Chapter 2
Willow let the door slam closed behind her. Sushi was already sliding past her to lay in her doggy bed.
“All done with your day causing mayhem?” Willow asked wearily. Sushi offered only a subtle wagging of her tail.
Willow glanced down at her dress all covered in mud and groaned. She had bought the dress on a whim at a fancy shop downtown. She’d never had a reason to wear it and today had felt like the perfect time. She pulled the dress off over her head and laid it across her dryer. It was probably ruined, but maybe the dry cleaner could work a miracle. Willow cringed when she thought back to her interaction with Mel. She hadn’t even offered to help the woman pick up her bags. Of course, Sushi would have just eaten everything in Mel’s bags. So she’d actually done Mel a favor, whether the woman realized it or not. Of course, if Mel had just followed her instructions, they would have been fine. She looked down at her dress one final time and scoffed at it.
Honestly, why couldn’t Mel have just stood still? Willow sat on her couch and looked over at Sushi who was lying asleep on her doggy bed. Sushi hadn’t started out as Willow’s dog. Willow’s mother had brought Sushi home on a whim. Her mother was prone to flights of fancy and Willow had known the puppy love wouldn’t last. She had been right, of course. Once Sushi lost her puppy looks and was big enough to beg for food, her mother had lost interest. There had been talks of rehoming Sushi, but Willow couldn’t bear it. Sushi had taken a liking to Willow, and the feeling was mutual. So Willow had taken Sushi into her home. And Sushi had made Willow’s life a little less lonely.
Unfortunately, her mother hadn’t thought to get Sushi any obedience training. Sushi was terrible on a leash, and absolutely untrustworthy around food. But Willow loved her unconditionally. Sushi lifted her head and met Willow’s eyes.
“You know, I’m never going to meet a pretty girl if you keep knocking them all over before I have the chance to introduce myself,” Willow said with a smile. Sushi wagged her tail.
Willow was startled by a thunderous knock on her door. Willow knew who it was before she even answered the door. She’d never met anyone with a knock like that other than her best friend, River. River was leaning against her porch railing when Willow opened the door. River’s face lit up when she saw Willow.
“Hey, friend. I wasn’t expecting you. Come on in,” Willow smiled and ushered River inside.
River was one of the few people that Willow enjoyed showing up to her home unannounced. When River gave her a wide-eyed expression, Willow remembered that she was still in her underwear. River had been her friend for over a decade, and the outfit covered as much as her swimsuit. River walked inside and gave her a once-over.
“Is everything alright, friend?” River asked.
“Hold on, let me get some pants,” Willow teased.
“No reason to dress up on my account. I could take my pants off to match,” River laughed.
Willow shook her head and sighed. Flirting aside, the two of them had decided early on in their friendship that they were better as friends. Why mess with a good thing? Willow came back from her bedroom wearing a pair of faded jeans and a t-shirt.
“So what has you feeling so out of sorts today?” River asked. Her friend knew her all too well.
“I ran into this woman,” Willow said, already frazzled before the story even began.
“I don’t understand. Isn’t that a good thing?”
“Usually, meeting a pretty woman is a good thing. In this case Sushi tangled her up in the leash. I was going to get us free, but this woman wouldn’t stop moving. So, we fell in the mud. Oh, and my brand-new dress is completely covered in mud.”
“So, she was pretty?” River laughed.
“Really? That’s what you got out of that story?” Willow folded her arms across her chest.
“Well, you’re the one who mentioned it,” River smirked.
“Fine. Yes. Mel is pretty,” Willow said. The more they talked about Mel, the more flustered she became.
“I think you liked this Mel,” River accused. River’s lips curved into a smirk.
“I don’t think we’re going to find out if I would like her or not. Since I never intend to see her again,” Willow said, with a sigh. River’s face fell.
“Why not? So your dog knocked her over. Big deal. These things happen.”
“Yeah, but then I was flustered and upset about my dress. I’m pretty sure I basically bit her head off. Then I was so embarrassed that I just ran off without even offering to help her pick up her bags.” Willow watched as River’s smirk turned into a grimace.
“Okay. I admit you could have done a little better,” River chimed in. Willow watched as her friend paused for a moment.
“You should bake her cookies and take them to her place,” River suggested.
“What?” Willow asked in confusion.
“There’s no better way to apologize for making a bad first impression than by making a good second impression. And there’s no better way to make a good second impression than by bringing that person cookies,” River explained.
Willow couldn’t stop staring at River. She folded her arms across her chest and tapped her foot against the floor.
“Why are you here?” Willow asked. The words came out sharper than she’d intended. She could tell because River recoiled slightly at her tone.
“Sorry. All I meant is that I wasn’t expecting you,” Willow said, evening out her tone. River’s expression softened; she was always quick to forgive a trespass.
“Everyone is wanting to get together for dinner tonight. At Autumn’s place. They sent me to see if I can coax you out of your house,” River admitted proudly.
“Oh, come on. I haven’t been that bad,” Willow scoffed.
“Friend, you haven’t hung out with us all in a month,” River said. She crossed her arms over her chest and gave Willow a hard stare. Willow could see this was one argument she wouldn’t be winning.
“But I just started a book,” Willow whined.
“I promise to get you back home at a reasonable hour so you can read before bed,” River smiled.
“Promise?” Willow held up her pinkie finger. River smirked as she hooked her own pinkie to Willow’s.
“You have my word,” River promised.
“Fine. I’ll go,” Willow said with a roll of her eyes.
It wasn’t that Willow didn’t love her friends, she did. And she knew she would have a blast at dinner with them. It was just that convincing herself to leave the comfort of her own home was never easy. What could be better than reading on her couch, with her dog right by her feet? Still dinner once a month was not an unreasonable request for her friends to be making and Willow knew that. River plopped onto the couch.
“Are you just going to wait here?” Willow asked.
“Of course. I’m a full-service operation. I’m going to drive you there and back,” River grinned. River leaned her head back on Willow’s couch.
“You’re impossible. You know that, right?”
“Would you love me less if I were less impossible?” River asked with genuine curiosity. Willow took the seat beside her on the couch.
“I think I would love you no matter what your level of impossibility was. As long as you were still you,” Willow offered. She couldn’t tell if River found her answer satisfactory or not.
“What’s new in your life? Any success on that dating app you joined?” Willow asked. River rolled her head to the side, met Willow’s eyes and groaned loudly. Willow had always thought River had beautiful features with her long dark hair and warm brown eyes. But it was her friend’s personality that really sold her.
“Well, that doesn’t sound good. What’s going on?” Willow asked.
“Oh, nothing. I’m just going to die alone,” River sighed.
“Stop it. You’re not going to die alone. You’ll find someone. Didn’t you go out on like two dates last week?” Willow laughed.
“I did. Turns out the women I went out with were each other’s exes. They decided to get back together after going out with me.”
Willow cringed internally, but carefully arranged her facial features so that River wouldn’t see.
“Isn’t it nice that you brought two people back together?” Willow asked.
“Yeah. I’m living the dream,” River chuckled.
“Do you really think there’s someone out there for me?” River asked.
“You’re too wonderful not to find someone,” Willow assured, then immediately asked,
“Do you think I’ll ever find someone?”
“Yes, of course. You’re wonderful. But I do think in order to meet someone you’re going to have to leave your house more,” River suggested.
“You may have a point there,” Willow laughed.
The two sat talking for another hour until it was time for them to leave. Willow’s friend, Autumn was probably the most competent person she’d ever met in her life. Everything about Autumn was well put together. Autumn’s home was no exception. She greeted Willow and River warmly at her door. Autumn wore her long blonde hair tied back into a ponytail; her blue eyes studied Willow’s face.
“It’s nice to see you. I’m glad you made it,” Autumn said with a smile. There was no hint of judgment behind her words.
Their friend Piper sat at Autumn’s kitchen table. When she saw Willow her eyes widened before she wrapped her into a hug. Willow hadn’t meant to lock herself away, but the last several months hadn’t been pleasant. Willow had lost her job, and then her girlfriend of six months had broken up with her. Those two things combined had left Willow with a need to be alone and regroup. She’d found a new job fairly quickly. But what had really helped Willow find her groove again was adopting Sushi.
Looking around the room at her friends Willow felt at peace. She knew none of them would judge her. They had all made it a point to check in with her while she was trying to regain her footing in life. The thought of her friends filled Willow with warmth. No matter what else was going on in her life she had a lockdown on good friendships.
“I’m glad you’re getting to hang out with us all,” Piper grinned.
“Me too, friend,” Willow said.