“He thinks if I stand too close to him we’re going to get nuked.”
“He might have a point,” says Julie. “About playing down your relationship.”
Candy sits back in her chair.
“You two should start a band. The Buzzkill Twins.”
“Julie is going to have a new office soon,” I say, trying to change the subject.
That gets Candy’s attention. She sits up.
“Cool. If you’re hiring this scaredy cat, can I have a job too?”
“What are your skills?” says Julie.
“I was afraid you’d ask that.”
I say, “You used to run the office for Doc Kinski.”
“Yeah. I did.”
“I might need a receptionist at some point,” Julie says.
“Swell.”
I look at Candy.
“You really want to be a receptionist?”
“No,” she says. “I want to kick down doors like you, but apparently I’m not allowed.”
“I never said that.”
I want a drink and a cigarette. I want zombies, dinosaurs, and flaming giraffes to come crashing through the door so I don’t have to talk anymore.
“Look,” I say. “Maybe I am being a little paranoid. It’s just, we faked your death once. I’m not sure we can get away with it again. What do you think, Julie?”
“I think the U.S. Marshals Service isn’t dumb,” she says.
Candy sips her drink.
“So, I should hide out at Brigitte’s forever and learn to knit?”
I take her shot glass, drink half, and hand it back.
“It would probably be okay if we partner up, but you have to do it as Chihiro, not Candy. Pretend it’s the first season of X-Files.”
Candy leans back and smiles. The black lipstick with the short pink hair looks good. But I’m not sure she gets that I’m as frustrated by all this clandestine crap as she is.
“A Scully and Mulder thing? Yeah. I can handle that,” she says. “Does that mean I get to move back home?”
Julie gets her bag and stands up.
“This is getting a bit personal. I think I’ll go.”
“So, can I have a job?” says Candy.
Julie thinks for a minute.