The Photographer

Chapter 9

Friday, February 10, 2012
Toronto, Canada

The next morning Eric Williams had freshly printed, re-configured photos from the Harrison Charity Event on his desk. He went through each one, making sure Vanessa had corrected the mistakes he'd pointed out. When he was done examining the photos he closed the folder with satisfaction and requested Vanessa in his office.

She knocked softly before entering and taking a seat in the leather chair opposite his desk.

"Great job on those re-configurations, Vanessa. I've just reviewed them."

"Thank you, Mr. Williams."

Silence settled over the two as Vanessa waited for Mr. Williams to either tell her more about the photos or dismiss her so that she could finish working on her other assignments. When he did neither, she cleared her throat to get his attention.

"If that's all, sir, I'd like to get back to work."

Mr. Williams smiled coyly before nodding, dismissing Vanessa from his office.

After the awkward meeting Vanessa threw herself back into work. A local elementary school had recently taken school pictures and a lot of parents were putting in requests to have the photos on keychains, mugs, etc. The entire building was busy printing, editing, and copying photos and Vanessa was apart of the chaos. She worked on editing and retouching to ensure the photos were presentable before handing them off to the next person to put on the finishing touches. By the time her lunch break arrived her wrist was sore from retouching photos and her neck hurt from staying in the same position most of the morning.

Once she was finished with her last photo she grabbed her coat and headed for the door to grab something to eat. Outside the cold, Canadian wind hit her with a vengeance. She rushed to her car and immediately blasted the heat once she was inside and in traffic. She scoured the streets for someplace quick to eat before deciding to make a stop at a Starbucks up ahead.

She rubbed her hands together to bring some warmth to her icy fingers as she entered the warm coffee shop and stood in line behind other waiting customers. Her eyes scanned the menu as she thought about what she wanted. Maybe something warm? Tea? A strong coffee to finish off the rest of her day? She debated between multiple items until it was her turn to order.

The barista took her order quickly and Vanessa went to find seating while she waited. She found a small table near a window and sat, letting out a small sigh as she ran her fingers through her hair. Her day was just getting started and she was already tired from working nonstop this morning. She glanced out the window at the cars passing by and pedestrians walking the sidewalks. She got the urge to snap pictures but suddenly remembered she had to get back to work soon.

She sighed heavily. She loved her job but she couldn't hide the fact that there was still something ... missing. She still felt empty in some sort of weird way and she couldn't put her finger on what it was she needed to be fulfilled. Edge Imaging had been a blessing, the job allowed her to live out her dreams of taking pictures but she still felt like it wasn't enough.

"Vanessa!" The barista suddenly called her name.

She stood and went to get her order, thanking the girl behind the counter before heading for the door. With her hands full she pushed the glass door open with force, hitting someone on their way in at the same time she was leaving.

"Oh my god," she gasped, "I'm so sorry!"

She watched in horror as the man winced with his hand thrown over the left side of his face where the door had hit him.

"Fuck!" He groaned.

"Sir, I'm so sorry! I didn't see you!" Vanessa continued apologizing as he held his head down in pain.