After her divorce, everyone noticed she had a type

My name is Ashley. I am 32, Vietnamese, and have worked as a nail tech at a salon in Reno for several years.

Our owner, Vivian, is 44. She went through a divorce a little over a year ago, and for a while everyone at the salon worried about her. She came to work every day, but she was quieter than usual and buried herself in paperwork after closing.

Eventually, she seemed happier again.

The change started when she began going out on weekends instead of working late every Saturday. She bought new clothes, joined a gym, and actually took days off, which almost never happened before.

Then people started noticing that different men would occasionally pick her up after work.

Nobody caused a scene or brought them into the salon. We would simply see a large pickup truck waiting outside or notice someone standing by the curb until Vivian finished locking the door.

The funny thing was that the men all seemed to have one thing in common.

They were all tall, athletic, and had a very noticeable presence. One coworker joked that Vivian had a very specific type. Before long, the joke spread through the staff.

Whenever someone saw another tall man waiting outside, somebody would quietly smile and say it looked like Vivian had found another one.

The teasing was never said in front of customers, and we tried not to let it become mean. After everything she had gone through with the divorce, most of us were honestly glad she was enjoying life again.

One afternoon, while we were reorganizing polish shelves, one of the newer technicians asked if Vivian only dated men with that kind of appearance.

Nobody actually knew.

Everything we were saying came from what we happened to notice around the salon. Vivian never discussed her dating life with us, and none of us asked for details. She kept her personal life separate from work.

Still, the pattern was hard to ignore.

A few weeks later, Vivian overheard two technicians laughing about how another tall man had just dropped off coffee for her.

Instead of getting upset, she laughed too.

She asked why everyone seemed so interested in who brought her coffee. One of the girls jokingly replied that she clearly had a preference for men who stood out in a crowd.

Vivian smiled and admitted she liked confident people, but she also reminded us that what happened after work was her private business.

That ended the conversation.

Since then, we have tried to keep the jokes to ourselves. Customers come to the salon for good service, not to hear speculation about the owner's personal life.

Vivian still goes out on dates from time to time, and every now and then someone will quietly whisper that she definitely has a favorite type.

Maybe she does.

From what I have seen, though, the biggest change after her divorce was not who she dated. It was that she finally looked happy again. After watching her struggle for months, I think everyone at the salon preferred seeing her smile, even if we occasionally teased her about the kind of men who caught her attention.