Dan’s Offsite – Day 1
I woke up to the soft electronic chirp of somebody moving through menus. I dragged myself out of bed, found yesterday’s shorts and T-shirt on the floor and went looking for coffee. Lin was sitting cross-legged on the rug in…
Arc 2 · Dan’s Friend
- Narrator
- Mia
- Chapters
- 8 chapters
- Runs from
- Dan’s Offsite – Day 1 to Girls Night Out
- Length
- About 3 h 11 min · 38,104 words
While Mia's job starts to unravel, Dan comes back from a three-day work offsite talking about a new colleague, Leah. Polished, organised and very used to getting her way, Leah sweeps Mia (and Lin) into shopping trips, a museum gala and a night out that changes the shape of all their relationships.
Non-prose chapter: "Leah Reaches Out" is told in text-message screenshots.
Dan’s Offsite – Day 2
My phone buzzed before I had finished my first coffee. Not the apartment chat. A new one. Girl Talk Leah:Hello. Leah:Dan gave me your numbers. Leah:I wanted to thank you both for yesterday. I stared at the screen. Across the…
Leah Reaches Out
Mia texts Leah in private for the first time. Cosplay comes up, Lin’s nickname does too, and the chat goes somewhere the group thread never would.
Dan’s Offsite – Day 3
I woke up beside Lin needing to pee. I slipped out of bed and left her sleeping. While doom-scrolling on the toilet, a message appeared in the Girl Talk chat. Leah:Morning. Leah:One housekeeping item. Leah:Sent two images. Leah:Negative across the…
Meeting Leah
I woke before my alarm. I was excited. My body knew something was happening and refused to waste it sleeping. Leah was coming over at five. I lay in bed for another minute, staring at the ceiling, before admitting I…
Shopping for Femininity
The girl chat turned into mostly memes after Sunday, Dan seemed to spend more time with us than with Leah, and he mostly said she was a busy woman, and no further digging could get more specifics. My work week…
The Gala
Friday arrived with the kind of urgency usually reserved for medical appointments and tax deadlines. I showered in the morning, washed my hair, kept conditioner away from the roots like Leah had instructed, and spent the next several hours trying…
Girls Night Out
Lin looked up from the couch when I came back home. She blinked. “What are you wearing?” I looked down at myself. “Clothes?” “Those are not your clothes.” “They are now.” The black pleated skirt sat high on my waist,…