escape

day at work

"So, what did you do last night? " Mel asked. " Nothing. " She stared at me. " You mean to tell me that you went to the bar, and didn't find anyone to take home? " " Nope. " " Why not? " "No one caught my eye. " " Liar. You never lie. What happened? " " We had a great time. " She grabbed my arm, and dragged me outside. " Tell me what happened. " " I met a guy, and we talked for hours. " "Aww, you found your Prince Charming. " " No, he's not. " She laughed, and started walking. " Come on. We've got work to do. " " I told you, nothing happened. " " Sure. " We got to our office, and greeted everyone. "Morning. " " Hey. " We waved to each other, and walked to our desks. My phone rang, and I answered. " Hi, Mr. Wexley. " " Miss. Palmer, I'm glad you could come in. " " Of course. " " Great. I'll see you soon. " "Bye. " I hung up, and looked around. " Any idea who that was? " " Umm. " " Yeah. " I said, rolling my eyes. " Just tell me. " " It's Mr. Wexley. " " Really? " I snorted. " That's something else. " " I know. " "This should be fun. " " I hope not. " " You hope not? " " Yes. " " You want me to fail? " " No, but I wouldn't be upset if you did. " I chuckled. "Stop it. If you fail, then you will have no choice but to leave the company. " She frowned. " I haven't made up my mind yet. " " You won't, if you screw this up. " " Fine. Let's just focus on today. " " All right. " "We still have a lot of work to do. " " I know. " We spent the rest of the day working, and when we finished, we called it a day. I left work, and headed home. "Hello, Ms. Palmer. " Darla called out. " Hello, Darla. " I turned to her, and smiled. " You look nice today. " She blushed. " Thanks. I was trying to impress someone. " " Someone who works here? " She nodded. "Well, let's go see who that is. " She smiled, and took off. I followed her to the elevator, and we both stepped inside. " Well, this is awkward. " A familiar voice spoke from behind us. " Who are you? " I asked. "We already know who she is. " I turned, and saw two men, and a woman. The man on the right was tall, dark-skinned, and wore glasses. The one on the left was light-skinned, and also tall. "Hi, I'm Dwight. " He extended his hand. " I'm Zac. " He shook Darla's hand. " Nice to meet you. " I looked at the woman. " And you are? " She smiled. " I'm Diana. " " We're coworkers, "Dwight explained. "So, this is where you work. " I grinned. " Yeah. " " Are you the one who hates me? " He asked. " No. I just don't like being interrupted while I'm working. " He chuckled. " Well, if you need anything, let me know. " "I will. " The doors opened, and they got out. I watched them walk away, and turned to Darla. " I thought you said you were dating someone? " She shrugged. " Not anymore. " " What happened? " " Nothing. " Right. " " How did you meet these people? " " In the cafeteria. " " Did you ask for their numbers? " She laughed. " No. " " Then how did they find you? " She sighed. " I have no idea. " "Well, you better keep an eye on yourself. They seem very interested in you. " She groaned. " Oh God. " We reached my car, and I unlocked the door, and got in. " I'll see you later." She said, as she walked away. " Bye, "I replied. As soon as she drove off, I pulled out of my spot, and started driving home. I parked in front of my house, and went inside. "Hello, "my grandmother called out. " Hi, Grandma. " I walked into the kitchen. " Have some dinner. " She gestured toward the table. I looked at the plate of food, and realized I was starving. "What's for dinner? " I asked. " Chicken. " " My favorite. " I sat down, and ate. When I finished, I helped her clean up. " I'm going to bed, "she said. " See you tomorrow. " " Goodnight. " "Night. " I headed upstairs, and got ready for bed. After putting on pajamas, I climbed under the covers, and laid there. I was exhausted, and drifted off to sleep. "Maxwell! " My father yelled. " What? " I asked, rubbing my eyes. " You're late. " " For what? " I looked around, and noticed he wasn't wearing a suit. " Where are you going? " He ignored my question. " Come on." " Where? " " Just come with me. " I put on my shoes, and grabbed my phone. I met him outside, and followed him to his car. " What's going on? " He asked. " Nothing. Just come on. " "I hate it when you do this. " He didn't answer me. He started the engine, and drove off. We rode in silence for ten minutes, before he finally spoke. " I'm taking you to a movie. " " What? " " Yes. " " Why? " "Because I want to. " " That doesn't answer my question. " He grunted. I could tell something was wrong, but I had no clue what it was. Fifteen minutes later, we arrived in downtown. " What are we doing here? " "We're going to a movie. " " This isn't the theater. " I pointed to a building. It had a sign that read, The Sage Theatre Company. " I'm taking you to a play. " " I thought we were going to a movie. " "We are. " " But this is not the same thing. " " Of course it's the same thing. " " Whatever, "I mumbled. We walked into the lobby. The woman behind the desk smiled at us. " Welcome. " " Thank you. "

You can pick your seats over there. " She handed us each a ticket stub, and we headed toward the stage. We found our seats, and sat down. I looked around, and noticed most of the audience seemed older.What are we watching? " He handed me a program. I flipped through it, and saw a picture of the actors who would be performing tonight. " They all look old. " " And? " " Nothing. Can you shut up, please? " " Sorry. " " Here they come, "he whispered. The lights dimmed, and the curtain opened. " Now, let's get one thing straight. There is no such thing as fate. Fate is just an excuse.

People make their own choices, every day. Sometimes those choices lead them somewhere good, sometimes they lead them somewhere bad. Somewhere terrible.

In life, you always have a choice, but you can only make one. You can't change your past, or your future, but you can control how you react to the present.Do you understand? " I nodded. " I thought so. " The woman walked on stage, and began talking about love, and its complexities.