"You are not sleeping," Chloe said, waving a piece of popcorn in front of Emily's face.
"I'm trying."
"You're staring at the ceiling like it said something offensive."
Emily groaned and rolled onto her side, pulling the blanket up over her head. "I'm processing."
"You've been processing for the last hour and a half."
"It's a lot to process!"
Chloe flopped back on the air mattress beside her with a dramatic sigh. The living room was dim now, lit only by the soft glow of the TV screen playing some rom-com they'd long since stopped watching. The popcorn bowl was empty, the soda mostly flat, and the energy in the room had shifted from playful to quietly serious.
Emily peeked out from under the blanket.
Chloe was staring at her like she could read every word scribbled across her brain.
"It's just… this is a line I don't even know if I'm supposed to cross," Emily whispered. "He's my boss, Chloe."
Chloe shrugged. "Bosses are people."
"Powerful people. With intimidating houses. And… really expensive coffee machines."
Chloe smirked. "So it is the espresso machine."
Emily laughed softly, then grew quiet again. "It's just that, if I go there tomorrow… I don't think anything will happen. But something might change. And I'm not sure I'm ready for that."
"You're scared," Chloe said gently.
Emily nodded.
"And you're allowed to be," she added. "But Em, look at me. You're also allowed to want something. Or someone."
Emily looked at her, eyes tired but honest. "Even if it's messy?"
"Especially if it's messy. You've been carrying everything on your own for so long — the bills, your grandma, the stress, your pride. Maybe it's okay to let someone else carry something for a while. Even if it's just a moment."
Emily exhaled slowly. "He confuses me, Chloe. One minute he's stone cold, the next he's offering me coffee and a car and telling me I work flawlessly."
"He adores you," Chloe said bluntly. "He probably just doesn't know what to do with it. Men like that? They're built on rules and boundaries. You threw a wrench in all that."
"Because I asked for an early paycheck?" Emily said with a wry smile.
"No," Chloe said, shifting closer. "Because you didn't ask for anything else. You walked into his world and didn't bend. You stayed you. That probably terrified him."
Emily was quiet for a long moment.
She thought about the way he'd looked at her in the office that evening — like he wanted to say more but couldn't. About the quiet moments in the car. About the text, and how he hadn't insisted — he'd just opened the door and waited to see if she'd walk through it.
"I don't know what tomorrow's going to be," she murmured.
"Then don't overthink it," Chloe said, nudging her. "Go. Be professional. Be yourself. And if he crosses a line you're not ready for, you set it back. But don't shut a door just because you're scared of what might be behind it."
Emily let out a breath. Then smiled, small but real.
"You're way too wise for someone who once broke up with a guy because he clapped when planes landed."
Chloe laughed. "I have standards. You should too. But don't let fear be one of them."
The clock read 1:11 a.m.
Emily curled onto her side again, staring at the wall, heart still fluttering.
She wasn't sure what tomorrow would bring.
But tonight, she had Chloe, popcorn crumbs in the sheets, and a quiet, terrifying sense that everything might be about to shift.
And for once… she wasn't completely sure she wanted to stop it.