"I told you, Bee," says Dalia in a triumphant tone. "He doesn't hold it against you-especially for some coffee." I sigh out of relief, but I still can't shake the feeling there's something wrong.

"But, what if it happens again?" I ask hesitantly.

She brushes off my concerns with a hand gesture and amused laughter. "Stop worrying for that, Bee. Instead, tell me: what do you think about him?"

"Hmm... As Mr. Frye put it out, he will be a great asset to this team." My answer doesn't convince Dalia, who frowns at me.

"Are you serious, Braverly? Have you even noticed how hot he is?" I facepalm. New Guy has just come to our company and all Dalia thinks I should do is... to flirt with him. What about a slow and measured approach?

I deadpan. "No, I didn't. I was too focused on the shitty figure I made early on. I'm sure Frye will make me pay for that." Well, he was indeed forgiving on the spot. But this doesn't necessarily mean he meant what he said.

Dalia shakes her head. "You're dead wrong, Bee. Frye isn't the vindictive piece of shit you think he is. Relax. You'll make up for it in another way." I hope she's right. One poor figure is already enough. I'm not ready to make another one.

Of course, my suspicions end up being wrong as Mr. Frye passes by our desk. He stares at me for a hot minute and a half. "I hope you're okay, Braverly. You were frazzled yesterday," he says. He doesn't sound angry at all. Now that I know Dalia is 100% right, I have to brace myself for a round of 'I told you so' and shit like that.

I give my boss a nervous smile. "Oh, yeah, it's all okay. I already had the chance to talk to him... To Mr. Ewing, of course." Dalia can kill me with that glare of hers. She barely keeps herself from shrieking at me. How is it that I make a shitty figure every time I open my mouth?

"Okay. That's all I need to hear from you. I'll leave you to your work." He leaves and moves to the next row of desks, where several colleagues get caught gossiping. Don't they have more pressing matters to care about?

I turn to Dalia, ready for some deserved ass whooping. "I know, I have no excuses. I should've trusted you. You know better."

She comments, "You flatter me, Bee. But, honestly, if I tell you Jeff has no reason for hating you, then believe me. He's a good person, and I'm sure you agree with me." She has a point... No, she's right. Jeff has no ill intentions. If Dalia can trust him, so should I.

"Okay. I'll try not to see anything suspicious in his reaction. I promise."

"Well, then I expect you to keep it." When Dalia makes a pretend serious voice, she makes me laugh hard. I don't know why, but it's funny. Since she shakes her head, however, I stop and focus back on my tasks—my workload has gone back to usual after yesterday.

When the shift is over, my first thought is what to watch when I'm back home. However, I feel someone coming my way. Jeff. This is the perfect opportunity to put an end to the coffee stain ordeal and start to know each other properly.

I point at his checkered shirt. "Nice pattern," I say. Wow, I can't really say this is the best way for me to start a conversation. I know I can do a lot better than this.

To my surprise, he takes it as a compliment. "Oh, thanks. You yourself look good in that shirt." It's a basic blue and white shirt in a vertical striped pattern, but I hold it dear because it's the first clothing item I bought when I came here to Baindale.

I giggle. "Thanks, I guess. By the way, are you on your way home?"

"No, I've got to run some errands. Nothing particular, though." The small talk eases the atmosphere around us, making me forget about that one thing for a while. That's until Jake Brock passes by.

His presence is so out of place. Isn't he supposed to sing the praise of Frye for doing even the simplest tasks? Yeah, Jake is a master bootlicker. Someone who tries hard to please people but turns out to sound (more like, to be) unpleasant.

"You two have nice shirts. Congrats. They almost match." Jeff and I barely suppress groans. Can't Jake simply shut up? Answer: no, he always has some bullshit to spew.

He indeed continues. "Make sure you don't spill coffee on it! Bye bye!" He leaves before I can rightfully tell him off. When he acts like this, he gives me the ick. I can't understand why he's so well liked at the company.

Fortunately, Jeff has encouraging words for me. "Leave him be. He's an idiot. He doesn't deserve a second of your time." He's right. I only have to focus on my job, as well as maintaining positive vibes.

If I throw everything away for such a moron, then my work on myself will be pointless. So, I laugh off Jake's bullshit and make my way out of the office, followed by Jeff. He asks me, "How long have you worked here?"

"Five years ago, when I moved to Baindale," I answer, but I feel like I could've given a more detailed response. Maybe this isn't the right time to tell all about myself, though. Jeff is likely in a hurry. I want to sit down somewhere and open up properly.

"Oh, so you know this place well. I'm sure you'll show me around the town one day."

"By the way, where are you from? You seem to be a new face not only at the company, but also in town."

"I moved here from Disver to work here." Disver? I have never heard of it. I wonder how far it is from Baindale. I must visit it one day, just out of curiosity.

"Cool." I just say this. No mention of me wanting to take a little trip there to find out more about Jeff's past. I don't want to pass off as a stalker. I barely know him, so why should I talk nonsense?

As much as I'd like to have some more conversation, Jeff checks his watch and walks at a brisker pace. When I ask him for an explanation, he merely waves me goodbye. His errand is more important to him now.

At this point, I prepare to go back home, too. I haven't got much to do since I finished my tasks for today at work. I think I'll just watch some TV and listen to music. The perfect way to unwind after a few eventful days.

Well... I think I'll take it slower. I've just missed the bus and the next one won't be here before thirty minutes. This means I can allow myself a little detour. I'll buy some pastries, or frozen pizza, or maybe some cup ramen. Who knows.

***

"What do you think about loving yourself?" I ask Jeff this question out of the blue, in the middle of our coffee break after working at an incredibly hard task—so difficult that not only did it take us the entire morning, but we also needed help from Dalia and other five colleagues.

He doesn't answer straight away. He scratches his head, then adjusts his glasses. Only after he notices my gaze starts losing focus, he gives me a response. "Well, to me, loving myself means not allowing others to define me for how I present myself."

"Really? Do you think you attained it?"

"It's not a simple process, and it's definitely not linear. There's a chance one takes another path. You might even have to go back in order to move forward." He has just made a great point. Now, I need to make the right adjustments in order to achieve this important goal.