The Soulmate Curse

Opportunity - Part 3

The week was over in a flash. The rock metal alarm was getting on Zhen's nerves, but she wasn't going to turn it off. This was war. She had to be strong. Groggy, she got ready for work and jumped on her electric bike. Finn was showering when she left, having come in from an early run. Zhen had caught a glimpse of her walking into her room and she'd felt her heart stop. Finn still had her cochlear buds on, engrossed in whatever she was listening to. Zhen stayed quiet, about to shut her door and let Finn enter her room, but she stopped. She couldn't help noticing how good Finn looked in only a sports bra and jogging sweats. Suddenly feeling like a creep, she slowly shut her door and took a deep breath. If she weren't running late, she'd have fit in another shower. A cold one this time.

As she cycled to work, all that occupied Zhen's mind was how long it had been since she'd got laid. Seeing Finn that morning, beads of perspiration on her lower back, had shoved that frustration to the very centre of her core. Damn it, Finn. Did she have to upend everything in Zhen's life? Was that her sole purpose? Because, if it was, she was doing a damn fine job of it. Zhen's bike suddenly jammed, its rudimentary AI stalling its electric engine and the brakes, causing the bicycle to come to an instant stop at the red light. Zhen caught her balance just in time to keep from toppling over. It was, however, better than being crushed by the truck that zoomed past, a few inches from the front wheel of her bike.

Zhen's adrenaline was still coursing through her from the almost-tragedy as she settled into her office desk. Before she got a chance to begin her day, she was interrupted by her mentor.

"Good morning Zhen," says Jack.

"Hey Jack. How was your..." Zhen turned her chair to face him and almost cussed. Finn was standing right next to him. Zhen kept her composure and finished her statement. "...weekend?"

"It was great. We went snorkelling with the missus," said Jack with a smile. "I have someone I'd like you to meet. This is Miss Finnegan Evina and she will be joining our team."

Zhen stood up and offered a hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Miss Evina."

"Just Finn is fine. Zhen, was it?" she said, with that smile that made Zhen's insides flipflop. That she-devil. "The pleasure is all mine. Jack's been telling me all about you."

"All good things, I hope," said Zhen.

"Now that you two are acquainted," said Jack, pleasantly. "Zhen, you will be acting-mentor to Finn through her probation period. You'll be showing her the ropes and working as a team on your case files."

"I can't wait," Zhen deadpanned.

"Lovely," said Jack, with a clap, completely oblivious to the thickening tension mushrooming from the encounter. "I'll leave you ladies to it."

They watched him walk away.

Zhen sat down and turned back to her computer. "First my home, now this?"

"You're obviously not going to believe me, but this is all a coincidence," said Finn.

"Of course, it is."

There was a pause before Finn spoke up again. "Is there someplace I can, you know, sit?"

"You'll have to call Maintenance to print you a desk and chair," Zhen said, without turning to look at her. That didn't mean that Finn's formal, yet sexy, look wasn't seared to the back of her mind.

"Thank you," said Finn.

After they'd brought up the desk and chair, custom printed to Finn's ergonomic requirements and preferences, and set it up for her a few metres away from Zhen's desk, Finn walked up to her. It was almost lunch time and Zhen was packing up, preparing to go to her favourite lunch spot about a block away from the office building. It was a little park with a bench right next to a pond. She couldn't feed the ducks, like her grandma told her they used to in the past, but she could watch them go about their day. Finn was standing next to her desk, a look of determination on her face.

"Hi," she started. "Would you like to go to lunch with me? My treat. I didn't think I'd ever get a chance to..."

"That would be a 'No'," said Zhen, cutting her off and standing up from her desk. "I might have to talk to you here, but it'll only ever be about work stuff. Nothing more."

"Zhen, just give me..."

"I'm on my lunch break, Finn," said Zhen. "We'll reconvene later this afternoon. I'll show you a few case files and you can decide which ideas you'll steal from me this time."

Zhen's watch dinged as she walked to the park bench. She checked and saw that her UBI money had come through. At almost the same time, she watched as a third of the money was transferred, whizzing through the digital highway to pay for her dad's tab at the local liquor store back home. Another third went to her sister's account, making sure she could buy herself some food and stuff when dad wasn't having a good day, which was a lot more frequent these days. As she continued walking, all she could think of was Finn's offer for lunch. "My treat." Of course, it would have been. Zhen tried to push away the frustration she usually felt whenever she thought about this stuff.

She didn't enjoy watching the ducks much that day.