"The job offer was a hoax," said Abi, stirring the settled cream in her coffee. "Some damn China company got hold of my resume and is trying to sell it to every scammer, their moms, and their dogs." The New England diner wasn't too busy that day. The late-summer rain made sure of that.
Sammy munched her sandwich with scholarly meditation. She spoke with full cheeks, "I wonder if it's true that the Chinese eat dogs."
"It's not true, Sammy," Abi said before taking a gloomy sip of sugared burnt beans. "I'm at wit's end, Sammy. I feel like I'm the only college grad of our class that hasn't gotten an actual job yet. Look how happy they all look on Facebook. I mean, have you seen Kasey's post?" Abi plugged her nose and added a New Jersey touch, "Oh I gawt this wonderf'ol new jawb in Manhattan." Abi huffed and brooded over her mug. "Kasey of all people. The whole sorority believed she was the most likely to work at Starbucks or somethin'."
"Nah, you're thinking of Tracy," Sammy said before taking another bite.
"And what's she doin'?"
"She got a government job at the Pentagon."
"With a math degree?"
"You'd be surprised what D. C. could have people do."
Abi moaned like the wandering ghost of the career world. Hell, that was her job. A job wanderer. Who haunts recruiters and interviewers with resumes that may or may not have been printed on high-quality resume paper.
"I never should've gotten an English degree," said Abi.
"Nonsense, that degree is your ticket to your dream job," said Sammy. She finished up her plate and wiped her face. "Something will come up. It just takes some time." She motioned for the waitress. "I'm paying for your joe."
"Sammy!" said Abi, her eyes wide. "You don't have to do that! I can pay for myself."
"Remember all those times in college you paid for my broke ass?" said Sammy with a chuckle, receiving the check. "I'm buying your coffee." Abi smiled. A melancholic one, but at least she knows she got a good friend behind her back.
"I tell yah," said Abi as they got up from the table. "No matter what job I might get overseas, even if it's somewhere in the Asian Pacific, their coffee is damn well gonna beat the sorry watered down beans they sell here."
"That's the spirit," laughed Sammy. And out they went into the deluge.