Upon Meeting You

16

Warning: ⚠️Spice⚠️

I see Wilhelm exit the building as I lean against my car, speaking with Ben. Once I see that he has finally left the parking lot, I subtly scroll through my phone, clicking on Settings. I find Sounds & Haptics then proceed to click on Ringtone. Looking at Ben, I hold my phone against my leg, tucking my finger behind it. I click the default sound, causing the ring to sound out. I lift my phone to my face, feigning innocence.

"Oh— I'm sorry, give me a moment I need to take this." I say lifting the phone to my ear, turning my body away just enough to allow him to hear me. "Hello?... This is her speaking... Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry, I completely forgot!... Yes, just let him know I'm on my way and should be there shortly... of course... thank you, bye bye." I turn my attention back to Ben as I pretend to hang up.

"Ben, I'm so sorry... I forgot that I was supposed to pick my brother up from the Library. He had a worker there call me for him—"

"Can't he just drive himself?"

"He's 7."

"What's a 7 year old doing at a library on his own?" he questions rudely, although a very relevant question, it causes me to become defensive, as Goren was very mature for his age. On the plus side, maybe he would become uninterested in me due to my unfriendliness.

"My brother is very mature for his age, thank you very much. He spends most of his free time in the library reading books far above his grade level. He's a bright kid and a future bestselling author." I speak quickly showing my irritation. "Have a good day, Mr. Anderson." I speak, climbing into my car, driving off.

⟷

I sit at my home desk, opening my laptop wanting to complete a bit of work before showering. I login to my work email, in order to find the list of tasks once again. I am greeted with a new email which surprises me with the subject.

What the hell have I done now?

From: Wilhelm Daine
To: Lenora Dalsing
Subject: Inexpedient Office Behavior
Date: June 7, 2021 6:52 p.m.

Miss Dalsing,

Might I remind you that it is highly inappropriate to indulge in office relationships between coworkers, especially being that Benjamin Anderson is your superior. If the true reason behind your reluctance towards me is the fear of being hurt then I can assure you, Mr. Anderson isn't someone you should allow yourself to trust so easily. I hope you make the correct decision without forcing me to intervene.

Wilhelm Daine

CEO, Daine Law Enterprise

I feel myself fuming with frustration as I begin typing out an email back to him.

From: Lenora Dalsing
To: Wilhelm Daine
Subject: Inexpedient Office Behavior
Date: June 7, 2021 7:16 p.m.

Mr. Daine,

Might I remind you that despite your superiority, the same rules should apply to you as well. Therefore, the rules prohibiting relationships between coworkers would make you a hypocrite should you choose to enforce them. I wish to speak no further on the reason behind my reluctance to indulge in anything further with you. I'm a grown adult and I believe I know what is best for me, so continue ignoring me as always, and in return, I'll keep quiet about your relationship with little Miss Redhead.