Next Door to Forever

All sweaty, with her legs quaking, Natasha hurriedly made her way into the manager’s office. Natasha would have gladly accepted her former role with lesser pay if she had her way. She missed the easy life of sitting on her receptionist seat, taking random messages while enjoying her sweet coffee. Natasha was still reminiscing about those good old days when Mr. Hughes flung some sheets of paper to her face. “You even performed worse last month! Looks like you badly want to get Collins six months failure record. Too bad if you do because that would get you fired. No kidding, I can’t keep you around if you can’t even break even for our firm.” Just like she had guessed, it was her last month’s sales report. She came last again. As Natasha returned to her seat, she couldn’t help but thank her luck for getting another lucky escape. Hughes had threatened to sack her if she failed to meet her sales target last month, but now he was offering her another grace period for this month. The end of her working hours finally rescued Natasha from her gloomy day. The rest of the sales team had agreed to celebrate their last month’s bonus earnings later that night, but Natasha declined to join them. She had no reason to celebrate. Her numbers were pretty low - yet worryingly, it wasn’t her worst. “Geez! Who parks a dinosaur van in the driveway and goes off?” Natasha cursed out loud as she stepped out of her car. Her earlier honking from her car had gone unanswered, so she felt pretty irritated to find no one inside the vehicle. She had been frustrated at work, and now this? A tired Natasha wanted to get home as soon as possible and get herself a hot bath. She immediately yelled out in anger. Three men arrived from the building, walking toward the parked van. “Sorry, we’re moving into the vacant apartment on the third floor. We didn’t expect to take that long with the load carriage.” The oldest amongst the men spoke to her. He must have heard all her lamentations. Natasha felt a bit embarrassed. “Oh, you’re the one taking Jay’s old place? Apartment 303 right?” “I guess so.” The older man then turned to one of his partners. “Can you park the van properly for the lady to get her car through?” With haste, he did as the older man told him. Natasha, at first, didn’t care much about her new neighbors. Whoever they were didn’t matter, for she wasn’t the social type. Natasha hardly spoke with the previous owner of the vacant apartment, Jay, despite being her next-door neighbor. She expected a similar non-existent relationship with the new people. Natasha was still fumbling with her door locks when the guys passed her with more boxes. An idea popped into her head - lending a hand wouldn’t be such a bad idea! “Can I help with bringing in more boxes?” One of the men gave a slight chuckle. “Didn’t you just get back from work? You must be stressed out already. Also, I’m sure we can do without a lady’s help.” Natasha found his remark quite offensive. While her feminine looks might be deceiving to most men, Natasha could handle even heavier weights. Her years at the gym and short-lived passion for athletics ensured that some thirty pounds of boxes had nothing on her. “Don’t chase our helper. Let the lady help if she wants to, Drey.” The older man cut in. Turning to her, he gave a wry smile before adding a second comment. “Now I also have to join in and carry some boxes.” Much to the laughter of the other two guys. “I didn’t get the joke though.” Natasha wasn’t one to let something funny slide without having a go at it. She had to wait a few more seconds before Drey, the youngest of them all, explained better. “Dave is our boss so he doesn’t get to move around boxes or other stuff like us. That’s why he’s the boss but with you as a lady helping out with carrying a few boxes, then Dave definitely has no choice but to join in the work. After all he’s a macho man.” Natasha still didn’t get the whole thing. “I thought you all were like father and sons or some sought of family?” She enquired further. The older man, whose name she now knew to be Dave, gulped out the water he was drinking in reaction to her statement. The others found it amusing too. “These crazy old boys aren’t my sons. I will be disappointed if my boys turn out like this lot. They are my friends and employees helping me move in here.” Dave finally cleared it all. “Your boys? Then you do have kids?” “Yeah. I technically have two boys but only one is my true son. And they look nothing like these two rascals.” Natasha had wanted to ask about his kids, but the guys threw around more inside jokes that she needed to learn of their context. Afterward, it was back to business. Natasha extended her help, from carrying some boxes to unpacking them after they had brought the last one inside. The apartment was a standard two-bedroom condo, unlike Natasha’s single-bedroom home. The sitting room was a lot bigger than hers too. Natasha hadn’t stepped into any of her neighbor’s homes since she came here almost a year ago. Such had been her quiet lifestyle; today was her first time checking out her next-door neighbor’s apartment. She wished she had a bigger space like Dave’s, but that would mean more significant rent payments - a compromise she wasn’t willing to take. The men popped a few cans of beer before they started with the unpacking and furniture arrangement. They offered Natasha a can too, but she declined. While everyone was busy with some task, a loud crashing noise out of nowhere broke the silence. It was a ceramic sculpture that had fallen, shattering into tiny pieces. Unluckily, Natasha was the culprit. “Oh, my bad. Sorry. It slipped from my hand. I’m so sorry….” She started to apologize. “... It’s no biggie. Hope you didn’t hurt yourself?” Dave quickly came over from the other side of the room to check her out. Natasha had tried to hide a sharp cut on her lower left leg by slinging it backward, but Dave took notice. “You do have one on your leg. It must sting, right?” Caught in the act, Natasha couldn’t help but show him the cut. “Not really. It’s just a minor cut. Just going to go stop the bleeding with some spirit and bandages in my locker.” She still tried to downplay the injury. Meanwhile, the other men had stopped to attend to her. Natasha felt their reaction was too caring, even somewhat unreal, unlike her past experiences with other men. “Go get yourself cleaned and stop the bleeding. Your blood is flooding my new carpet already. Thanks for the help. The boys and I can take care of the rest from here while you attend to yourself.” Dave hurried her to treat the cut immediately. To which Natasha took heed. *** Now alone in her room, Natasha cried out from the pain she had been holding in while with the guys. The stinging sensation of the spirit on her cut made her cry the more. It hurt badly at the first attempt. Afterward, the pain reduced. Despite her unfortunate injury, Natasha knew her time wasn’t a wasted effort. She had been reading the Sales Man’s Secret: A trick guide to converting friendship into sales. A book that emphasizes winning potential clients as friends before pitching your sales to them. Dave, the older man, would be her first trial using the book’s instructions. Natasha could feel more adrenaline pumping into her bloodstream as she imagined a positive outcome for all her stress. Dave seemed like a nice guy. He looked the same age as her father or probably even older. Yet he appeared relatable and approachable. Natasha couldn’t help but notice his great facial looks underneath the grey hairs. The man would have been many ladies’ dream man in his thirties. Even in his current version, a handful of women would still long for him. But that was no concern for Natasha. She had no reason to be romantically interested in someone else’s husband, father, and possibly granddad. Her only interest in Dave was that he looked somewhat comfortable financially - she could tell from his expensive-looking collections of artworks and furniture. His age, she would guess early or mid-fifties, made him a good target for her company’s health insurance program. Natasha would reminisce more about the day’s events till sleep finally came calling. Hungry, tired, and exhausted, she dozed away her troubles in the warm comfort of her bed. The six o’clock alarm ended her sweet dreams — a new day with nothing new or exciting to expect. Just like the other days before today, Natasha knew what to expect in the next dozen hours. Random cold calls from her office cell to prospective clients, some physical sales calls here and there, random chitchats with her colleagues, and dealing with a dozen more men gazing away their souls at her presence. Not a day would pass without a handful of men hitting on her. On the bus, train station, cab, office gallery, events, cafes, malls, parks, and almost every corner of New Orleans. Natasha just wasn’t safe from the imminent courtship from men. Indeed, this day would be no different. “Hey, miss!” Someone called for Natasha just as she was about to step into the elevator. She only took notice of the caller after getting in and turning around. It was Dave, too late, though, to give him any reply, for the elevator door slammed shut almost immediately. Natasha knew there was no need to press the quit button - it never worked. She would have to ride downstairs and then upstairs again to meet Dave. On returning to the third floor, Natasha met him standing in front of the elevator door. “You wanted to come meet me downstairs?” Natasha had to ask for she found it quite surprising. “Nah. I wanted to go grab something from a local store for my kitchen. And maybe a few handy kits.” Of course, he had a reason to use the elevator! Silly Natasha had felt it was her attraction pull in action, but now she knew better. “So why did you come back up? To return my hi, or did you forget something?” Dave was canny with words. “To return your hi.” Natasha smiled. Dave hopped in to join her inside the elevator. She liked his friendly personality. At least, that should work in her favor later on. “Also to apologize for breaking your art work. It must have cost quite a handful of bucks because it looked so nice the few seconds I had it in my hands.” “...You already apologized for that.” He cut her off. “I should be the one apologizing for not checking on you after your injury. Me and the boys dozed off after all the hard work. The alcohol also did its part.” Dave chuckled as he completed the last sentence. They talked for a few more minutes about random topics on their way to the parking lot. Natasha could sense that their conversation went on for so long, so she had to signal her exit call. “I will try to stop by later to check up on the great job you and the boys did. Gotta go now, for I am already running late for work.” “Okay. See you around.” With the parting words, Natasha hurriedly drove off for Newman Insurance Co. She had roughly twenty minutes to meet up with her resumption time, and a half-hour ride awaited her. The race was on!

“She isn’t getting a dime from me! She is the one in the wrong!” “Yeah, she is but you’re the one initiating the divorce. You don’t expect the court system to leave Julie with zero support system after playing the housewife role for twelve years. She’s definitely getting something, we just have to minimize whatever she can get her hands on.” “Then do exactly that. Squeeze out whatever juice she is eyeing and hand out the garbage to her. She deserves nothing at all though for what she did.” “Well, the court system would decide on that. We can get the shared custody agreement for Toby only. You’re sure you don’t want to push for Nathan’s too?” “Nathan is not my kid! I love the boy but I can’t train someone else’s son especially when his father is still alive. She even named the boy after the randy man. Julie is the biblical devil, no one can tell me otherwise!” “Yeah she did you bad. Real bad.” Dave got his cool after a while. He went over some documents with Clinton, his lawyer. His divorce case against Julie was starting. That was why he needed to leave his four acres home for the lowly apartment on Mary Ave Drive. It was just a short-term plan, no more than a few weeks or months, and he would be gone. Dave was already on the hunt for a new home. It wouldn’t take long for him to settle for one. At the end of his meeting with Clinton, Dave decided to stop by his firm. D-Kingston Realtors was one of the top real estate businesses in Louisiana. A multi-billion dollar firm with hundreds of properties to its name and majority stakes in a few hospitality companies. Dave Kingston established the firm in his mid-twenties after a brief spell in the real estate business as a home seller. Some thirty years after, Dave couldn’t be more proud of all his years invested in growing the business. With its headquarters in New Orleans, a quarter of D-Kingston properties were also in the city. Even the rental property which Dave now called his home - albeit temporarily - was also owned by his firm. Despite having one-tenth of the company’s total shares, Dave rarely lived up to his billionaire tag. He drove a 1990s vintage Cadillac and was primarily dressed in bright casual clothing. Nothing screamed wealth with how he carried himself around save for his equity value. D-Kingston was run like a family business, with most of the key positions held by Dave’s siblings and their kids. Toby was still only a nine-year-old kid. He would also grow up to keep a top role someday. “You came in to work today? I thought you were on a month’s leave?” Kelly Bullock from the reception was the first to remind Dave of his ongoing office leave. “I just stopped by to talk with Danny and Lincoln. Nothing too serious.” He would have to repeat the same line to almost everyone who asked why he came in today. Dave’s leave started just yesterday. Just one day after and he was back again. Most employees of D-Kingston would find their boss’s commitment and work ethic highly admirable, but Dave didn’t come in today due to his love for the firm. He just got bored and preferred having an hour chat with his siblings than watching a Judge Casey show on TV all alone. He wasn’t yet acclimatized to living alone. “What are you doing here, brother? Don’t tell me you’re missing us already?” Lily went first with the whining. “Big brother just can’t live a day without us.” Lincoln joined her too. “So how was the place? Your back must ache from sleeping in such a tiny house. I told you to stay with us or in one of our high class hotels but you settled for the noble and quiet life.” He smirked. “Where is Danny?” Dave ignored their gibes. Danny was the main reason he was there. “He has some meetings with some folks from the state house. Probably trying to push ahead with the lobbying for the middle-class state housing plan. You know he’s the boss now that you aren’t around. Even though he is the youngest of us.” Lincoln scoffed. “Danny knows the business better than you both. It has nothing to do with his age or experience. He’s just good at running things.” “Yeah, he is.” Lincoln had to accept. After all, it doesn’t matter who runs the company as long as they all share the spoils at the end of the day. That’s the beauty of the business. Apart from Dave, the three other siblings had an equal share of equity in the firm. “So why are you here, Dave?” Lily went back to the main subject. “Actually felt bored at home so I decided to come check you all on my way back from meeting Clinton.” “And how did the meeting with Clinton go?” “The man just showed me the worse and best scenarios of the divorce judgement. She gets something in both cases. Looks like she will get the mansion either way.” Dave didn’t seem to care that much anymore. The sooner he gets the whole thing done, the better for him. His sister and brother sympathized with him. More insults were thrown at Julie till Dave could take no more of it. “Let’s save the insults till after we finalize the whole thing. She’s still technically my wife.” “Drey told me you already got eye on a new fish. Some neighbor of yours or so? Why not tell us about that?” It was Lincoln’s turn to put Dave in a tough spot. Dang! He knew those two would yap about yesterday’s ordeal immediately after they had the chance. “She’s just some friendly neighbor. She volunteered to help us out with the boxes. That’s one of the perks of living among the masses. You get to meet genuine people with good intentions, not folks who pretend to love you to take something in return from you.” Dave had found another point to support his reason for picking the Mary Ave apartment over the more luxurious options. He liked the idea of people relating to him for who he was, not what he had or his status. “So what’s her name? Is she attractive?” Lincoln pressed further. Even Lily seemed more interested in the conversation. “Well, she’s….” Dave struggled to recall her name. Only then did it dawn on him - he had never asked for her name! How he missed such a simple detail embarrassed him. “...You forgot her name already? Then she’s definitely not attractive enough to be the new fish.” “Nah. It isn’t that. I never asked for her name.” Dave had to come clean. His siblings found it funny. Lincoln laughed the loudest. “Rookie mistake, brother.” “He hasn’t been in the game for a long time. We can forgive him for that.” Lily came to his rescue. “Okay. So do you have any plans for the nameless neighbor or have you got eyes on any other women yet?” Lincoln had finally found his terrain. He was a chief womanizer and the party boy of the family. Surely, Dave could pick some lessons from his randy brother. “She’s just a next-door neighbor or at best we could be friends. I think she sees me as some elderly folk. She even thought I was Drey and Drew’s dad. It was that bad.” More chuckles went off. “She must take you as some grandpa. Age is such a killer!” Lily sympathized with her brother. She was a year close to her fiftieth birthday, so she was also familiar with such issues. Lincoln was two years older, while Danny came in five years behind. “I don’t really intend to get romantically involved in anyone for now. Just want to take my one month leave to reflect on these past years and come back to face my business. These women aren’t worth the stress.” Dave switched to a more serious tone. “These money-grabbers just want to eat their next meal. You can just date around and commit to no one brother. Have fun for now with them ladies.” Even Lily agreed with Lincoln. “You should date other women to recover from the Julie heartbreak but no commitment just like Lincoln said. We don’t want to be facing another divorce case in the next few years.” Dave understood his siblings’ point of view. Julie getting a share of his equity in D-Kingston would affect their family’s total holding. After enjoying their company for a few more minutes, Dave decided to return home. If he wanted to reflect internally, he would have to avoid his family. With a cloudy mind, he rode for Mary Ave; better still, that was his initial plan.

Natasha got to work just in time to join the seminar. Hughes had organized another one of his professional sales pitch training. Today’s guest was Tod McGovern. He was a top salesman back in his days but was now a business coach. All he had to say was nothing new to Natasha. She had heard them all. No trick seemed to work for her. Hopefully, her Sales Man Secret experiment would go well, for Natasha was already running out of patience. She had two physical sales calls to attend to today. The first one went bland, but the second was a hit. She got Dolly Piper Paper Co. to switch their health insurance plan to Newman’s. It was a big deal to her. Her first significant sales closure for Dolly Piper had over a dozen employees. On return to the office, Natasha met with lots of congratulations. Even Hughes came over to drop his. “How about we celebrate your today’s win with some bottles of beer? All bills on you though.” Austin suggested at the close of work. “I don’t have much cash on me for today. Maybe another day?” Natasha chose the first excuse she could think of. She had been trying to avoid Austin’s advances since he asked her out on her resumption. She had declined respectfully, yet he still had his eyes for her ever since then. “Okay. All bills on me for today. You will buy me a drink some other time as a payback.” Natasha had no more excuses up her sleeves. “Okay. Give me some minutes to get my things ready.” She accepted his proposal. Their choice of bar was Koldie Place — a high-end bar in the city center. Why Austin picked such an expensive option just for a few bottles felt suspicious to Natasha. The bar was dimly lit, with soft romantic music playing in the background as they walked in. She knew he was boxed up, for Austin was the best salesman in their company. His monthly commissions typically dwarf hers, adding to his higher take-home pay. Maybe Koldie Place wasn’t such a high-end location to him anyway. “How did you close the Dolly Paper deal? Jerry Kauffman was proving such a hard man to crack when I tried him three months earlier. You must have charmed him with your pretty face.” Natasha found Austin’s remark quite offensive. She didn’t like that he would project her success down to her physical appearance rather than her hard work and sales strategy. “Maybe it was that.” She faked a smile. They were still discussing most work talks when Natasha recognized someone from the adjacent table. “Dave!” She called out for him while waving to get his full attention. Dave turned around to see her. He was alone at his table. She waved over for him to join their table. “Hey. Hope I am not intervening with my presence here?” Natasha almost spat out her drink. Austin would have been fuming inside with her reaction. “What’s funny?” He had to ask. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to slight you or anything.” Natasha apologized to Austin. Turning to Dave, she added. “And no you aren’t intervening with anything. We’re just sharing a few drinks after the day’s work. Austin is my colleague from work.” “Nice to meet you Austin. I am Dave.” Dave did his introduction himself. “Natasha never mentioned any Dave. Are you friends with her dad or mom?” Austin went for a cheap shot at him. Dave was used to such one-liners, especially when he socialized with the younger generation. “That isn’t something nice to say nor was it funny. Dave is a new neighbor of mine. He just moved in yesterday to my building. His apartment is actually next to mine.” Natasha felt the need to make Dave feel more welcome in their midst. “Sorry…” Austin mumbled some sort of apology. They soon forgot about the awkward exchange when a political topic arose. They talked for another hour or so while ordering more bottles of beer. Dave spent the evening with just one bottle of wine, an expensive one from how it tasted. Meanwhile, Natasha had a few bottles and Austin a couple more. By half past nine, they decided to call it a day. “Did you bring along your car with you?” Natasha had taken notice of Dave making a call for a ride after they had settled their bills. “Nah. I didn’t drive in here. Someone dropped me off. I have called him to come pick me.” “No need to stress the poor fella. We stay in the same building. Just ride home with me.” Dave took his time to decide before accepting her offer. “Let me call my guy to cancel his ride then.” He smiled. Austin rode home alone in his car while Natasha and Dave rode in hers. The journey back to Mary Ave Street was a quiet one. Surprisingly, Natasha needed help with any good topic while driving. Even Dave seemed uninterested in talking. They probably had little more to talk about after the long exchange at the bar. Or maybe it was just a car habit of Dave’s? Natasha couldn’t figure exactly why the once talkative Dave had suddenly gone quiet. She could see him in the back seat, busy with his tablet. She had thought of bringing up the insurance talk but decided against it. While Natasha was in her right frame of mind - she had only two and a half bottles and a small pint of Dave’s wine. Dave probably wasn’t. He must have had enough alcohol to make him intoxicated. She needed his sober version before he made any critical decision. They got home safe, exchanged goodnight wishes, and retired to their respective apartments. *** The rest of the week passed, with Natasha seeing less of her new neighbor. He never seemed to have any visitors around. Not even a housewarming party or friends popping in to check his new place. He just stayed indoors from Natasha’s observation. She didn’t even know what he did for a living. Even his kid, the one he had mentioned, never came by. Dave was a mystery. The few times she saw him, he looked pretty cheerful and was always headed for somewhere. The first full day of their first weekend together did introduce Natasha to another side of Dave. She had come across him in the hallway while he was going out - all kitted in a sports tracksuit and some accessories - looking way younger than usual. It was also the first time she took notice of his well-built frame. The man had a good body, for she could see the muscle bulks in full display underneath the sportswear. “You still do sports?” Natasha stopped and had to ask after their initial pleasantries. “If you categorize birdwatching as a sport, then hell yeah I am an avid birdwatcher.” Natasha had read about birdwatching a lot, but she considered it a hobby for the rich. She had more demanding problems to seek after than observing which rare birds have decided to visit Louisiana. “Well you look like someone headed for some football practice. You do look nice though.” She added the compliment to come off nice. “Thanks. It would be best if you tried it out sometime. It’s quite a self-satisfying hobby.” Dave’s offer wouldn’t be her first. Most birdies Natasha knew had for once begged her to give birdwatching a try. She never took their advice, and neither will she take Dave’s. “Okay. Maybe some time when I am less busy, I will give it a try.” She lied. And off he went, leaving her all the more puzzled. *** Natasha spent most of the weekend catching up on her favorite TV shows. She did have a blind date from Finder App to attend to that Saturday but chose to decline at the last minute. There was no point meeting random men hoping to end a date with sex at their place or maybe, in the worse case, some professing love after a two hours meeting. Natasha decided to focus on her career at the beginning of this year. Eight months in, she had little to show for her total devotion to her career. The year started well with a job promotion from a receptionist to her new salesperson role. Ever since the euphoria of the upgrade, her career had been stagnant or probably in decline, if she was being honest. She reflected on her lows and highs this year when a sudden idea popped. She was yet to check out Dave’s apartment. She thought about paying him a pleasant visit and dropping a hint about the insurance offer. Natasha rang the doorbell twice but has yet to receive a response. She could hear sounds from inside. On getting closer, she could eavesdrop Dave talking on the phone. Natasha had wanted to take her to leave, but the angry tone of his words made her more curious. She continued her eavesdropping. It was apparent Dave was quarreling with someone over the phone. She heard him use curse words on numerous occasions, but a name stood out from the conversation: Julie. Whoever she was, she was Dave’s number one enemy. After spending some minutes at his door, Natasha decided to call it to quit. There was no need to come in between something private. She had barely settled into her apartment when someone rang her door. She wasn’t expecting any delivery, so getting a visitor on a Sunday afternoon was strange. “Hey. I guess you were the one that stopped by my place some minutes ago?” It was Dave. Of course, it would be him. “Yeah. I wanted to ask if you could lend me your tape player. I need to listen to some old tapes and don’t have one.” She lied. “I have a tape player. Let me get it for you then.” As Dave took his leave, Natasha called it back. “How about I accompany you instead? That way I can also check out your place just like I had promised.” “Oh. Sure. Now would be a good time actually since I have no one over.” “You never have anyone over.” Natasha could only stop herself after uttering her last word. Thinking back, she would have taken those words back. “Maybe. Most of my folks wouldn’t want to stoop from their high horses and pay me a visit in my humble home.” Dave seemed not to take offense. On getting to Dave’s apartment, he showed her around. His place was well furnished. He must have gotten more furniture after that day. Now Natasha was confident that Dave must be a man of high resources, for he had a full gallery of expensive-looking artworks and high-end technology. His home was a far cry from the house of any older person she had ever come across. A large picture of Dave with a young boy caught Natasha’s attention. “Is that your kid?” She asked. “Yeah. That’s Toby.” Natasha had wanted to ask about his whereabouts but didn’t want to come across as a poke-nose. “He stays with his mother for now.” He must have picked off her curiosity to drop an answer. “...And in case you are wondering why I and his mother is not around. We are in the process of getting a divorce.” He added. Natasha couldn’t help to sympathize with the man. Now it all made sense. The Julie from the earlier call must have been his soon-to-be ex-wife. “Was she the one you were arguing with on the phone minutes ago?” Natasha finally comes clean. “You heard us?” Dave frowned a bit. “Yeah she is the one.” “A big fight? Or still about the whole divorce thing?” Natasha now felt bolder to ask more private questions. “Kinda.” Dave would go on to narrate the reason for their intended divorce. It all started with a crazy dare from Lincoln to Dave during a private family gathering to take a DNA test on his kids. Dave accepted the dare and went ahead with the tests, only to discover that his first kid, Nathan, wasn’t his. Toby, his other kid, was his only child. That revelation brought a hideous past about Julie’s promiscuous relationship with her ex-lover - Nathan’s dad. Julie had settled for Dave ahead of her ex because of his wealth, but she kept an extramarital relationship with the chump after her marriage. Nathan was the fruit of their early affairs. On discovering the whole truth, heartbroken, Dave decided to end their twelve-year marriage. Although that wasn’t the reason for today’s argument, Julie had called to inform Dave about her intent to attend D-Kingston’s anniversary day celebration, but Dave declined her request. He told her of his intention to grace the event without a plus-one. Julie wasn’t having any of such a deal. She had her eyes on partaking in the firm’s business even after their divorce. With how they ended the call, it was evident that Julie would attend the event. “If she’s coming. I would need a date. And it’s already too late to find one.” Dave complained. “Why not? When is the event date?” A now starstruck Natasha managed to ask. “Tomorrow night by six. I can’t get a date within a full day, especially now that I have lost my youth swagger.” Dave groaned playfully. “I might help. I could tag along with you and get the whole thing done if you need that date.” Natasha’s proposal must have sounded juicy to Dave’s ears, for his eyes returned to their full glow. “That would be so out-of-the-world if you do that.” Dave couldn’t hide his joy. They discussed more over the plans for the event before Natasha finally headed back to her condo. Those few steps from Dave’s place to hers were the slowest of her life, for she only started to realize the gravity of her proposal.