Chapter 2: My New Friend

I was pleased to notice we both did the reasonable thing and brought our lunches from home. We opened our brown paper bags and ate sandwiches while we talked. Our chairs were rotated so we faced each other, leaving our desks and display screens behind.

“Sallie, please excuse me for being nosy. So many of our peers have chosen to stay home, leaving us here. I’m curious: you decided to keep coming in, like me. Can you say why?”

“Two reasons, Andrew. First, I admit to having bad work habits. If I’m home there are too many distractions, I just can’t force myself to open my laptop and consistently work a full day. Second, I feel healthier by getting out every day. I walk 15 hilly blocks to catch the Muni Metro.”

“Those seem like good reasons,” I assured her. “My reason for being here is truly stupid: I don’t have acceptable access to the internet at home.”

“I see the picture on your desk,” she said. “Your daughter?”

“Yeah, Kara, she’s 17 now. Honor student.” I couldn’t hide my pride and affection. I adored my daughter without limits.

“She’s beautiful! How is she coping with everything going on? Her school is closed, right?”

“Not great. No school, and our bad internet isolates her even more,” I replied. “She’s mostly alone at home.”

“That must be so hard for her, with so little to do, and all the isolation this plague has given us,” Sallie said. “Sometimes I want to scream in frustration. At least we have work to keep us busy. I’ve never met Kara, and already I want to give her a hug.”

My goodness! What a sweet thing for Sallie to say. Just that brief moment of compassion melted me. Virus be damned, I wanted to hug Sallie as Kara’s proxy.

“I notice there’s no other picture and no ring on your finger,” Sallie said. “So, I going to assume —”

“Yes. Um, let’s just say that Paula had no appetite for monogamy, marriage, or motherhood. Kara doesn’t remember her.”

She gave me a reassuring smile to let me know she understood.

“Sallie, I notice your finger is ring-less, too. Since I’m already being nosy —.”

“Well, no, I’ve never been married. Andrew, it’s OK to be curious. I don’t mind ... Anyway, I live with my roommate, Charlie. Um, she’s a female Charlie. We share a two-bedroom apartment out in the Sunset District.

“Let’s see, Andrew, what else can I tell you?” She took a pause, as if to gather her thoughts. “I’m from Nevada, I was an only child. I had a pretty normal childhood, I think. My parents have now passed.

“I have a bachelor’s degree in information technology from the University of Nevada, Reno. Before COVID, I was volunteering at the senior center, helping with things like Medicare, Social Security, taxes, and so on. I’m seven years here at Pelle Marco.”

I’m feeling attraction beyond her looks. I commented, “Those seniors are missing you already, I’m sure. One more example of how the pandemic diminishes our lives.”

Sallie said, “Yes, and the seniors were on the margins before this. Now their access is limited, and I’m even hearing that the infection is far more dangerous to elders.

“From what I can snoop from your display screen, Andrew, you are doing a lot of financial analysis. Let me guess, finance major?”

“Oh, yeah, I have a bachelor’s in economics from Sonoma State. The campus is well known for its frisbee golf program,” I joked. “I’ve been here at Pelle Marco for eleven years now. College was long and difficult for me because I was raising little Kara on my own back then. Six and a half years to my baccalaureate degree.”

She didn’t pick up the conversation for several moments after that. To fill the awkward silence, I carried on, “Just stop me at any time, Sallie, but I’m enjoying my nosiness too much to stop. Will your boyfriend or your roommate mind that you’re now working in arms reach of a man of similar age in this big empty office?”

She gave a nervous chuckle. “Ooh, you are nosy. The answer is, the roommate won’t mind, and there’s no boyfriend to care, sadly.”

“Hard to believe, Sallie.”

“Kind of you to say, but, your turn. Girlfriend?”

“Nope. Single fatherhood has always diminished my opportunities.”

“I don’t know, Andrew. She’s going to move out and then you are going to be getting phone numbers.”

“Um, what you said, ‘Kind of you to say.’” Was she hinting at me? I couldn’t tell. But it was a sign that she considered me attractive, at least in a general sense. Another positive step.

I realized I was becoming very interested in Sallie. So quickly! But I mistrusted myself. Perhaps she was simply being nice and had no particular interest in me personally.

It had been so very long since I even thought about dating. Anxiously, I worried I was asking too soon about her relationships. I decided to retreat to a more conventional, safer topic.

“I guess the pandemic is going to disrupt our lives so much. Social things like restaurants and movies are completely disrupted. Will Kara be able to start college classes? And I still have my student loans to stress over.”