You're Welcome

Jonah was in the middle of reading a rather gripping mystery novel when he got two texts in succession. One was from an unfamiliar number and simply read 'Hey, it's me' and the other was from Troy.

'Don't reply to the random number text yet! I'll explain when I get home'

He squinted suspiciously at the screen. This couldn't be good. Did Troy use him to deflect someone he didn't want having his number again?

He had done that a few times after they graduated high school, much to Jonah's annoyance. Each time, he had his cousin pretend to be a vacuum cleaner salesman or something else weird to get the girl to back off.

The third time it happened, Jonah ratted Troy out by giving the girl his number anyway and he stopped doing it after that. It had been a few years but he should know better than to try again.

The text did say he would explain himself though so Jonah sighed and returned to his book. Whatever he had to say better be good.

"I just did you the biggest favor of your life," Troy announced as he walked through the door. "The person that texted you was your girl Eden. You're welcome."

The book flew out of his hands as he shot up in the recliner, losing his place. "What did you do?!"

"Relax, it was perfectly natural. She kept trying to flag me down and it was hard to ignore after a while so I ended up having to talk to her. She wanted to tell you about getting a job and said the only thing she would miss about the place was the conversations she had with you.

"So I was a total bro and said they didn't have to end once she left and gave her your number. Now you don't have to waffle about potentially doing it or not anymore because I did it for you. Like I said, you're welcome!"

Jonah thought he might have a heart attack. How could Troy have done something like that without consulting him?! At the same time…he couldn't deny the warmth flowing through him when he heard that Eden would miss their talks.

"She really said that?"

"Yeah and her smile nearly blinded me when I suggested exchanging numbers. I think she likes you, dude," Troy encouraged. "You should text her."

"What would I even say?" he asked helplessly.

"I dunno, something simple like 'glad I have your number now' with a smiley face. Or you could ask her more about her new job. Anything is better than nothing. I'm sure she'll be glad to hear from you no matter what."

Would she though? It was past 9:30 PM and Jonah knew Eden had work tomorrow even though it wasn't that early. Texting now might be rude. He didn't know phone hour etiquette because he never contacted anybody unless it was related to work and that was always done during business hours only.

He did want to hear more about her job…but wouldn't that be better to hear tomorrow in person? Their number of in-person interactions was limited and he was sure she would radiate excitement talking about something she had looked forward to for so long. He wanted to see her smile rather than imagine it.

For the sake of politeness though, it probably was a good idea to let her know he got her text. He mustered up every ounce of courage he possessed and rewrote the stupid thing seven times before sending it.

'Saved your contact' with a smiley face. Super lame but Jonah couldn't think of anything better under pressure.

He returned to his book and got a response a few minutes later. 'Cool. You doing anything fun right now or are you too tired from work?'

'Just reading to relax for a while…though I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to sleep because of what I'm reading'

'What are you reading?'

'A murder mystery called Into the Night. It's pretty dark but I'm probably going to stay up all night reading it. So if I'm a total zombie tomorrow don't judge' Jonah sent back.

Eden replied with a couple laughing emojis before sending a second text. 'I'll leave you to it then. Nothing quite like pulling an all-nighter to read. I wanted to tell you more about my new job but that can wait until tomorrow. Your book beckons. Let me know if it's worth reading when you're done with it'

A wide smile crossed his face after reading her message. Only another book lover would understand and respect the unspoken code to leave someone alone when in the middle of reading. Yet another thing he appreciated about her.

She said they would talk about her job tomorrow too, which was exactly what Jonah had wanted. Things were working out for him better than he thought they would.

He knew it wouldn't be this good forever. Now that Eden had his number, all the things he had worried about if they stayed in contact after his little favor to Troy was over would probably happen at some point.

Maybe he really would have to pretend to move to Minnesota or whatever exotic locale his cousin came up with. But that wouldn't be the end of the world, would it? He already knew that seeing her again was impossible.

Jonah could count on one hand how many more times he would see Eden in person. Next week was the last that Troy would be in the recording studio. He would take his role as Freddie Funnington back and that would be the end of it.

If Eden put in her two weeks' notice today—and he was willing to bet she did considering how much she hated the place—she would only have three days of work overlapping with Troy. He could avoid her for three days without being rude enough that she would get offended and not want to talk to Jonah anymore…right?