CHAPTER 7
Arwen
Iro No Last Name: What about seven o’clock? I’ll pick you up.
Arwen Lam: Yes, that will be fine.
Arwen had tried to play down her interest, managing to resist the urge to send a happy face emoji, a red heart emoji, and the face emoji with the red hearts around it, which was probably good because Iro didn’t really seem like the emoji type based on the little she knew about her.
She hadn’t gotten Iro’s last name, so she’d put her into her contacts as Iro No Last Name, planning to change it later when she actually got that information.
It had been four days since they’d met at the bar.
Arwen had been having issues keeping herself focused ever since, and her job required focus.
Her clients depended on it. Instead of paying attention to them, though, she’d been thinking about Iro and their upcoming date.
It hadn’t helped that she had hardly been able to find anything about Iro on the internet.
Arwen didn’t have a last name, so she’d only had a first name to work with, and while Iro was certainly an uncommon name, she hadn’t been able to find any social profiles or even information on a business owned by someone named Iro that fit her Iro’s description.
She had given up on the third day and tried to refocus on her work.
“I’ve got that brief you wanted,” Zara said, walking into Arwen’s office.
“Thanks. Hey, you still look like you’re not feeling well. It’s been a few days, Zara. Maybe you should get checked out by a doctor.”
“I will if it doesn’t go away. I think I’m just tired. No cough, sore throat, or fevers, so it’s not a cold. I’ll be okay.”
“You said you were fine the other day,” Arwen noted. “Now, you’re tired?”
“Well, I was fine the other day, but now I’m tired.
I’ve been here until eight every night with you, trying to get our ducks in a row here for this case.
I get home and eat a crappy meal for one and stay up late watching TV until my busy brain calms down, so I haven’t been sleeping well.
I’m sure that’s all it is. I assume we’ll be here late again, but maybe you’ll take me to dinner and pay me back for making me stay late every night. ”
“Tonight?”
“Yeah, tonight,” Zara said, sitting down. “Veggie burgers?”
“I can’t tonight.”
“Why not?”
“Iro and I are going out.”
“Oh,” Zara said. “She texted you?”
“She has been,” Arwen replied with a smile. “We’ve been texting back and forth a little, not a lot. She’s busy, and I’m busy, but she texted me good morning the morning after we met and then goodnight, so we’ve been doing that. She’s very sweet.”
“How adorable,” Zara said with little emotion.
Arwen wanted to ask her about it, but her friend looked so tired and didn’t feel well, so now wasn’t the time.
She felt bad about being so focused on Iro and the big case, along with the others she was working on.
She hadn’t been paying much attention to her best friend, with the exception of worrying about how sick she looked.
“She’s picking me up at seven. I was going to ask you to help me pick out something to wear.
I have no idea where she’s taking me, but she’s obviously rich to some degree, and she might take me to the fanciest restaurant in DC or something, where I clearly don’t belong.
I don’t have anything nice enough for that. ”
“You have nice clothes, Arwen.”
“Not for a five-star restaurant. Do you need a ball gown to get into one of those? God, do you think she’ll wear a tux?”
Her mind took her to a very happy place.
“I doubt it, but I can tell where your brain just went,” Zara said. “I’m still a little confused, by the way.”
“About what?”
“You’ve never dated someone like her in all the time I’ve known you.”
“I know. I can’t explain it. She just does something to me.”
“You two didn’t… I mean, all you said was that she took you home.”
“What? No. She kissed me on the cheek, and we held hands. That’s all.”
“You held hands?” Zara asked.
“Yes. She stood up in the bar and held her hand out to me like she was about to escort me to the dance floor. It was very dashing. Is dashing the right word to use?”
“I don’t know. I wasn’t there, so I didn’t see it.”
“She said she’s old-fashioned and wanted to go out first, so we’re doing that, which is great because I’m not a one-night stand kind of person.
I’m honestly barely even a dater. I want someone I can meet, and we automatically agree that it’s just the two of us from the start, so we can get to the place where we stay in, watch old movies as we snuggle up on the couch, and share inside jokes that no one else knows. ”
“That does sound nice,” Zara said.
“So, can you come over and help me find something in my closet? It won’t take long unless I freak out because I really do have nothing to wear.”
“Why don’t you just text her and ask where she’s taking you? Then, you’d know what to choose.”
“She said she wants to surprise me. I have never had a woman want to surprise me on a first date unless you count that one who surprised me by wearing a strap-on all night and thought she’d get to use it when we got back to my place.”
“At least, you said no.”
“Are you feeling too tired to help? I’d understand, Zara. I will continue to tell you to go to the doctor to get checked out, though, because it’s been four or five days, at least.”
“Well, you’re not sick, and I spend most of my time with you, so whatever it is, it’s not contagious. You’ll be fine.”
“I’m not worried about me,” Arwen replied, looking at her friend with a more critical eye now, after Zara’s tone had gone a tad harsh. “Zara, what’s really going on?”
“Nothing,” Zara said as she stood. “I need to get back to work, but you’ll be fine, I’m sure.
Go with a dress. Maybe that black one. It’s simple, strapless, and you look great in it.
Don’t take that purse, though.” She pointed to the purse on the floor by Arwen’s desk.
“Small clutch. If you don’t have one, run to any store and buy one.
It just needs to be black, and you’re good.
Leave that giant Mary Poppins bag at home. ”
“It helps me carry all my stuff,” Arwen protested.
“On a date, you don’t need legal pads, your laptop, and, like, sixty-eight pens. You’ll be fine.”
Arwen laughed and replied, “You know me well.”
“Yeah, I do,” Zara said wistfully. “I’ll see you later.”
Zara then left her office, and Arwen felt like she should press her because this wasn’t how her best friend usually acted.
Zara had been distant all week, had wanted to talk about work only, and hadn’t asked anything about Iro and the date that Arwen was about to go on, when they’d always been able to talk to each other about the women they were seeing.
On top of that, Zara had been sluggish. When Arwen had asked her questions about a case, Zara had been pretty slow to respond or hadn’t known the answer, whereas usually, Zara was even ahead of her.
Arwen decided that if her friend didn’t get better soon, she might call the doctor to book her an appointment herself.
“Arwen?”
She looked up, seeing Zara standing there with a delivery guy, who was holding flowers in a blue vase.
“Can I help you?” she asked him.
“Arwen Lam?”
“That’s me.”
“These are for you. Can you sign, please?” he asked and walked over to her desk, where he set down a massive bouquet of flowers she didn’t recognize.
“For me?” she asked and stood to sign for him.
“Yeah.”
“Who are they from?”
“Don’t know. There’s a card there.”
The delivery guy then held up his tablet in thanks, she guessed, and headed out the door.
“Why did you even ask him who they were from? You know exactly who sent them,” Zara said.
Arwen saw the card stuck in the flowers and pulled it out, ignoring Zara’s comment. When she looked up to share the contents of the card with her friend, she saw that Zara had left. Arwen looked back down at the card and pulled it out of its tiny envelope.
Beautiful Arwen,
I wanted to express my gratitude for allowing me to escort you out tonight and tell you that I am impatiently waiting to see you at your door. The flowers are forsythia and anemone, which both mean anticipation. I’ll see you soon, beautiful Arwen.
Iro
Arwen smiled at her thoughtfulness and breathed in the scent of the yellow-and-white flowers.
She couldn’t believe she’d met a woman like this.
No one had ever sent her flowers after a first date, let alone in anticipation of one.
She hadn’t even gotten flowers on an anniversary before.
She sat down and reread the card, feeling giddy and high on all sorts of love hormones she knew little about.
Then, she grabbed her phone and sent a message.
Iro No Last Name: You are most welcome. I’m glad they arrived. I hope it was appropriate to send them to your office. Please tell me if I shouldn’t have done that.
Arwen Lam: It’s perfectly fine. I’m out at work, but even if I weren’t, I don’t think anyone would be able to tell they’re from another woman. I could always tell them they’re from a grateful client if I need to.
Iro No Last Name: I have to head into a meeting, but I look forward to seeing you soon.
Arwen Lam: Hey, can I ask one question before you go?
Iro No Last Name: Of course.
Arwen Lam: I need to pick out something to wear. Can you give me a hint here?
Iro No Last Name: You can wear anything you want, Arwen.
Arwen grunted in frustration and typed.
Arwen Lam: I’m not a fancy person… You seem like a fancy person, but I don’t own any expensive clothes.
Iro No Last Name: I’m not taking you anywhere fancy. You can dress casually, if you’d like. It’s not a fancy kind of surprise. I just like the idea of surprising you at all.
“Yeah, I’m going to fall in love with this woman if I’m not careful,” she said to herself before she typed.
Arwen Lam: Okay. Casual, it is. I’ll see you tonight.
Iro No Last Name: Until then, beautiful Arwen.
“God, she even texts like a fucking poet,” Arwen muttered to herself. “She probably doesn’t even use a word like ‘fucking.’”
She sat down to reread the card, knowing she needed to get back to work, but the flowers on her desk continued to distract her. She’d ridden her bike in today, and now, she had to figure out how she was going to get this giant bouquet of flowers home.
“Hey, Zara?” she asked as she arrived at Zara’s desk.
“Yeah?”
“Can you drive me home?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“I want to take the flowers home, but I can’t exactly do that on my bike.”
“Oh,” Zara replied. “Yeah, sure. You can put your bike in my trunk.”
“Great. Thanks.”
Arwen left Zara there to work, still wondering what was going on with her, and a couple of hours later, she put her bike in Zara’s trunk, using a bungee cord to keep the trunk down.
They’d done this a few times, but not often.
Zara was always prepared, though, and usually offered her a ride if it was raining or in winter, especially if Arwen had taken the subway or ridden her bike in on a day where no snow had been anticipated.
The flowers she had kept in her lap because she didn’t want to risk them tipping over in the back seat.
“Here you go,” Zara said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to come up? You don’t have to help me pick out an outfit. We can just talk. I have to shower first, but after that, we can talk while I get ready.”
“What would we talk about, Arwen?”
“Whatever’s going on with you,” she suggested.
“I’m fine. I don’t know how many times I can tell you that before it’s clear that I am fine.”
“Your eyes are bloodshot. They were like that the other night, too.”
“Because I haven’t been sleeping well. That’s all. Now, I’m double-parked, so you need to get out, or I’ll get a damn ticket.”
“Fine,” Arwen replied. “I’ll set the flowers down on the sidewalk and hope no one steals them while I get my bike out of the trunk.”
“Great,” Zara said sarcastically.
Arwen hadn’t ever seen this side of Zara before, and if she didn’t have to get out of the car or risk her further anger, she would’ve called her on it, but that would have to wait for another day.
She got out, resisting the urge to slam the door, and set the bouquet on the sidewalk by the door to her building.
Then, she retrieved her bike from the trunk and couldn’t resist slamming the trunk lid at least.
Seconds later, Zara rejoined traffic, and Arwen watched her car turn at the next light, deciding she would worry about her later.
Right now, she needed to get both her bike and the flowers upstairs, knowing if she left either, they’d likely get stolen in the minute it took her to get back downstairs.
She pulled open the door, hefted the bouquet in one hand, and used her other to steer the bicycle inside.
She normally just took the stairs, but not with her bike, so she was grateful she didn’t live in a walk-up.
When she got to her floor, she nearly dropped the flowers but kept them close to her chest, only splashing a little water over herself instead.
“The things I do for the environment,” she said to herself. “Should’ve just driven to work today.”
She unlocked her door, put her bike in its usual spot by the window in the living room, and set the flowers on the kitchen table, moving them to the middle to take them in more fully.
She got more water for them to replace what had been spilled and headed to her bedroom so she could start getting ready.
Right before she was about to get into the shower, her phone pinged.
Expecting it to be Zara with an apology, she was surprised to see that it was from Iro.
“No, don’t be canceling,” she said and opened the message app.
Iro No Last Name: I can’t wait to see you.
Arwen sat on the side of her bed and simply sighed.