I walked home with Roger that night as usual. Everything was so innocent, so fragile in the warm breeze of the summer. I felt my bond was reaffirmed that night with my best friend.
The next morning, I got a call from my best friend, Jill, fellow secretary and fierce force of nature.
"Hey, Jilly Billy! What's up?"
"You might wanna get down here as fast as those long chocolate legs can carry you, chica."
"Well, I was just about to call Roger to wake him up..."
"That dude fucking high tailed it over here after Bobby called him."
"Why? Only my voice gets Roger out of bed in the morning."
"Well, your voice and word that a hot secretary just blew in from the Wild West. Bobby called Roger ten minutes ago and he showed up five minutes later."
"Why didn't Roger call me? He always calls me when he wakes up and leaves..."
"You better get here and see the circus in here, hon. These guys are on their knees for this girl."
"I'm two blocks away. I'll be there in a couple minutes. See you, Jill."
"Tess, don't you dare worry about Roger. You'll be fine. I know it sounds bad, but he's a tough guy."
I hung up and continued walking, but quickening my pace. There was such panic in my strides. My heels made loud clicking sounds on the concrete walkways. My breathing hitched as I spun through the revolving door of the office.
When I arrived, I headed to the lounge where the secretaries often went to converse about things. Being women, we needed a place to get our gossip in.
"Jill, what the hell are all of you doing in here? Are all of your bosses dogging this girl?"
"Did you see her in the lobby of the office? She was lounging all over Holly's reception desk and the poor girl's crying her eyes out because that new bitch made her feel ugly," Jill explained, her own eyes filled with tension. "You have to see if Roger's talked to her yet. If he hasn't, you might still have a chance. If he's talked to her, then it's all over. We might as well pack up and start job hunting."
"Roger would never...I can't believe you, Jill. Is this how you feel? You actually think he'd double cross me like that?"
"Tess, sweetie, we all know how close you are, but he's still a shallow sort of guy who likes shallow, hot girls. They say bros before hoes, but it's different when it's your best girlfriend and a hoe," Demi sniffed, wiping her nose.
I felt tears burning in my eyes as I rushed to Roger's office. My fists were clenched. My jaw tightened.
"They're wrong," I repeated to myself, gripping the beverage I had made for Roger.
I pushed through those clean glass doors and waved my hand in front of his face. He seemed entranced. It was almost surreal. It was obvious by this time, that my best friend had been hooked.
"Roger. Roger. Roger? Roger!"
"Tammy, she's like a gorgeous dream. A gorgeous angel in a gorgeous dream," he said in a dazed tone.
"My name's Tess."
"Tanya, I want her to marry me. I want to just run away and for her to be mine."
"Still Tess."
"Beth, do you have my coffee?"
"Y-yeah, I got it right here," I sniffed, feeling the hot coffee tremble in my hand.
