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Life goes on, with or without him. For four more days without Vadim, I keep my head buried in my files. I work overtime until ungodly hours and try to take care of the people I love without thinking about the ones who are running away from me… and falling for someone else. I grab a drink with my sister, who got dumped by Omar, “just” because she flirted with his brother. I have lunch with Clémentine, who has impulsively changed her hairstyle in an attempt at self-care, only to find she hates her new bangs. I have dinner with Niels, who has fallen head over heels for a married man who promised to leave his wife and kids… but apparently not until next Friday. I go to the gym. I force myself to eat healthily. I even cook. Basically, I fill the emptiness however I can.

And on top of all that, I make an appearance at the reception King Productions is hosting to celebrate the beginning of a partnership with Short Films, a company that produces—you guessed it—short films. I put on my cherry red cocktail dress to give myself a little courage, shake hands with a few strangers who are probably very important, and go congratulate the events team on a refined, but not too stuffy, and highly successful evening. Not exactly a fan of this kind of social event, I’d hoped to slip away quickly, but at some point Sophie and Clarence come rushing over and hand me a flute of champagne.

“I want to dance! Who wants to dance? Please dance with me, Alma. The deputy director letting loose is going to make a great impression on our younger, cooler clients!” Sophie urges.

“So, are we dancing or are we talking?” Clarence cuts in impatiently.

They start swaying gently, throwing me little knowing glances the whole time.

“What are you two up to?”

“Nothing. We just want you to relax. You work too much!” Sophie says.

I listen to them for once and knock back my champagne in one gulp. Then, I let out a little whoop to get into the spirit of things.

“Well, what do we have here? Having fun without me?!” Wilson exclaims, barging into our little circle.

He’s turned up uninvited, as usual. The mood completely deflates. Clarence makes a face. Sophie shoots me a series of desperate looks. They both seem to be counting on me to get rid of the creep.

“Joseph, I think Marc was looking for you.”

“Marc from Events? He can wait.”

The man can’t take a hint.

“Forgive me, but you look stunning, Alma. That dress really flatters you!” my boss says.

My coworkers’ appalled expressions—and the alcohol buzzing through my system—galvanize me into action.

I rise on my tiptoes and lean in toward Wilson’s ear. “Excuse me for being blunt, but…”

He smiles in that way that always makes my stomach turn.

“… but you’ve got a big, brown stain on the back of your suit pants… Right there… I know these things can happen at your age, but I figured you’d want to know, Joseph.”

This is the first time I’ve ever seen Wilson blush. He’s completely lost for words. He hurries off toward the restrooms, waddling like a constipated penguin. I’ll have to remember to tell him later that, oops, I was mistaken. Must’ve been a shadow…

“God, that guy is unbearable!” Sophie mutters, giving me a sympathetic look.

“Worse. He’s a pig!” Clarence adds.

“I don’t understand how he’s worked at a huge company all these years without anyone calling him out. There’s no way I’m the only woman he’s acted like this with…” I sigh and pluck another flute of champagne from a passing server’s tray.

“Alma, you can’t let him get away with this! He hasn’t left you alone since your first day. He’s obsessed with you! You should tell King,” Sophie says.

“King would actually have to come back first,” Clarence mutters.

“Who knows if he’ll come back…” I mumble, my mind a bit fuzzy from the alcohol.

I’d planned to go home, but I’ve ended up staying. It’s not that I’m having a particularly good evening, but I just can’t face sitting in my apartment, alone. Thinking about him again. Imagining him with her. Resenting him for not reaching out. Obsessing over the future, replaying the past. It’s not what I want to do. Sophie and Clarence are good company, and it looks like Wilson doesn't dare come near me, though I still catch him throwing me wounded, little glances from across the room. Maybe this time the message finally got through.

It’s almost one in the morning when Sophie tells me she and Clarence are going to share a cab and invites me to join them.

“It’s probably for the best,” she whispers. “I think you’ve had a little too much to drink.”

Clarence gently takes my half-empty glass from my hand.

“You don’t need to finish this one,” he says with a smile.