”
“And you will always be able to trust me,” Josh replied, a smile playing over his lips. The walk had been great, and he was sure that Emeline would understand how amazing it would be to take that jump, it would be so freeing. Josh was sure that she would get that, and want to join him even if it wasn’t on her list. “I know, but I was hoping you’d do it with me, I’ll do something from your list that isn’t on mine,” he replied. He looked over at the person that was taking their jump, and he was really looking forward to his turn. “I know it’s kinda a little crazy, but we need some crazy in our lives that’s why we should do it.” He smiled at her, “and I think we can do like a tandem jump where we jump together.” He bit down on his lip, “please,” he titled his head to the side.
Emeline held back a scoff of disagreement. Did they really need some crazy though? She mustered up a smile, knowing very well that she'd cave in the end. She always did when Josh gave her that look. "A tandem jump," she repeated, muttering under her breath afterwards, "Great. So if we die, we'll die together." Now that she'd agreed to make the jump with him, she was focused on staying calm because the prospect of the jump off of the bridge was putting her senses into overdrive. Every time someone took the dive, she felt like she was right there with them. How low could one's heart sink? She blew out the breath she didn't even realize she'd been holding. "Well, lead the way," she instructed him. "Quickly, before I change my mind." Not that she actually could now, not without disappointing Josh big time.
Josh looked at her, shaking his head. “It’s not just a bridge,” he replied. He wasn’t going to to tell her exactly what they were going to do until they got there. He had a small feeling that she might not be that happy about what he was planning for them to do. Josh turned to her a big smile on his face. “Yeah, you should because you trust me,” he said, reaching for her hand. “You know I’m trust worthy so that’s that.” He looked at her smiling.
“So?” he asked, as they reached the bridge, “Isn’t this awesome,” Josh looked at her, a big grin on his face, as he watched people jumping down, making their bungee jumps. “This is gonna be awesome, and it’s even better that we’re doing it together.”
Emeline took his hand with a laugh. "Well, you haven't really given me any reason not to trust you," she told him, adding afterwards as a joke, "Not yet anyway." They continued walking hand in hand. Time passed quickly. When they reached the bridge, Emeline stopped in her tracks. Awesome? Was he serious? She considered herself to be fairly adventurous, but bungee jumping off of a bridge? She hoped Josh had only taken her here to watch other people do it. When he told her otherwise, she turned to look at him, hand still in his. "Bungee jumping's on your bucket list, not mine," she reminded him. "Josh, this is crazy." She watched the next person take the dive and she tensed. She was starting to think that Josh shouldn't do it either. She happened to like him in one piece, very much actually.
Until he had met Emeline, Josh had never really been a big fan of hiking, but he had picked it up. Maybe a little to impress her but in the end he had realized that he was enjoying it. So now he had more interests besides his books. “You sound like a kid,” Josh replied, looking at her, “but we’re probably there in like 10 minutes if we keep this pace,” he told her. He still was surprised that she hadn’t figured out what they were going to do, or at least what he was going to do. He wanted to cross something off his bucket list, and this seemed like the easiest thing at the moment. “Fine,” he huffed, “just so that you won’t keep asking even if we’re there soon.” Josh turned to her, “it’s a bridge, like a really cool bridge that a lot of people visit.” So maybe he was keeping it a bit vague, since he still wanted it too be a surprise. “But I’m sure you’ll like it.”
Emeline was about to protest, but then closed her mouth. He had a point. She did sound like a kid right now. She smiled, suddenly feeling energised. 10 more minutes!
"We've been hiking for hours to see a bridge?" she questioned in disbelief. She knew that they had been trying to cross some more items off of their bucket lists lately, but Emeline didn't remember seeing anything about a bridge on his. Visiting this bridge - whatever it was called - was certainly not on hers. If only she'd had time to research where they were hiking. Josh had kind of sprung this trip on her. Emeline took a breath. "I'll have to trust you, I guess," she murmured, keeping up with him. Josh knew her very well now. If he was sure she'd like seeing this bridge, then she should trust that she would.
Emeline continued along the path, staying close to Josh. It was so nice to have found someone who enjoyed hiking as much as she did. "Are we there yet?" she asked him for the millionth time. Josh had told her that he had a surprise for her at the end of the trail, and clearly, Emeline was a little impatient. To be fair, they had been walking for almost two hours now with no end in sight, so her impatience was understandable. She hoped they would stop for another break soon at least. She'd love to go for a swim to cool off. It was a beautiful, but extremely hot day. Emeline caught up to Josh. "Come on," she urged him, bumping his shoulder with hers. "Give me a hint. What's at the end of the trail?"
Joe smiled wen he saw and heard Lauren. “I always do great work,” he replied, a smile playing on his lips. “And you did good too.” He let out a breath. “And you’re now closer to not being my sidekick,” he replied, pushing the backdoor open, “So what’s the plan? Back and see what else we can fix tonight. Or maybe some food. I’m voting food. I need me some greasy burger.”
Lauren rolled her eyes at him. Why did she even bother complimenting him? Sidekick. There was that word again. Unable to hold back, she punched him in the arm. When was he going to see her as an equal? "You can go and get some food for us," she responded, suddenly very aware of the blood on her person. A minimal amount, but a bother nonetheless. "I am going to grab a shower first," she finished. "Be quick though. Who knows who else will need our help tonight?"
