Perks of the Job

Chapter Ten

I finished off my day in much the same fashion as all of my other ones. Since it was Friday, and pay-day, I picked up my paycheck and put it away before heading back to the fitting room to cover it for the last hour of my shift. I had some tags waiting for me when I got back from my break and I thanked the retail gods that I wouldn't be completely bored out of my mind, thought this was still no fun-parade.

After our break, Nick had come over by me to put away some miscellaneous items. "So I think I've decided," I said, grabbing his attention away from the bracelets he was organizing. "I'm going to put it on my bulletin board."

"Oh really?" he said, paying me more attention than his task and knocking off a jewelry box from the shelf. I smiled and picked it up, handing it to him.

It was kind of one of those movie moment type deals where I handed him the box and our fingers brushed over each other for a split second that my love-crazed mind interpreted as an eternity. Our eyes met and, though I'd like to say that the world stopped spinning, it didn't, though it sure felt like it did. "Thanks," he practically whispered, though he probably wasn't trying to. Either way, it made him seem sexy as all hell.

"Sure," I replied with my voice equally as low. "No problem." Our gaze into each other's eyes lasted but a moment longer before Nick got uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and looked down at his feet before stuttering out, "Uh, so, bulletin board? Nice choice." I knew for a fact that he didn't give two shits about where I put his list, but I wasn't going to complain. After all, I was getting to talk to him.

"Yeah, I would put it above my desk, but that space is already taken up," I said, trying to sound cute and charming, then promptly ditching that idea when I started to feel like a fool.

"With what?" Nick asked, sounding intrigued enough for me to answer him without the use of my sass.

"Oh just this . . . embarrassingly huge poster of My Chemical Romance." I smiled shyly to cover up the fact that what I'd just told him was not only a little obsessive, but also very accurate. What can I say? I love me some My Chem.

Nick let out a soft courtesy laugh, but at the same time I was certain that he found my obsession to be more admirable than comical. He confirmed this when he said, "Hey, at least they're people worth admiring. You know, some people are obsessed with," he paused to think. "Taylor Swift. My Chem, in my mind, are much better idols."

I just loved the fact that Nick thought so much like me. He saw past the mainstream pop culture and lived his life as his own person, liking what he liked and not giving a fuck as to what others thought. That's how I liked to live, and I found it to be a very attractive quality.

Though I'd been telling myself not to get too close to Nick as to avoid the potential awkwardness of having feelings for him, I figured that since I'd already admitted to myself that I liked him, I might as well have a little fun. The opportunity to flirt a little came up and I wasn't going to shoot it down. "It's really cool that you think like that," I said, doing my best to praise him without sounding like I was at the end of my tether. I wasn't normally one to flirt, actually, before this point, I'd never flirted in my life so I wasn't sure if I was doing it right. That is, if there was even a 'right' way to do it.

I figured he was talking it well because he looked up to me and smiled to accept his compliment. "Thanks, I like the way you think too."

And cue the butterflies erupting in my stomach. I still couldn't seem to get over the way Nick talked to me. The way he looked deeply into my eyes, seemingly reading my soul. The way he leaned in just slightly, giving me his full attention. The way he . . . stop!

Stop, Evan! My conscious screamed at me. You aren't allowed to like your co-workers!

Sadly, that bitch was right; liking Nick would only yield negative consequences. For one, he might not like me back, causing major awkwardness to ensue. What was worse is that if he did like me and we started dating, it could get in the way of our jobs, not to mention that if it didn't work out, I'd probably have to quit.