It was hard to concentrate on her work, and she found that her mind continually wandered back to how Martin had looked in the waiting room.
She wondered if he always wore a suit. What would he look like in jeans? In shorts? In nothing at all?
“?”
almost fell out of her chair at the sound of Dr. Norden catching her in the middle of her daydream. She straightened up and swiveled in her chair to face her.
“I’ve been thinking about your predicament with your apartment,” Dr. Norden said. He had a piece of paper in his hand, and he held it toward her.
She reached for it. “You have?” she asked. “What’s this?”
“A job opportunity,” Dr. Norden explained, as scanned the paper. It was for a position similar to her own, but in England.
“Of course I’d hate to see you go,” Dr. Norden said. “We all would. But you’ve always talked about London, and this one caught my eye,” he said, pointing with the cap of his ballpoint pen. “It says there, if you keep reading, that it comes with a place to live. A little apartment attached to the offices… looks charming. I know the Doctor too. He was my roommate at Penn State. He’s an excellent guy.”
read the job description to the bottom, and found the notice about the room. “The flat is free?” she asked with disbelief. “Isn’t London one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in? Why would he offer a room for free?”
She read the description again quickly. It was a one bedroom flat with a kitchen, bath, and balcony.
It sounded lovely.
“Do you think you could get an interview for me?” she asked spontaneously.
Dr. Norden didn’t seem surprised. “I knew you’d be interested,” he said with a smile. “Damn it. I almost didn’t show you… but that would have been selfish of me. I couldn’t do it, after listening to you talk about Europe for so long. I’ll call him tomorrow and give him your contact information.”
“Thank you,” said. She smiled too. “Maybe losing my apartment was just the kick in the pants that I needed, so that I could get out and see the world.”
“Maybe,” Dr. Norden said. “Sometimes bad things happen for a good reason.”
“I guess so,” said. “I guess so. I’m going to have to move… why not make a big move that I’ve been dreaming about for years?”
“We’d miss you,” Dr. Norden reiterated.
“And I’d miss you guys,” said, barely believing she was allowing herself to consider the possibility.
Her life had been so steady, comfortable, and safe over the last decade.
No surprises, no drastic changes.
She thought that was the way she liked it.
Yet, if she was honest, there was something missing.
“Maybe this would be really good for me,” she said at last, half to herself, as she folded the paper up and tucked it into her purse.
“You never know,” Dr. Norden said. “And you don’t have to decide now. But I think talking to him would be a good idea. The position won’t last long. It was just posted in our alumni weekly newsletter today, so if you act fast you can be among the first to be interviewed. I’ll put in a good word for you, too.”
“Thank you,” repeated.
She could hardly believe the turn of events. She thanked Dr. Norden several more times before he disappeared into the back room again.
This time, when returned to her work, her mind wandered to the streets of London rather than a pants-less Martin Cable.
*****
played her music as loud as her ipod speakers would allow her to. She wore short cut-offs and a faded tank top, but was still sticky with perspiration as she danced around the apartment in the unusually muggy September evening air, organizing her belongings into three piles.
One was for trash. was surprised at how much crap she’d accumulated over the years, despite the small size of her place. The second was for donations, and the third, which she attempted to keep small, was for keeping.
I might have to cart my belongings to Europe, she thought. Maybe I could take some time to travel, before the job begins. Maybe…
Her mind wandered towards the Google image of the flat, which she’d found by typing the doctor’s office address into her search engine. Maybe I’ll arrive there with just a few suitcases. How exciting! A Michael Jackson song came on, and she moon walked across the wooden floor to the kitchen, singing along at the top of her lungs. She pulled a bottle of chilling white wine from the refrigerator.
She poured a glass, and added a touch of seltzer water, still singing. The sound of a knock at the door surprised her, until she remembered that it was Friday, and Frank had warned her that he’d be by with a team of carpenters.
She took a sip of her refreshing beverage, and then carried it with her to the doorway. When she opened the door, she smiled in anticipation of seeing Frank. Things hadn’t gone very well between them the last time she had seen him, and she was eager to make amends.