[1:6] Lavender Valley

(Cunning Roll: Success!)

Josh turns his attention back to the game and is quiet for a few seconds before he says, “Damn, you think?”

“Absolutely, and be honest. Women can smell our BS a mile away, but some honest sincerity and vulnerability is everything.” you tell him. 

He nods. “Dude, it’s going to be so awkward.”

“Yep, gotta take your lumps if you want a chance to get back in her good graces.”

“Alright so, be honest. I can do that. But I think I’ll leave out, ya know, how weird I was being.”

“That’s probably a good call.”

He takes a swig of beer and takes a second to think. His face is drawn with worry. “What if she hates me?” 

The only answer you have for him is a sympathetic look and a shrug. Josh understands and slumps a bit, as if a weight has been lifted off his shoulders. 

He continues, “whelp, I guess I’ll find out then.”

Josh leans over and yanks his phone out of his pants pocket. He types for a few seconds, pauses to think, and finishes it up. There’s a moment of hesitation before he hits send and sets the phone on the arm of the couch. He takes a long swig of beer, finishing off the can. 

“Now, the only thing left to do is second guess sending the tweet all night and calm my upset stomach with pizza and alcohol.” Josh said springing from the couch and heading to the kitchen. 

The game ended around 10pm. You had fun, even if it was a fairly “bro-y” kind of hang. The conversation shifted to sports stats you didn’t understand and the accomplishments of players who you didn’t really know. But he was funny enough where it wasn’t torture. The pizza was good  and his local beer selection was actually pretty good. 

You two bitched about your jobs, you told him about your nightmare of a boss. But you got a high five for storming out like you did. According to Josh more people should have the courage or self destructive urge to just storm out. He told you about his ex-wife and how the marriage collapsed pretty catastrophically as two people two married young grew to want very different things. It was clear he was wounded from everything that happened. But he masked it with jokes and proclamations that he’s moved on to bigger and better things! 

You left his place around 11.

“We gotta do this again,” he says as he walks you to the door. “Next week, same time? I’ll pick up burgers. There’s a great little place that sells all these sliders and fries that have truffle oil and garlic and green bits on them that are amazing. How does that sound?” 

“That sounds great. I’ll even pick up dinner – “ he cuts you off. 

“No. Eff that man. I refuse. Until you get on your feet, dinner is on me. Do not worry about it. You’ll get me back one of these days I know it.”  

Social etiquette would have you protest but you really couldn’t afford it and that pizza was a welcome change from the raman and rice and beans you’ve been eating. So you shake his hand and thank him. You start off down the hall toward you apartment and he says, 

“I’ll text you and let you know what happens with Andrea.”

“Yeah, totally! Please do!” You say as he gives a final wave and disappears back in his apartment. 

The dark and quiet of your apartment is a welcome change from the constant noise of the game and hours of conversation. You have lived by yourself for so long that you got used to your quiet nights. You had fun but your social stamina had taken a hit all those nights in your car when your job consisted of small talk with co-workers and sales pitches on the phone with clients. 

You shower, brush your teeth and get into bed. Which at this point is just a mattress on the floor. But at least it’s a mattress. You take a few relaxing breaths, feeling the buzz of alcohol fade more and more as you sobered up, when you begin to feel a dull rhythmic tremor of bass pulsing through the walls which is just loud enough to grab your attention with every beat…

1.) Confrontation. Get up, get dressed and go next door and demand that they turn the music down. 

2.) Ignore it. You don’t need to turn this into a whole feud. Introduce yourself tomorrow and mention that their music was a little loud and it was a little late at night. After all, how much longer can it go on? 

3.) Don’t make waves. Go get your laptop and stream some nature sounds to drown out the bass. This place is too perfect to start making enemies and becoming a squeaky wheel.