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His lips twitched. “If you insist.”
We finished up the walk, then left the dogs in the enclosed field for the staff to attend to before heading back inside the shelter. I ditched my muddy gumboots by the door and hung my wet jacket on a coat hook. My clothes underneath were soaked as well, clinging to my body and dripping dirty water on the lino floor. I shivered, my teeth chattering.
Neil tsked. “Look at you.”
I brushed off his teasing remark. “I think I’m gonna need some time to dry off.”
Jade caught up with us momentarily. She took one look at me and chuckled. “Rookie mistake. It gets real slippery out there in the rain. Did you bring a spare change of clothes?”
I frowned. “No. I didn’t.”
“I did,” Neil said. He took his backpack off its hook, unzipped it, and pulled out a pair of sweatpants, a t-shirt, and a towel. He offered them to me with a smug look on his face.
“Thanks.”
It struck me that this was my second time engaging in the intimate act of borrowing clothes from him, but I was too grateful to be embarrassed about it.
With my arms loaded with the dry clothes and towel, I made my way to the restroom to clean up. The sight of a shower stall drew a sigh of relief from me. I peeled off my dirty, wet clothes, then submerged myself under the shower’s hot spray. In a matter of minutes, I was clean, warm, and dry. I left my dirty clothes hanging over the shower door as I changed into Neil’s sweatpants and t-shirt. The clothes were ill-fitting, but far better than the alternative. I pulled the draw cord of the pants tight around my waist and tucked the loose t-shirt in to control the excess fabric. The result was serviceable, though unstylish. If I squinted at my reflection in the mirror, I did look kind of cute, in a “boyfriend’s clothes” type of way—ignoring the fact that Neil wasn’t my boyfriend.
“Knock, knock,” Jade said, tapping on the bathroom door.
“Come in.”
Jade entered, brandishing a bucket full of water. “Chuck your dirty clothes in here to soak.”
“Good idea. Thanks.”
She looked me up and down. “Good thing your man came prepared, eh?”
I choked. “My man?”
“Neil, of course. You’re together, aren’t you?” She bit her tongue. “Wait, am I wrong?”
“He’s my boss! This is a work thing. A volunteering day. I’m his secretary.”
Jade’s eyebrows shot up. “Really? I’m sorry, I just assumed it from the way you two look at each other and interact. You seem so close.” She eyed me sceptically. “And you’re wearing his clothes right now.”
She had a point, but still…
“Plus, you bicker and tease each other like an old married couple. It’s very cute.”
“C-cute?”
Jade chuckled. “Don’t worry. I won’t say anything in front of Neil. But are you sure there’s nothing going on between you?”
“There’s nothing going on between us.”
“If you say so,” she singsonged as she sauntered out.
I finished up in the bathroom, Jade’s words echoing in my head as I dropped my dirty outfit in the bucket to soak.
Do we really look like a couple?
I reminded myself that it wasn’t the first time we had been mistaken as such. We looked good together—even Neil had said so. I stared dreamily into the mirror, imagining what it would be like if we really were a couple. Walking hand in hand with him, kissing him, waking up next to him…
My daydream came to an abrupt halt when the door scraped open behind me, and a staff member entered the restroom. I took that as my cue to leave and get back to work.
I found Neil waiting for me in the break room, two mugs of tea prepared on the table. His eyes widened almost imperceptibly when he saw me swimming in his oversized sweatpants and t-shirt. “I see the spare clothes worked out,” he said, his voice sounding slightly strained.
