My Co-Worker Hates Me

Chapter III

The hours go by quickly now that we're working at the same office, I start to get used to Porsche's music, or his leg shaking both of our desks, or his usual mumbling. It's easier to work with him now that we're at peace, this until Wednesday, after we worked several hours on the promotions he gets a text. He reads it and immediately looks as if a truck just ran over his puppy.

Porsche stops the music and this sets an alarm on me.

"Is everything okay?" I ask after a few minutes of Porsche breathing heavily. I drive my chair a little closer to his, he turns around looking awful but then puts a smile on his face. A weird smile.

"Yeah, it's fine." Porsche answers and goes back to work.

I return to my place but I can't help to notice his knuckles white as he's typing a little too aggressively on his laptop. He stops for seconds and then continues, like his mind is elsewhere.

"You sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine." He states.

But he doesn't play his music again and now the hours go by slowly.

It's probably not my business, I have to remind myself.

Thursday arrives, Porsche is late. Normally he gets to the office before me, but not today. I start to feel anxious at this, but then I see him come in right at 8:05 AM. He came with his suit all wrinkled, his tie undone, no belt and messy hair. Which is weird, he's normally tidy clean whenever I see him.

"Hi." I greet him. He nods in response and only when he sits on his chair do I notice he's wearing yesterday's clothes. And he reeks of alcohol.

I decide not to say anything to not come off as rude, but the mood is awful and I can't help to feel anxious. This is unknown territory for me, I'm used to seeing only one kind of Porsche; the one that sings a bunch of songs, the one who offers to help every five minutes, the one who smiles for everyone and the one who is always clean and smells of expensive cologne. Not this one. And I have a feeling it's probably related to the text he got yesterday.

"Porsche, are you okay?" I ask once again, although yesterday I got nothing from him.

He takes a deep breath and whispers: "I'm sorry, I had a bad day yesterday."

I stay silent, knowing I've no right to ask for more details but I'm dying to know.

Porsche finally glances his eyes on me and adds: "My girlfriend cheated on me." He takes another deep breath. "Yesterday a friend of my mine saw her making out with some dude from her workplace, so I went to hers yesterday and... we broke up." He finishes.

"Shit... I didn't know you were seeing someone." I say first and he laughs a little. "I'm sorry that happened to you, I know there's probably nothing I can say to make you feel better, but know that I can listen if you want to bitch about any of this."

He laughs again and nods in response. He turns his laptop on and starts to work.

I go out to the cafeteria and get two coffees; one for me and the other one for him. I know being cheated on is one of the most horrendous things that one can go through, it's basically being betrayed so I remember feeling so dumb for the longest time.

I figure a coffee could make things just a little better, so I take the coffee to my office and offer it to him. He looks confused.

"I brought you a cup of coffee." I say.

He takes it but then, with a smile says: "I don't really drink coffee."

"Oh shit, sorry. I didn't know." I admit, feeling heat from my cheeks, embarrassed for some reason. I make the attempt to take his cup again but he refuses.