Chapter 6 #2
“Yeah, turned you into a bird? That’s something…
but despite all the little changes, I know you.
You are disgustingly honest, Freya. Straight and narrow to a fault.
There is no way you’d ever make this shit up.
Besides, I’m looking at you. You’re still you and yet, you’re not.
You’re like a slightly altered, super version of you.
But I have no idea how you’re going to get back to life here.
You might need to move and start over somewhere else, somewhere no one knows you.
Even then, you don’t look quite human. Sorry, but it’s true.
There’s some kind of glow in your eyes and your skin. You’re always going to stand out.”
“What am I going to do?”
“Can you go back? Would you be able to, I don’t know, show him some pictures of how you used to look, and ask him to do a better job of turning you back?”
She grabbed my hand and dragged me to the hallway mirror, which was floor-length and wide enough for us to stand side by side and see ourselves.
My second look in the mirror still came as a shock, although there was something familiar there too, reminding me a little of an old picture I had of my mother.
I shook it off and looked again. Ignoring the physical changes as best I could, I looked for signs that I wasn’t quite human anymore.
While I could see what Mindy meant about my eyes, there was a subtle glow to them, I decided I looked human enough, especially when compared to the image I had of Him.
I shook my head and looked at her. She had been watching me in the mirror.
“You know what? I think it’ll be fine. No one pays attention to me at the office.
I’m always hunched over my desk. It’s not like I’m popular.
Most people don’t even know me. As far as the freckles go, I’ll just say I finally found a good concealer.
” Although, anyone who knew anything about me knew that I barely used makeup.
Not anymore. I sighed. Just when I’d started to like my freckles.
She tilted her head. “You look good, Freya. Maybe say you’ve lost some weight while you were lost in the woods subsisting off berries and whatever else, and to hell with what other people think. Wear sunglasses as much as possible. You’re quitting your job though, right?”
“No. I think not. I’m going to go into work tomorrow and hear them out. See if anyone notices.”
She shook her head, mouth drawn in disapproval.
“Why? They don’t appreciate your talent, they never have. Not to mention, they just gave up on you. Abandoned you on the mountain. That’s not right. Lord knows Cassandra never should have been in charge of managing a plant, much less a team, but this is low even for her.”
“No, it’s not right. But I’ve been through hell and back and survived.
Cassandra can’t hurt me now. They lied to you guys about sending out a search party for me.
I want to see the looks on their faces when they see me again.
” Even though we lost the bid, that had been my project, my pride and joy.
If there was any future for my design, I’d need to be part of it.
“Well, they’re sure going to be surprised. But after you’ve had your moment, then, please, for your sake, find a better job.”
Mindy found some clothes that fit my new shape, and we arrived at work together the next morning.
She got off the elevator at accounting, and I continued up, steeling myself to face my colleagues.
Monday mornings were always hectic, but all the activity screeched to a halt when my co-workers saw me.
A few people said good morning, but more people turned away, unable to meet my eyes, unsure what to make of Freya 2.
0. I couldn’t blame them. I didn’t either; it was one day at a time for me.
With no explanation to anyone, I made my way over to Matthew’s office.
He stood at the window, his back to the door. Not bothering to knock, I stepped inside.
“Good morning, Matthew,” I said, my voice strong and clear.
“Freya,” he said, turning quickly. The cup of coffee he held in his left hand went tumbling to the floor, dumping its warm liquid down his side. His expensive suit darkened as it sucked it up. He didn’t seem to notice, so caught up in looking at the new me. “Holy shit, Freya, is that really you?”
“Hi, Matthew. I guess the search and rescue folks forgot to call and tell you they found me.”
He came straight to me, stepping well into my personal space, something he never did. He even touched my hair.
Eyes on my cheekbones, he said, “You’re not Freya.”
“Yeah, actually, I am.” I squeezed as much confidence as I could into those words, or possibly anger.
His eyes found my laptop case, and a hungry look came over them before he glanced away.
I gripped the strap even harder. The night before, I had charged it and had discovered that while my whole life had been upended, my computer had survived my misadventures unharmed.
With an ounce of luck, it would be enough to save my job.
“Come, have a seat, and tell me everything.” He shut the door behind me and motioned to the nearest chair. I sat and then regretted it, missing my new height advantage. How had I overlooked the fact that Matthew was a small man?
“Do you actually want to hear about how I survived in the woods when you left me for dead?”
He frowned, staying unusually silent.
“Or how a kind man took pity on me and finally gave me a ride to the airport? Or how I ended up looking like this?” I waved up and down my torso. He wanted the answers to my questions, frustration written all over his face, but would he have the guts to ask me?
He was saved by a knock on his door. Amanda, his secretary, stuck her head in. “Boss wants to see you.” She looked me over in a millisecond and then shut the door.
“Stay here,” was all he said before leaving the office. He didn’t wait for my answer, but it was up to me whether or not I acquiesced.
I checked my phone. It was nine thirty. I would give him ten minutes and then go find them both.
I checked my email, having cleared most of it out the night before since my mind couldn’t quiet enough to sleep.
Other than Mindy, no one had cared about my disappearance.
I was lucky to have her as a friend. My one good friend.
I’d gone through college and graduate school so driven and focused, I hadn’t made any lasting friendships, or I just wasn’t good at making friends or fitting in.
Nothing new, really. I told myself it was to be expected; I had what I needed.
My uncle didn’t have to raise me after my father died, but he did.
My uncle did his best. He fed me, educated me, and trusted me to make my own way.
I hadn’t been abused, just neglected. I never had the personality to make up for my inexperience with love.
The hostile outer crust I had developed at an early age helped me cope with the fact that I wasn’t likable. Unwanted.
But now, with my future so uncertain at the one place I had fit, I couldn’t help the wave of loneliness sweeping over me.
That did it. I was done waiting for others to decide my fate. I got up and marched to Cassandra’s office. Justin, her PA, picked up the phone and held his finger up. I paused as he spoke, “Freya’s here. Okay.”
“She will see you in a moment. Have a seat.” He nodded toward the hard couch next to the door.
As much as I wanted to assert myself, it would be better to cooperate as long as possible, so I sat. “How’s life treating you, Justin?”
“Mmmm. Fine.” His eyes remained locked on his desktop as his fingers flew over the keyboard. Not that I had any kind of relationship with Justin. As Cassandra’s mouthpiece, he wasn’t popular, but this refusal to even pretend to be polite felt extra frosty.
I looked around the room, realizing nobody seemed to be around.
This was odd since Cassandra’s office sat in the middle of the floor.
She liked her underlings shivering with the dread of her appearance at any time, but the desks around us were empty, and the few people still occupying them were suddenly as dedicated to their work as Justin.
Maybe all this place needed was my reappearance to reach new plateaus of focus and productivity.
The specter of my invisibility rose while I waited for whatever came next from my bosses.
“You can go in,” said Justin, startling me out of my misery.
Cassandra looked up as I stepped into her office, giving me a three-second head-to-toe inspection without revealing her thoughts on my miraculous reappearance.
I needed to work on my poker face because hers was outstanding.
She glanced at the chair next to Matthew, and I sat down without a word.
Matthew looked up from his laptop and said nothing.
He sat only a few inches away, but his cold expression made him feel hundreds of miles away.
His cologne, once exotic and enticing, only smelled cheap.
“Well, what do you have to say for yourself?” Cassandra asked in her snootiest voice.
I glanced over at Matthew, found no help there, and cleared my throat.
What was she hoping for here? For me to grovel?
I had screwed up, accidentally and not without recourse, but they weren’t blameless either.
Unfortunately for me, I was on shaky ground.
“There may have been a software glitch. The weight of the added windows never uploaded into the new calculations, so the cantilevered supports won’t work. ”
“Yes, we figured it out hours before we were supposed to be presenting. That is not what I’m asking for here. I want solutions. Do you happen to have any of those?” She eyed the laptop clenched between my hands and my lap.
“I do actually. Have some solutions. That is.” My voice faded to pathetic.
The room fell silent. I had their full attention, just no support.