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Twenty-Seven
Dustin
Spending the weekend with my nieces was a nicer break from my regular life than I remembered. There was something about fitting my whims around someone else’s schedules and needs that felt right. Was that weird?
I was in early on Monday, working in the vacant Director’s office, making calls to vendors on the East Coast. I didn’t expect there to be much noise this time of day, but I could easily close the door if I needed quiet. When players saw in coming days what I was planning—community giveaways around go-live—new fans would become lifetime ones.
When Phillip and Addie walked into the Art room, their voices low and heads bent together, my good mood evaporated and the reason last week ended on a down note rushed back.
Addie poked her head into the office. “Morning.” Her smile was tentative but warm.
“Hey.” I wasn’t upset at her, even if she was still friendly with him. “You have a good weekend?”
She glanced over her shoulder at Phillip, bottom lip caught between her teeth, then back at me. “It ended a lot better than it started. You?”
“It was all right.” I couldn’t ignore the surge of jealousy carried on an assumption. “You guys run into each other in the parking lot?”
Pink flooded her cheeks. “I had Sean problems, so I stayed with Phillip this weekend.”
“Are you all right?” I let concern temper the darker churning.
“I’m good.” Her expression, mannerisms, and growing blush all said she was more than good.
I couldn’t find my smile again. “I’m glad. I have to make some calls. Get the door on your way out?” The words came out more tersely than I expected.
The creases that appeared in Addie’s forehead said she noticed. “Yeah. Of course.”
And now I felt like a dickhead.
She turned to leave, but paused in the doorway. “I’m sorry.” Her voice was hard.
“For what?”
“I don’t know. Whatever you think I did. I’m not taking sides, or… I don’t know.”
“I don’t think anything.” I managed to soften my tone. “It’s not your fault.”
She looked at me, lips pursed and creases in her forehead. “You’re right, it’s not.” She walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her hard enough to rattle my coffee cup.
Getting back into the groove of work wasn’t easy, but it was necessary. I poured myself into meetings, planning, and making sure people in forums were behaving themselves. But every time I hit a pause point, my gaze drifted to the office door or to my messenger. I didn’t like being on the outs with Phillip and I hated that I might have hurt Addie. He was a traitor and it was his own fault, but she didn’t deserve to be stuck between us.
Every time I managed to logic myself to that point, I remembered how they looked walking in together this morning, and jealousy surged back.
An email came in from Judith, with the subject line Funding News. That was worth dropping everything to read.
The opening few paragraphs were her standard intro—she believed in full transparency, and everyone here was an equal partner in this business.
Any other company and I would’ve rolled my eyes at the boilerplate language, but she meant it.
The message continued with, After a tremendous limited public beta, I’ve closed a deal with a new investment partner. This means we’ll be expanding sooner than anticipated. We’ll start with adding additional staff to Art and QA, but everyone can expect their team to grow.
This is happening thanks to all of you, but special thanks to Dustin Lane, for his extra hours and hard work keeping us looking shiny in the public eye.
We’re on our way, people. This is happening.
I was grinning when I finished reading the message. Which made me happier, the praise or that we were growing? It was a tough call, but the growth won out. I wouldn’t have done the work otherwise.
Way to goand Congrats notes trickled into my inbox and messenger.
