010

Friday came faster than I expected, and honestly, I was grateful because this week had drained me more than usual. Work had been stressful, my thoughts had been all over the place. Not to mention that I just got dumped by Elias, my ex-boyfriend. And to top it all off, letting Nick into my life earlier in the week had completely messed up the little peace I had. Even though we talked, even though he apologized, I still felt weird about everything, and I hated that he still made me feel so nervous. But I refused to let my thoughts be about him today.

I was sitting at my desk, typing away at my computer when Brenda, my best friend at work, suddenly dropped into the chair beside me with a dramatic sigh, making me glance at her. She had that excited-but-also-nervous look on her face, which instantly made me curious.

“What is it?” I asked, knowing she had something to say.

Brenda tucked her hair behind her ear, leaned in a little closer, and whispered like she was telling me a top-secret mission. “I have a date tomorrow night.”

My fingers paused on my keyboard. “Wait, what?” I turned to face her properly, raising an eyebrow. “A date? With who? How? When?”

She grinned, clearly enjoying my reaction. “It’s with the guy I told you about on Tinder, my online match. We’ve been talking for weeks now, and he finally asked me out.”

I blinked, letting that information sink in. “You mean the guy from that dating app? The one you said had nice eyes and a good sense of humor?”

She nodded quickly, a huge smile on her face. “Yes! Him! His name is Jason, and he seems really nice. We’ve been texting every day, and I feel like I already know him, you know? But this will be our first time meeting in person, so I’m a little nervous and excited about this whole thing.”

Before I could respond, another voice cut in.

“Brenda is going on a date? With a guy from the internet?”

We both turned to see Torres, one of our colleagues, standing a few feet away, holding a stack of papers like he had been looking for something but got distracted by our conversation. He had an amused smirk on his face, his eyebrows raised.

Brenda groaned. “Torres, why are you eavesdropping?”

He shrugged, walking closer and leaning against my desk. “I wasn’t eavesdropping. I just happened to hear you say you’re going on a date, and I had to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating.” He turned to me with a teasing grin. “Did you know about this?”

I shook my head, laughing. “Nope. I just found out.”

Torres gasped dramatically. “Wow, Brenda you're keeping secrets now? And here I thought we were work friends.”

Brenda rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. You guys act like I’ve never been on a date before.”

Torres raised a finger. “No, no. It’s not the date itself that’s shocking, it’s the fact that it’s with an internet guy. You really trust a guy you met online? What if he’s secretly a 50-year-old man who collects dolls?”

Brenda threw a crumpled piece of paper at him. “Shut up, Torres. He is not a 50-year-old man.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “He has a point, though. Meeting someone from the internet is always a little risky. Did you at least video call him?”

Brenda sighed. “Yes, I did. He’s real. He’s not a catfish. And he seems really sweet. I have a good feeling about this.”

Torres hummed, rubbing his chin like he was deep in thought. “Well, if you get kidnapped, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Brenda glared at him. “You’re so annoying.”

He grinned. “I know. That’s why you love me.”

We all laughed, and just like that, the conversation turned into a whole discussion about online dating, weird date experiences, and all the strange people we had encountered in our lives, even those that made us feel bad. I couldn't help thinking about Elias and Sylvia.

Torres kept making jokes, and Brenda kept defending her date while I just sat there, amused by both of them.

After a while, Torres finally left to do whatever it was he was supposed to be doing, and Brenda turned back to me with a serious look.

“I need your help, Tracy,” she pleaded.

I scowled. “With what?”

She grabbed my hands dramatically. “Shopping. I have nothing to wear for this date.”

I rolled my eyes. “You have plenty of clothes, Brenda.”

She shook her head. “No, no, no. This is different. This is my first date with him, and I need to make a good first impression. Please, Tracy. After work, let’s go shopping.”

I sighed but smiled. “Fine. But you’re buying me a dress afterward.”

Brenda grinned. “Deal.”

After work, we headed to the mall, and I quickly realized that shopping with Brenda was not going to be a simple task. She was indecisive, dramatic, and took forever to pick an outfit.

We walked into the first clothing store, and she immediately started pulling dresses off the racks, holding them against her body and spinning in front of the mirror.

“What do you think about this one?” she asked, holding up a red dress.

I tilted my head. “It’s nice, but isn’t it too fancy for a first date?”

She frowned. “You’re right. I don’t want to look like I’m trying too hard to please him.” She put it back and picked up another one, this time a black dress. “What about this?”

I studied it. “That’s cute. It’s simple and classy, and I think it would accentuate your curves.”

Brenda nodded. “Hmm. Maybe. Let me try it on.”

She grabbed a few more outfits and disappeared into the dressing room while I sat on the small bench outside, waiting for her.

A few minutes later, she came out wearing the black dress, turning around to see how it looked from every angle.

“So?” she asked.

I smiled. “It looks perfect.”

Brenda sighed in relief. “Finally! I was starting to think I’d never find the right one.”

We paid for the dress and then walked around the mall, doing some extra shopping just for fun. We bought snacks, tried on shoes, and even stopped by a makeup store where Brenda made me try on different lipsticks just to see which one suited me best.

By the time we were done, we were both exhausted but happy.

“Thank you for helping me,” Brenda said as we walked out of the mall. “I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

I laughed. “Probably spent five more hours looking for a dress.”

She nudged me playfully. “Shut up. But seriously, you’re the best.”

I smiled. “I know right!”

Brenda laughed, and for the first time in days, I felt completely at ease.

Tomorrow was an important day for her, and even though I had my own problems, I was just happy to see my friend excited about something.

Even if Torres would definitely have more jokes to make on Monday.