The elevator incidence
920 Words
The next morning, Naomi Blake arrived at Sinclair Group twenty minutes early.
Not because she wanted to impress Ethan Sinclair.
At least, that’s what she kept telling herself.
After yesterday’s humiliation, she had barely slept. Every time she closed her eyes, she heard his cold voice again.
“Try not to disappoint me.”
The words irritated her more than they should have.
Naomi stepped into the lobby holding a cup of coffee tightly between her hands. Employees moved around quickly, avoiding eye contact the way people did in places ruled by fear.
A few glanced at her curiously.
News traveled fast.
Especially in corporate offices.
She walked toward the elevator and pressed the button. The silver doors opened almost immediately.
Empty.
Thank God.
She stepped inside and exhaled softly as the doors began closing.
Then a hand suddenly stopped them.
Naomi froze.
A tall figure entered without a word.
Black suit.
Dark watch.
Cold gray eyes.
Of course.
Ethan Sinclair.
The elevator suddenly felt ten times smaller.
Naomi stared straight ahead while he pressed the button for the executive floor.
Silence filled the space.
Uncomfortable silence.
The kind that made every tiny sound feel louder.
Even her breathing sounded embarrassing.
Ethan glanced briefly at the coffee in her hand. “You’re early.”
Naomi looked up carefully. “I thought that’s what employees are supposed to do.”
One side of his mouth twitched slightly.
Not quite a smile.
“Most people arrive early because they’re afraid of me.”
“And should I be afraid of you?”
The question slipped out before she could stop herself.
Bad idea.
Very bad idea.
The elevator became still.
Ethan looked at her fully now, his sharp gaze almost intimidating enough to pin her in place.
“That depends,” he said calmly. “Do you plan on giving me reasons to be angry?”
Naomi opened her mouth to answer
Then the lights flickered.
The elevator jerked violently.
And stopped.
Everything went dark for half a second before the emergency lights switched on.
Naomi grabbed the rail instantly.
“What just happened?”
“No idea,” Ethan replied, surprisingly calm.
A buzzing sound echoed overhead before silence returned.
Complete silence.
Naomi pressed the emergency button quickly. Nothing.
Again.
Still nothing.
Her heartbeat sped up.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
Ethan pulled out his phone, checking the signal. “No service.”
“Perfect,” Naomi muttered.
Rain thundered faintly outside the building.
The storm.
Of course it had to be the storm.
Naomi leaned against the wall and closed her eyes briefly.
Tiny spaces.
She hated tiny spaces.
Her breathing slowly became uneven.
Ethan noticed immediately.
“You’re claustrophobic.”
It wasn’t a question.
Naomi forced herself to straighten. “I’m fine.”
“You’re tapping your fingers against the wall every three seconds.”
She stopped instantly.
Great.
Now he was analyzing her.
“I said I’m fine.”
Ethan studied her for a moment before loosening his tie slightly.
Oddly enough, the gesture made him look less terrifying and more… human.
“Sit down before you pass out.”
“I’m not going to pass out.”
“You look pale.”
“That’s just my face.”
For the first time, Ethan actually laughed.
A quiet laugh.
Short.
But real.
Naomi stared at him in shock.
“You can laugh?”
The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted them.
But Ethan only raised an eyebrow.
“Contrary to office rumors, yes.”
Naomi looked away quickly, trying to hide her embarrassment.
A strange silence settled between them afterward — softer this time.
Less hostile.
Rain continued hitting the building outside while the emergency light cast shadows across the elevator walls.
Ethan loosened his sleeves slightly before speaking again.
“You were staring at me yesterday.”
Naomi nearly choked. “I was not.”
“You were.”
“I was observing.”
“Observing?”
“You yelled at someone five minutes after I arrived.”
“I didn’t yell.”
“You terrified him quietly.”
That earned another small smile.
Naomi blinked.
It changed his entire face.
Without the constant coldness, Ethan looked younger. Less like the ruthless CEO everyone feared and more like someone carrying too much pressure alone.
The thought caught her off guard.
“Why do you work so hard?” she asked before thinking.
Ethan’s expression shifted immediately.
Walls rising again.
“Why do you ask unnecessary questions?”
“Sorry.”
He looked away briefly before answering anyway.
“Because people depend on me.”
The simplicity of the answer surprised her.
No arrogance.
No ego.
Just exhaustion.
Naomi studied him quietly.
Maybe she had judged him too quickly.
Suddenly the elevator lights flickered again before the system restarted with a loud hum.
The elevator moved.
Naomi released a breath she didn’t realize she was holding.
A second later, the doors finally opened to the executive floor.
Employees immediately looked relieved to see Ethan step out alive.
Naomi followed behind him carefully.
Before she could walk away, Ethan spoke without turning around.
“Miss Blake.”
She stopped.
“Yes?”
He glanced at her over his shoulder.
“You talk too much.”
Naomi frowned slightly.
Then his expression shifted into something dangerously close to amusement.
“But it’s… interesting.”
And just like that, he walked away.
Leaving Naomi completely confused why her heart was suddenly beating faster than before.
- Writer
