“You’re not coming to our house for Thanksgiving?” Ji Yeon’s mouth dropped open, and the disappointment on her face filled Dara with guilt, while simultaneously making her feel loved.

Dara finished cleaning off the breakroom table with a damp paper towel and slid into a chair next to her coworker and friend. Ji Yeon had always been beautiful, but pregnancy had added a glow to her tan skin and dark eyes.

“You’re going to have a full house, Ji Yeon. You won’t have time to miss me. I can’t believe you and Jung-Suk are hosting Thanksgiving. You’ve got to be out of your mind. Three kids, that adorable little bun in your oven, your parents, Jisoo and Suho, Suho’s mom and stepdad. Am I missing anyone?”

“A few,” Ji Yeon admitted, “But I was kind of counting on you to keep me sane.”

“You’ll do great.” Dara cracked open her plastic tub of pasta salad and took a bite, studying Ji Yeon. The last year and a half had been a whirlwind for her friend. Ji Yeon’s husband, Jung-Suk, had never thought someone would want to step into parenting his younger siblings with him, but he and Ji Yeon were making a go of it together. They’d gone from just friends, to dating, to heading a family of six, counting the baby on the way.

“Have you told Jisoo you’re not coming?” Ji Yeon asked, flipping her long dark hair behind her so it didn’t get in her soup. “She was looking forward to your spinach dip.”

“Oh, I’ll still bring my food assignments over. I’m not leaving you in a lurch. Your sister will have her spinach dip.”

Ji Yeon stopped blowing on her hot soup and turned to study Dara. “Where are you going if you’re not coming to my house?”

“It’s complicated.”

“Do tell, although if this has to do with a guy, I’m voicing my disapproval preemptively.”

“Of course you are.”

Kiyong, one of the dentists, walked in and sat down, abruptly ending any chance she had of telling Ji Yeon more. The last thing Dara needed was for Kiyong to overhear her crazy Thanksgiving plans. She had never been quite at ease around him, and after he’d asked her out last week, that feeling increased tenfold. Maybe she should have lied and said she was dating someone. Instead, she told him it wasn’t a good idea for them to go out. He immediately backpedalled, trying to make it sound like he hadn’t meant it as a date thing at all, and then they’d both fled the scene. It was a rare thing for Dara to not know how to take charge of a situation, but Kiyong had brought his A-game—A standing for Awkward.

Kiyong unwrapped his submarine sandwich from a nearby restaurant and took his time rearranging the lettuce and tomato. “Any Black Friday shopping plans for you two?”

“Yep.” Ji Yeon said. “Me in my pajamas sitting at my computer. I’m not braving any stores this year. What about you, Dara?”

“I’m sleeping in.”

Ji Yeon scoffed. “I’ll believe that when I see it. Dara’s up at five every morning to exercise.”

Kiyong nodded. “That’s our go-getter. I’ve started lifting weights and jump roping. It’s amazing how much better I feel.” He gave her a weird smile before taking a bite of his sub.

It was like he was determined to prove they could still be buddies despite her rejection, and that he wouldn’t treat her differently because of it. Dara admired that. She just wished he didn’t pick this particular moment.

Ji Yeon was shooting her looks, obviously dying to know what was up with Thanksgiving, and Dara was dying to tell her, even with the ridicule she knew she’d get for it.

“That’s great, Kiyong.” Dara glanced at the clock above his head. Twenty minutes until their lunch break ended and the office reopened.

“Do you have family coming for Thanksgiving?” Ji Yeon asked him.

“Oh, yeah. My parents are flying in this year.” Kiyong told them about his family’s Thanksgiving traditions for the next ten minutes.

Dara watched his lunch disappear, hoping he’d do the same. No such luck. He stayed after he finished eating. He chatted with Ji Yeon about the weather and what a pain it was that the parking lot flooded every time it rained.

Lunch ended, and the three of them left the breakroom and separated to do their jobs, Ji Yeon to the front desk, and Kiyong and Dara to their patients. Thankfully, Kiyong worked mainly with his favourite hygienist, and Dara had no problems with any of the other dentists in the office. She was kind of irritated that Kiyong had broken her long streak of getting along with everyone, even the cranky x-ray tech who thought everyone hated her, and through her paranoia, guaranteed most people did.

Dara greeted her next patient with a friendly smile. The woman didn’t look nervous, but she didn’t look thrilled to be there either. A little chitchat sometimes helped. The trick was finding something to talk about that didn’t require patients to answer too often.

“Do you watch those Bachelor-type reality shows?” Dara asked as she lowered the adjustable chair and overhead light.

The woman nodded and slid on the sunglasses Dara offered her. “They’re my guilty pleasure,” she admitted.

Perfect. People tended to either love them or hate them, and either way, it gave them something to talk about.

“There’s this new one coming out called Last Regret. Have you heard of it?”

“Ooh, no. That sounds interesting.”

“Open your jaw a little wider, just where it’s comfortable.” Dara began scraping plaque, something she strangely enjoyed, and told the woman all about the bachelor for the show, a guy who would be bringing on several women from his past in the hopes of getting a second chance. One of them was a crush from his co-ed soccer team, another had been a prom date, a few were ex-girlfriends brought on solely to stir the pot, so to speak. Dara felt like a walking commercial for the show, except she was selling distraction, not TV. She’d realized a long time ago that the dentists often sent her their most skittish patients, knowing she’d set them at ease.

Talking helped her day go by faster too. Her next patient was an older gentleman who didn’t watch TV at all. They talked about books.

And every time Dara passed the front office desk, she got a raised eyebrow from Ji Yeon. The suspense must be killing her.

Ji Yeon practically pounced on Dara when it was closing time. “Kiyong took all our girl-talk time.”

“He didn’t know that.”

“He’s still hoping something’s going to happen between you two.” Ji Yeon grabbed her coat and purse off the hook in the back room. “Poor man.”

“Yeah, never gonna happen.” Dara went through the routine of closing up with Ji Yeon assisting, saying goodbye to everyone else as they left. They never got to talk the way they used to as roommates, but it was nice to catch up at the end of the day.

Ji Yeon tapped Dara’s arm the moment they stepped out the door. “Okay, I need the quick and d