Brrriiing. Brrriiing.
"Hello, Daniel Meade's office. This is Betty Suarez speaking."
"Betty, ohmigosh, you absolutely have to, have to, have to come down here and take a look at this male model. He is so-o-o totally gorgeous!" Katalina squealed into the phone.
On the other end of the line, Betty laughed. "Maybe later. I'm a little busy trying to find a place with a grand spiral staircase and lavish rose gardens," she said. Pressing the phone between her ear and shoulder, she click-clacked away on the keyboard.
"Oooh. Daniel is meeting with the photographer right now, huh?" Katalina asked. She on the other hand was far from busy, leaning as far back in her chair as she possibly could to stare at the model through the doorway. Christina was fussing over what he would wear, and probably thoroughly pleased with her close proximity to him. Both sighed, mentally swooning.
"Yeah. You should see him, Kat, he's really into this new project," Betty replied, using her new nickname for her friend. She glanced over the top of her monitor into Daniel's office, where he stood making large arm gestures while talking with the photographer, who was listening intently. "I'm glad he's putting his energy into something a little more...constructive than usual."
Katalina dragged her chair, rather loudly, to a different spot in order to get a better view. "And what is it that he usually does that isn't so-o-o constructive?"
"Oh, you know..." Betty trailed off. Everybody knew that Daniel was, well, a bit of a man whore. It went without saying. Then again, Katalina was from California and hadn't been living in New York all that long. Still, with the amount of noise Daniel often made she ought to have heard something.
"Mmm...No, I don't know." How could she think properly at a time like this anyway? The model winked at her and she nearly melted in her chair.
"You're kidding, right?" Betty's disbelief came through loud and clear. Her fingers hovered over the keys as she simply sat there.
"I don't kid, Betty," Katalina replied rather matter-of-factly. "I may joke and make fun, but I do not kid. Anyway, what does Daniel do?" she asked again.
"Er..." Betty glanced around furtively. Conversations always turned awkward when this subject came up. Curses. "You know, he sleeps around with a lot of women," she explained, trying to keep her voice casual and failing miserably.
Laughter erupted from Closet end of the line. "That's it? You couldn't just say that he's promiscuous or something? I mean, it's not that big of a deal, right?" Katalina fidgeted in her chair when Betty remained silent. "Sorry...It's totally fine if you're uncomfortable with it."
Betty grinned. "Thanks, Kat, that –"
"Betty!" Daniel called, sticking his head out of his office door as the photographer left. He motioned for her to come over.
"Listen, Daniel needs me right now, so...I'll try to come down to the Closet later, k?"
Katalina giggled. "Mmm, but hurry! I don't know how much longer Christina can keep him here," she said.
Betty laughed to herself and rolled her eyes. "Ok."
"Fantástico! I can't wait to ogle with you."
"Or maybe I could have..." Katalina trailed off when Betty arrived in a right fit. "What happened?" she asked, setting down the flower she was about to pin to a blazer.
Betty flopped onto the couch. "Daniel forgot who Tuesday was and he thinks he might have left something there." She made a noise of disapproval. "How can he forget who he goes to bed with?" she asked indignantly, sitting up.
Katalina shrugged. "Well it is Daniel you're talking about. And if he sees as many different women as I think he does, then one is one in about a million. Men have horrid memories anyway," she concluded, waving her hand flippantly.
"Who're we talking about, loves?" Christina asked, walking in with a skirt. She hung it up on a rack, then looked at them expectantly.
"Daniel," Betty muttered, laying back down.
"He's forgotten something at Tuesday's house, or so he thinks," Katalina elaborated, returning to sprucing up the blazer.
"Ach, not again!" Christina cried, shaking her head.
"Promiscuous boy, you already know that I'm all yours, what you waiting for? Roses are red, some diamonds are blue. Chivalry is dead, but you're still kind of cute," Katalina sang lightly, mixing up parts of the chorus and verses.
Betty groaned. "Not helping, Kat," she snapped, sitting up again. Her temper was flaring and threatened to send her over the edge. And of course Daniel was the cause of all of it. "Ugh, I mean, would it really kill him to be a little more..."
"Decent?" Christina offered.
"Honorable?" Katalina tried.
"Disciplined?"
"Committed?"
"Chivalrous?"
Katalina gave a nod of approval.
"Well, yes, all of those, but I was leaning towards responsible," Betty said.
"Tha'll be the day," Christina laughed.
"I'm serious!" Betty insisted.
"We know," Katalina intervened. "But...There's a balance in this world. Where there is light, there must also be darkness. Where there is goodness, there must also be evil. Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera," she said, mimicking the king from Anna and the King. "You and Daniel balance each other out. You're responsible, he isn't. You're organized, he isn't. You've got values, he doesn't." She shrugged. "It's that simple."
"But not reassuring in the least," Betty pointed out, making a face. "And I still think you could have made it as a psychologist," she added.
Katalina shrugged again. "But then I wouldn't be here, with you two, doing what I love."
"Talking to us?" Christina ventured sarcastically with raised eyebrows.
"Oh, well, that too. I meant being a fashionista and doling out great advice," she explained.
"And for that I am very thankful," Betty replied with a smile.
"Here, here!" Christina chimed in. "Now who's up for a couple rounds of drinks?"
A/N: Feel free to hurl large objects in my direction for not updating in forever. And thanks to all my reviewers.