The Apple of My Eye

Damn Your Eyes

I was in the middle of a Skype conversation with Star when Michelle entered my office. She had finished her work for the day and was getting ready to leave. Why was she still there, you ask? She was working her 30-day notice, and therefore still had a number of weeks left until she was gone for good.

I looked up from my computer and nodded courteously, visibly uninterested in her or in her business. I did notice one thing, though: she was wearing a white fur coat, which seemed odd, I remember thinking, because it wasn't cold or anything. Anyway, ever since our little overly sentimental farewell, we hadn't talked much, but it didn't seem like either of us was mad at one another. I certainly was not. She smiled and made for the door.

I must have had a shit-eating grin on my face because she stopped short and gave me a look that said she knew I was up to something, only she didn't know who I was up to something with.

"All right, Stanley. Spit it out. Who is it this time?" She asked bluntly.

"What?" I needed some time to register. "Oh, it's no one."

"No, you can tell me. Come on. It's me."

"It's no big deal, really. I'm just talking to the girl from accounts receivable about this thing that came up."

Michelle knew now my grin didn't have anything to do with eating shit. She knew that grin. Her smile, conversely, faded as I said the words "the girl from accounts receivable." It was as if she knew something I didn't. She must have recalled the time when she caught me checking out Star's derriere one night at the reception, I thought. Although she wasn't livid, she did have an expression that suggested mild annoyance.

"What, Michelle?"

"Well, I don't mean to intrude, but I think you're playing with fire there. Everybody's talking about how this girl moved into the city because of her boyfriend and how you're talking to her all the time now and how there's bound to be trouble."

"Right. Well, I'm just talking to her. I kind of have to, really. It's totally work-related."

"Uh-huh. Sure."

"Say, how's your boyfriend doing these days, Michelle?" I asked, meaning to change the subject.

"He's great. In fact, he's picking me up tonight," she replied defiantly.

"Ah, that's nice. Give him my best."

I was unmistakably telling her that our conversation was over and that I wanted her to leave me alone already.

"Okay," she conceded. "Good night."

It didn't strike me as particularly unforeseen that she'd want to know who I talked or didn't talk to, but I did find it weird that she was still trying to test me, still trying to find out how I'd react if she mentioned her oh so serious boyfriend picking her up and shit. I didn't give a rat's ass, to be honest. I wanted her to be happy and all that, but I wanted her out of there as soon as possible so I could concentrate on what really mattered to me now.

Meantime, the whole Star thing was beginning to make noise. And the noise was just beginning to reverberate. Star was slightly mad at Kayla for having told me she talked about me all the time—and that she was "pretty smitten" with me, too, let's not forget. They soon made peace, but she thought it best to cut down on the amount of time she spent talking to me online. She was never mad at me, though. She knew I had done nothing to violate her trust. We'd still talk, but now she made a point to do it only when she was all alone in the office. She had also decided to abstain from mentioning my name there from now on, for good measure.

I did question her about that, though. I wanted to know why her workmate had said those things. I wanted to know if there was any truth to them. Without a hint of hesitation, she said everybody talked about everybody all the time, so what was the difference? Then she said most of the people who worked there talked about me just as much as they talked about the receptionist and the other girls in the staff who were supposedly fooling around with me every now and again. She added Michelle to the list, too, saying everybody assumed she was on her way out because her boyfriend had found out about me and her. Funny how these stories always get all twisted and distorted, isn't it?