You can do this, June.
And it's true.
I actually did it.
Despite finding myself furiously blinking back tears at the way she keeps pawing at him, and Nate never removing his arm even though he hasn't really touched her back, not even once—
The meeting ends without me doing stupid. And to be honest, the only thing that stopped me from doing anything stupid wasn't me giving a pep talk to myself. It's the opposite, actually. Sadly and painfully so. To keep myself from doing anythingstupid, I had this one thought in my mind that I repeated like a chant:
He's not mine. Never was. And never going to be.
My boss stands up and so do I. I watch them shake hands, I listen to Mr. Coates profusely thanking Nate for choosing us and complimenting Francine just as profusely for being so beautiful. And because Mr. Coates is a sales agent at heart, he even manages to drop a one-liner at the end:
Please also keep us in mind when wedding bells start ringing.
I watch them walk toward the door, and I know I'm being silly and foolish again, but a part of me is just crying out silently—
Look back.
Look at me.
Please!
But he doesn't.
I watch them leave. Francine still by his side. And not one of them looks back. Because in their world, I'm just the paralegal.
But in my world, though...
Don't do anything stupid. Don't. Please don't.
I hear Francine talking to him.
“I'll meet you at the car, darling.”
That means I was right about him. Them. Wasn't I?
They're dating. And that's why he can look away from me like I'm nothing. Because in their world, I'm just the paralegal.
So please just let it go.
Forget him.
And just accept that all your dreams of him are just—
I take one shaky step forward.
My notepad falls to the floor.
And then I'm running after him, which means...
Yes, I'm acting silly and foolish, no, I can't just let it go, and so yes, I'm going to run after him, and okay, okay, think, think, Juniper!
They've taken the elevator, they're going down the basement, so okay, that means I'm going to take the staff stairwell, and I'm running as fast as I can, almost falling flat on my face several times, and all the while telling myself that I'm not going to think, I'm just going to feel and go with my guts because the man I've been...
The man I only spoke to for a few minutes...
The man I couldn't forget for the past six months...