Kadin set his pen beside his iPad and rubbed his eyes. Sunlight poured in from the windows to his left and warmed the floor beneath his desk. Outside, the wind shook the branches of a leafless oak and rolled an empty coke can down the sidewalk.

Almost a week later, all the snow from the storm had melted away, exposing the barren earth, devoid of greenery or inspiration. He'd grown tired of seeing gray concrete, surrounded by black asphalt, hunched bodies and leafless trees. His view back in Illinois wasn't much better, but at least he caught sight of wildlife occasionally.

He tore his eyes from the window and set it back on his iPad. The completed illustration stared back at him. He hit the icon to start a time lapse and watched the line art come to life: flowers, mushrooms, trees. The girl with a pleasant smile framed by braids.

She looked too much like her. Like Rukiya. He couldn't stop thinking about her, even now. A few times throughout the week, he'd picked up his phone, intending to text her, ask her how she was doing. If she wanted to meet for coffee or something. And every time, he'd chickened out at the last second.

She's busy, he told himself. She didn't have to entertain him between work and sorting things out with her partner. If she wanted to talk to him, she'd call him herself. But he hadn't forgotten his promise to her. His mom and dad had called a few times after the elevator incident, but he was waiting until he heard from the studio.

Which could be any minute now.

Kadin looked at his phone. No messages. No missed calls. The ringer was set to the highest volume. He saved his illustration and put his iPad to sleep before standing. His room was still minimally furnished with just a bed and a nightstand. He was still living out of his suitcases, which lay open in the little closet.

He'd brought his projector from home, and hooked up his laptop to it when he wanted to watch TV. Tobias had given him an old wooden desk to set up the stand for his iPad. Apart from that, he had a little shark plush his sister had given him as a graduation gift. It went everywhere with him.

"Kadin!" Tobias knocked twice before stepping inside. "Ready?" He leaned a shoulder against the doorframe and scrolled on his phone.

His friend hadn't changed at all since they met in their freshman year of Uni—same long, black hair, same expressive hazel eyes, same energetic personality. Tobias had worked in game development for a while before quitting to become a full-time streamer, so when Kadin had told him his doubts about his career choices, he'd completely understood.

"Some of us just aren't built for that life, man," Tobias had said. He'd even reached out to contacts he still had in the industry and hooked Kadin up with the interview, on top of graciously offering his spare room.

"Just give me a second." Kadin sat on his bed to pull on his trainers. He'd thrown on a pair of basketball shorts and a plain white tee before he started working on the illustration.

Tobias was dressed similarly, except his T-shirt had Master Chief's helmet emblazoned on the front. "It's after 11, so the morning crew should be gone. I need to get some reps in before stream."

"Cool." He grabbed his gym bag and shut the blinds before they headed downstairs.

Half of the first floor was taken up by a gym for residents. Just like Tobias predicted, it was mostly empty. A worker was wiping down the peloton and one guy was doing bicep curls near the back. They walked past a row of treadmills to the benches near the dumbbell rack.

Kadin put an ear bud in one ear and warmed up on the treadmill while Tobias grabbed a jump rope.

"So," Tobias said. "What's been on your mind? You seem in your head more than usual."

Kadin shrugged a shoulder. "I'm just anxious about the interview."

"I told you I can pull some strings if they don't take you. They'd be stupid not to. So, what is it really?" When Kadin stayed silent, he put on a sly smile. "Is it elevator girl? You never told me her name."

He groaned and upped the speed on the treadmill to a jog. "Her name is Rukiya, and no, that's not it." The lie slipped easily from his lips. Whatever was on his mind was none of Tobias' business.

"Rukiya Warrick?"

Kadin blinked. "You know her?"

Tobias nodded. "I mean, everyone around here does. You know that burger chain, Hawkins?"

"Yeah." He'd never eaten there, but heard nothing but good things about it. Everyone said it was better than Five Guys or In and Out could ever be. And in less than a year, they'd have locations all over the east coast.

"Well, elevator girl, Rukiya, spearheaded the marketing campaign that launched them into national stardom. It landed her in Forbes' 30 Under 30. The studio I used to work for had the opportunity to snatch her up before her stardom, but they declined her application. Bet they feel stupid as fuck now."

Kadin's heart fluttered. He'd been stuck in an elevator with a celebrity and didn't know it. No wonder she hadn't texted him. She was too busy doing celebrity shit to worry about a jobless loser like him. "I uh... I actually got her number."

"For real? Have you two been... talking?" Tobias waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"We got stuck in an elevator for a couple of hours. It's not that serious." Well... they also shared a meal, and he kept her warm while she slept, but that didn't mean anything. "And she has a boyfriend."

Tobias put his hands up. "Alright, fair enough. But you should still call her. See how she's doing. Like a gentleman would." He put up the jump rope and wandered over to the peloton.

Kadin glanced at his phone. Maybe he should call her, see how she was doing. She had a promise to keep, after all. And she still had his beanie. He'd noticed it was gone the Monday after the storm when he needed something to protect his hair from the wind. That would be the perfect excuse to call her.

But not today, and maybe not tomorrow. On the weekend, when she'd wouldn't be busy.

The blare of his phone ringing cut through his thoughts, and he almost tripped getting off the treadmill to grab it. "Hello?"

"Hello, is this Mr Reyes? This is Liz Colby from Blue Octo Studios."

Kadin's heart fell to his ass. "Yes, this is he." He sat on the bench before he fell over. Please, please, please, he begged the universe.

"I'm calling concerning the interview you had with us last week. The Team reviewed your application and we think your art style aligns perfectly with our vision for future games. In short, we'd love to have you on board."

Words failed him. His brain shut down. He became the personification of dial-up noises.

"Mr Reyes?"

He gave himself an internal kick. "Uh. Thank you so much. I'm so glad you loved my work."

"Would you be able to come in tomorrow to sign the contract? I can also give you a tour of the office and get you acquainted with our systems. Say... around one?"

"Tomorrow at one is perfect, and thank you again for the opportunity."

"No problem. We look forward to having you on the team."

Kadin hung up and leaned back against the wall. His heart raced. His hands shook. He wanted to jump up and scream, run ten laps around the gym. He felt as though he could float from the ground and fly to the moon.

Every night since his interview, he sat awake for hours, imagining the city being unkind to him. He pictured himself packing up his truck and heading back to Illinois, going back to the corporate grind. And every time he imagined it, he could almost feel his soul leaving his body.

"Kadin, my dude," Tobias said, cutting into his thoughts. "You alright? Need some water?"

Kadin shook his head. "No, I..." He roughed up his hair. "I got the job."

"Yes! Fuck yes!" Tobias screamed, drawing the attention of the staff. "We're going to Rolly's tonight to celebrate."

"Okay, but we can't get too crazy. I have to go in tomorrow to sign the contract."

He put his hands. "I got you. I'm not in my twenties anymore, either. We'll take it easy." He tossed his towel around his neck. "I'm super stoked for you, man. I knew they'd love your stuff."

"Thanks for hooking me up. I appreciate you." Kadin stood and stretched, before grabbing a dumbbell from the rack, while Tobias took the treadmill. Now that his head was clearer, he could think about his next move. He needed to properly furnish his room, get a bigger desk, a better bedroom set, figure out what he'd be doing with his house back home.

And, most importantly, he had a promise to keep.