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“I haven’t seen you in forever!” she exclaimed, pulling me into her room to sit on the narrow twin bed. “What’s going on?”
I looked at her tearfully, my gaze grateful.
“Thank you so much for letting me stay here,” I said in a whisper. “I know this is unexpected.”
“It is,” she nodded. “But still. Best buds forever right? BFF, girl!”
And I laughed a little then, the sound a little strangled. But all the same, I was grateful to be here.
“Thanks Kar,” I murmured, wiping a little at my eyes. “I really appreciate it.”
She shook her head once more.
“Seriously girl, it’s no big deal. Everyone has emergencies.”
I nodded.
“Yeah, I’m so sorry I haven’t had time to come down to Manhattan,” I said apologetically. “But work has just spiraled out of control and ….”
Karen cut me off.
“This is about work?” she said disbelievingly. “Joanie, it’s Tuesday night! You’re worrying about work? I mean, I get it. Everyone in this city slaves away, but still,” she said, shaking her head while clucking like a hen. “It can’t be that bad. Remember, you can always find a new job.”
And I let out another choked laugh then.
“I could, but what if I told you that my job is borderline illegal? That I’m not sure how they get away with it?”
Karen’s eyes grew wide then, her lashes like big, gummy spiders.
“Get away with what? Oh my god, are you dealing pot? E? K? It’s not that big of deal,” she said solemnly, eyes serious. “Lots of kids here do it.”
What? No! Why would she think I was a budding drug dealer? Maybe the kids at Hudson were selling narcotics, but I’d never consider doing anything like that.
“No Kar,” I said, biting my lip. Somehow, I knew it was okay to tell the truth, even if reality was scandalous. We’ve been through a lot together, even as young girls. Her parents had divorced in seventh grade, and I’d stood by her side. My great-aunt Millie passed away, and Karen had let me cry on her shoulder, even doing my homework when I too much a mess.
So I tried again.
“Kar,” I said slowly. “I work for a private airline. One where there are only male passengers.”
She shot me a long look.
“Really?” she asked, brows scrunched. “What kind of gig is that?”
“I signed up a career fair believe it or not,” was my admission. “Elite Air seemed like any other job, except better. I’d only have to fly short legs between cities in the U.S., so it was a dream come true what with the generous salary and benefits.”
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Karen looked puzzled still.
“Okay, but still. Why are there only male passengers?”
Here, I took a deep breath.
“It turns out that there are six guys who founded the company. They’re CEOs who travel a lot, so they figured using their own private jet would be more relaxing. So there are only six male passengers.”
Karen’s face relaxed then.
“Oh okay, that makes a lot more sense. I thought you were going to launch into this whole gender discrimination thing. But no, if it’s the six guys who own the company, then that makes sense.”
