The Three Date Minimum

Part 1

Honestly, the ring was gorgeous.

You'd be crazy to not admit it. It was sparkly and classic and everything a ring should be. It wasn't your ring; god, no, you would never settle for a man who wanted to change you every time you breathed.

Your coworker Rachel was newly engaged to her longtime boyfriend (the one who was trying to change her). She was the talk of the office for most of Friday.

You were happy for her if she was happy, really, but you couldn't understand why she was in such a rush to legally bind herself to such a man. She wasn't his personal maid, nor should she give up her passions in life. She was supposed to be his partner in life, each sharing their passions with each other.

In the end, your opinion didn't really matter, but they could keep that kinda marriage.

In fact, you were so convinced the dating pool wasn't going to have anyone different than Rachel's fiancé (or worse...much worse), so you gave up trying for a while. Some (like your roommate) called you ridiculous for it, but you didn't have the energy to put into anything less than a relationship that was worth it.

And yes, you'd been single for a while now, but...so be it.

Besides, being the talk of a twenty-person office wasn't really that big of a deal, right? As the Manhattan branch of a worldwide charity, everyone had loads of work to do helping impoverished women and children. You had a crap ton of money to raise and no time to waste.

When your coworker Wanda rolled her desk chair beside yours, though, you knew you hadn't heard the last of Rachel's new ring.

She was giving you that look again, that 'it's-okay-it'll-be-you-someday' look.

You gave her a look of your own. "Wan, I'm fine. I promise. I'm happy for her."

"Have you told her that?"

"Not...not yet. There's a lot of people over there still. I was waiting for the crowd to die down."

The two of you glanced over at the positively glowing Rachel, who only had two colleagues milling around her now.

You turned back to your computer. "Anyway, I'm a little busy here, Wan, I have lots of calls to make."

"You can't fool me." Wanda rolled her eyes. "There's a way to solve your loneliness, Y/N."

"I am not lonely. Did you hear anything I just said?"

"Who did you speak to last night, then? Which humans have you communicated with that you don't see at work on a daily basis?"

You thought about it for a second. "Natasha."

"Besides your roommate." Wanda looked exasperated now. "Come on, Y/N, if you even say Jim Halpert or someone from The Office, I'll scream."

"For your information, I watched Brooklyn Nine-Nine last night."

"You need to try some dating apps, Y/N. That's how everyone seems to meet these days."

"That's not how you met Vis."

She rolled her eyes a second time. "Totally different scenario there. I went out and met people willingly. You need the apps to push you out of your comfort zone."

"Absolutely not. I feel like we've had this conversation be-"

"Ladies."

You immediately stopped talking and turned to your boss, Nakia. "Hello! Back so soon?"