His Secret Desire

2

2

It was not a dream.

When I woke up the text was still there and the phone call duration was written on the screen under my boyfriend's—well, ex-boyfriend's—name. It lasted only for a minute but yet it felt like an hour.

The time was eight am in the morning. I had work at nine, so I was practically late, but I couldn't bring myself to rush.

I couldn't even bring myself to get up from bed.

When I finally garnered the courage to get up, I decided that I wasn't going to let him get to me.

That was what he would've wanted, that I never got over him.

I was going to show him who was boss.

I felt that way but my reflection said otherwise.

Heavy eye bags and sunken red cheeks. I looked like I was ill. How on earth was I going to pull this off?

Jessany.

If anyone knew how to do it, it was going to be her. She'd helped me many times in the past, especially when I used to get drunk and become too hungover to go to school in the morning.

I could trust her.

I picked up my phone and dialed her number and she picked it up at the very first ring. Very typical of Jessany.

“Hey bestie!” She shrieked over the phone.

Normally her enthusiasm would've had me at my wits end but today I was grateful for that.

At least it wasn't a man who hated me.

“Hi, um, can you come over?”

“That's new… usually I'd be the one begging to come over,” she replied. “Are you okay? You sound terrible.”

I sighed “I'm not”. If anything she had to be the first to know. I could trust her.

Jess paused for a moment. “Is it Max?” she asked, “That loser?” She always had a thing against him.

I wouldn't blame her anyway.

“Can you just please come over? It's kind of an emergency…”

“Girl I'm already in the car but I swear if it is Max, I am going to rip him apart like a bag of cheetos, I swear to God—”

“—okay, okay. Whatever. Just hurry, okay?”

“Okay but are you safe? Is he with you?”

“God no!” I scoffed, though a part of me wished he was.

****

“You're late.” Thomas Wexhend greeted.

A brief introduction on Thomas Wexhend; A tall, slender and blonde haired man in his early forties.

He was the nosiest man to ever walk the earth, and as well as being a flirt and an outright freak, he was also my co-worker.

I replied “Barely,” while completely avoiding eye contact.

Thomas had a weird way of seeing through me. Just to give a measure of how weird it was, he could tell if I was going to go down with the flu. Yeah, it was that weird.

“You know you're in a lot of trouble.” He said.

“Oh come on,” I spun around in frustration, “it's only five minutes past nine, and there was a lot of traffic today. You know that!”

The side of Thomas's thin lips slightly curved upward forming a silly smirk. He leaned on the wall of my cubicle with his pale arms folded in front of his wrinkled shirt.

“You know, Peter isn't gonna buy it, right?” he stated with one brow arched.

“Yeah well, Peter isn't an idiot.” I said, plopping onto my seat.

Peter was the boss; a slightly older, less weird and infinitely more pleasing man to look at than Thomas.

“You know you're a pretty interesting person. You know that right, Renee?”

I rolled my eyes and let out an audible sigh. He was getting on my nerves and he knew it, but I wasn't going to let him ruin my day. It had already been a crazy morning.

“How?” I asked with forced enthusiasm.

“The fact that you're showing up to work on a monday visibly hungover and you don't even seem to care.”

I rolled my eyes for the umpteenth time that morning, “We both know I don't drink anymore.”

“Then what's the matter with you? Definitely doesn't look like the f—”

“—it's clearly none of your business, Thomas.” I hissed.

“Well whatever; Gate-keep or whatever it is you kids call it these days. I’ll make you a coffee—you look like you'll need it.”

As I watched his retreating back, I felt instant regret for going to work that day.

Jess had told me to call in sick and get a little rest. She was even going to get me a doctor's note, because her sister was a doctor and she could kinda do that, but I assured her that I was fine.

Clearly I wasn't fine. I was anything but fine.

I should've stayed home today…

I rubbed my temples deeply.

Just eight hours. Eight more hours and I'm out of here.

Eight—

I felt a tap on my shoulder.

I turned around expecting to see Thomas's slender face but I was met with Peter's secretary, Paula, instead.

“Peter wants to see you.” she announced.

My heart jumped to my throat. He never asked to see me. Why did he suddenly need to see me? Did Thomas say something?

“M—me?”

Paula nodded. “Now.”