1. Olly #3
“Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck!” I thought, and then screamed in my mind, “Everyone SHUT THE HELL UP!” The door to the room, which Jeff liked to leave ajar, suddenly slammed shut.
It was as if I were, against my wishes, absorbing the thoughts about abortion, adoption, or abandonment from everyone in the building, and it was driving me slightly crazy, making my abilities run rampant.
I insisted on staying calm and trusting that I could make them quiet.
Where this trust came from, I could not say, and it was perhaps that which frightened me the most. It had been so long since this had happened to me.
Years, really, if I gave it a good think.
“Ah yes, an apartment. Dolores will be vacating hers soon when she makes alternate arrangements, but we have a few units standing by and ready. We’d give you one of those.
A view of the harbour, too,” Robert replied.
I internally gave myself a slap to the cheek and reminded myself to pay attention.
“It’s not just a perk. It’s part of your compensation for your job.
We have a remote office down there, and we’d want you on-site for any potential problems that arise.
That means going on rotation every other week, carrying a company cell that can ring at three in the morning, and you are expected to get down to the basement office and fix whatever has gone wrong, if it is within the scope of your abilities, as outlined in the contract.
It may mean coming all the way up here, in the middle of winter on a Saturday night to dig through a pile of virtual and physical records.
The apartment may seem like a perk, but trust me: it is one you will earn.
” I thought it over for all of ten seconds before replying.
Finding an affordable place in this city was like trying to find one particular needle in a stack of needles.
“I appreciate the heads-up and would be willing to meet those conditions. I realize I haven't said so, but I would love to have the position.” Jeff and Robert shared a high five, and I laughed, despite the turmoil in my mind. “Um, forgive me, but with Dolores retiring and Chad quitting last week, isn’t our team in need of new blood? By my calculations, because you’re promoting from within, we need to hire at least two people at the junior level to keep up with the expanding workload. ”
“That brings us to our second item on the agenda,” Robert said, nodding.
“We're recruiting someone new to take your spot as a junior records manager now, and we will rebuild the team as needed.
We have a favorite amongst this first wave of applicants.
In retrospect, we should have run him by you, instead of Dolores, but nothing is stopping us from doing that now.
Here's his complete file, printed out. Jeff, can you please email her a copy of this?” Robert slid a folder across the table to me.
“I’d like you to take this with you as you check out your new apartment and tour the South End Office this afternoon.
As you know or perhaps don't know, we rent the furniture, and you can alter what is there with the catalogue to make it suit yourself.” Robert slid a key card across the table. Holy hell, this was really happening.
I took the card and could barely stop my hands from shaking as I looked down at part of the solution to my problems. The only glaring issue I could see would be no more sharing an apartment with Shepard, unless he wanted to move with me.
But maybe it would be better if he didn’t, because as much as I loved him as my dearest friend, after almost a dozen years together as roomies starting in university in our second year, we had begun to grow apart.
It broke my heart to admit it, but we’d been on the same road for so long that as we grew into the adults we were, we had to admit that it was harder to maintain that bond when we had less and less in common.
We still were exclusive when it came to our physical relationship, but I think that was because we just know each other so well.
Though, at twenty-nine, maybe it was time that we finally let each other go and find the partners we were meant to be with for the rest of our lives.
Besides, it was natural that people changed and evolved all the time, and having my own decent place to live was an offer too good to pass up.
No more freezing commute waiting for the bus in the dead of winter or sweating it out squished on the bus in summer, because with the bump in my salary, I’d be able to top up my buy-a-car fund, and then some.
After our meeting, Robert gave a more formal little bow in my direction as he left the room, and Jeff gave me a huge fist bump.
I grinned at him, and then he led me through the Information Complex to the elevators.
Cedar, the head of personnel security, boarded the elevator and smiled at me, while Jeff gave me a dorky salute and headed back to his office.
“It's always a good day when your life changes, isn’t it?” he called back.
Instinctively, I placed a hand over my belly, feeling lightheaded.
Fantastic.