More to the Job

“Ms. Dawson, good to see you here. You have to stay late today,” Mr. McCarthy said to Hallie as she passed him in the hallway. She stopped in her tracks, watching him pass her by. For a moment, she was stunned, not sure if she should say something, but then she turned around and hurried after him, putting on her best smile while trying to stay next to him.

“Mr. McCarthy, I’m truly sorry, but I have requested to leave early today quite a few weeks ago. I have an important appointment,” she said, a little out of breath, trying to keep his pace.

He glanced down at her only briefly, with an eyebrow raised. “That is not my problem, Ms. Dawson. The company requires your work today, it’s urgent. Adjust your schedule accordingly.”

She stopped and stared after him as he rushed into the elevator that his assistant, Mr. Smith, held open for him. He dipped his head slightly when he spotted her looking at him before he also disappeared into the elevator, the door closing.

She balled her hands into fists at her sides, anger scorching through her like a wildfire. She wanted to follow them, telling her boss that he couldn’t decide over her life like this, that she still had something to do outside of these walls, but she sighed then, knowing full well that it wouldn’t help, anyway. Neither would he let her go earlier, nor would he understand. Mr. McCarthy didn’t care about her life outside the company, and if he needed her to stay longer, then that was it.

She walked back to her office, a slight pain in her upper stomach region making her wince a little as she sat down behind her desk. Her office was small, without a window and with grey, sad-looking carpet. There was only a desk inside with an old computer, a telephone and a small shelf with a few books on it she used to study with during her trainee program. She took out her phone, sighing again, forgetting that she didn’t have any signal here. In fact, she technically wasn’t even allowed to use it inside the building, so she quickly put it back into her bag, waiting for her lunch break so she could cancel the appointment she had made at her favorite restaurant.

It was her thirty-first birthday today, and as usual she would eat at a three-star restaurant downtown, which made her favorite pasta dish - shrimp with a creamy white wine sauce and spaghetti. Her family had never had a lot of money, and they couldn’t often afford to eat out like this, but they had always gone to that restaurant to eat on her birthday.

If there was something necessary for her to do, which would include her having to work overtime, she expected to get files dropped onto her desk soon, but for now, she worked through the receipts that had piled up from last week. It was mostly for restaurant and hotel bills, quite high sums actually. Something important must have happened last week, considering these sorts of receipts only pile up like this when they need to keep in touch with an important client. Not that she knew exactly what they spoke about during such trips. She also didn’t book these hotels and restaurants for them, which also indicated that things probably were quite tense. Usually they made her book these for them, but when they didn’t, it meant something going wrong and things having to be dealt with on the fly.

“Is it really necessary to book such a high-priced VIP suite?” She muttered. She couldn’t believe how some people were basically throwing the company’s money out of the window, and yet they were promoted for it, anyway. But who was she to judge? She didn’t exactly know what sort of business deals these people got for themselves, but she couldn’t believe that a VIP suite would be necessary for it.

When her lunch break started, she took her purse and exited the company grounds. Only then was it actually safe to use her phone. She knew that they somehow knew when employees used private phones within the building, and she also knew of people who got fired for it. And that surely wasn’t something she was eager to experience, especially considering all the fallout that would result from it because of the deal she made with them.

She walked to her favorite bakery in the area, ordered a hot chocolate and croissant, and settled down in the little corner in the back of the place. It was relatively quiet here with no other tables close by, but she could still see the window from here, to watch the people passing by.

Before taking a bite of the croissant, she called the restaurant to cancel the appointment. Sadly, it wasn’t Robert answering the phone. She would have liked to have a small chat with him, like they usually did. They used to be classmates in high school, but barely get to speak to each other because of his busy schedule, but it was always nice whenever they did get the chance to speak for a moment.

The canceled appointment left her with a heavy feeling in her stomach, and looking down at the perfectly baked, golden croissant, she almost felt nauseous. Like she was already full, and the sharp pain that had accompanied her for quite a few weeks now pressed against her stomach once again. She took a sip of the hot chocolate, burning her tongue in the process, and suddenly, she felt like it was all too much. Tears stung in the corners of her eyes as she blinked them away quickly. It wasn’t that big of a deal to not be able to celebrate her birthday the way she wanted to, working overtime was just a normal part of work, but somehow it seemed like the worst and most unfair thing in the world to her at that moment. She glanced at the clock across the room, realizing she had only ten minutes before she had to return to work, so she gobbled down the croissant despite the heavy feeling in her stomach and blew into her cup to cool down the hot chocolate to an actual drinking temperature. It all felt too rushed for some reason, a lot more rushed than usual, and it made her furious. Why was her life always so busy, yet so boring at the same time?

With only five minutes left on the clock, she hurried out of the cafe, almost bumping into a man on her way out.

“Excuse me,” she muttered, her eyes plastered to the ground.

“No worries,” the man said, his voice smooth, gentle yet quite deep. His voice would be perfect to narrate an audiobook, and she glanced up to be met with warm, dark brown eyes. Long eyelashes cast a shadow on his face, and he had a slight smile on his lips. Strands of dark brown hair fell into his face, while the rest was combed back neatly. She gaped at him, standing in the doorway like a moron.

“Are you alright?” He asked then, his eyes growing concerned, as he still held open the door.

She took a sharp breath, heat creeping up her face as she nodded quickly. “Yes, of course. I’m in a bit of a hurry.”

And without waiting for a reply, or even daring to look at his face again, she hurried across the street towards the company building, hoping that a huge hole might surface which would swallow her whole. This must have been the most handsome man she had ever seen, and she had seen quite a few good-looking men within the company. And she somehow managed to make an utter fool of herself, not that a man like him would actually be interested in a boring woman like her, anyway.

She barely made it back into the building in time as she caught her breath waiting for the elevator. When the door opened, it revealed Mr. Smith, as he was about to leave the elevator, but he set up his usual business smile when he spotted her and stayed inside. His smile was always a little off-putting because it never seemed genuine, his eyes always remaining quite cold.

“Back from lunch break?” He asked as she stepped inside the elevator.

She smiled. “Yes.”

He nodded and glanced at the watch on his wrist. “Barely made it back in time.”

She winced, a nervous giggle escaping her. “Yes, it was a bit of a busy lunch break, I suppose.”

“Just don’t make it a habit. We do value your reliable work after all.”

She wished she could tell him to shut his mouth and let her be, but she just swallowed the remark and nodded, her hair falling into her face as tears started to build up again. “Of course, Mr. Smith. I will try to do better.”

Mr. Smith placed a hand on her shoulder, and she looked to the side, the smile still on his face. “We appreciate your effort, and don’t be so hard on yourself.”

She wondered if he knew how conflicting his statement was, but she still smiled, the hand on her shoulder feeling so heavy, despite barely touching her. “Thank you, Mr. Smith.”

He dropped his hand again and straightened his tie. “I placed a few files on your desk. Mr. McCarthy needs them prepared before the end of the day.”

Only now did he press the button for the floor he wanted to be at, and she wondered why he had even taken the elevator to the ground floor if it wasn’t his destination. The elevator started to move as she leaned forward to press the button for her floor, her hands shaking slightly.

“I will do my best with the work,” she said quietly.

“I expect nothing less from you.”

When they reached his floor and he exited the elevator with a small nod towards her, she let out a shaky breath. Something about Mr. Smith was putting her on edge, even when he never did anything towards her to warrant such feelings. Sure, he was strict and straightforward, but he had helped her plenty of times over the past thirteen years. They both started at the company around the same time, yet he quickly climbed up the career ladder until he became Mr. McCarthy’s assistant. He wasn’t as off-putting all those years ago, but he has changed quite a bit since then. Which was normal in a way, everyone was changing one way or another over the course of their lives, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that some things happened that must have made him this way, and those might be things that she wouldn’t even want to know about.

When she reached her floor, she hurried to her office, opened the door and spotted the "few" files he mentioned that filled up her entire desk. She closed the door behind her, leaned against it and closed her eyes for a moment. This will take hours to work through; she already knew that, and she might not even leave this place before midnight. She opened her eyes again, for a second hoping she had only imagined the pile of files, but sadly, it was in fact reality.

She rounded her desk and sat down in her chair, roaming her eyes over the files, before spotting a yellow sticky note on the side of her monitor. She pulled it off, a gasp leaving her mouth.

Don’t forget the rules, Ms. Dawson. Private phones are not allowed to be used on company grounds. Your colleague, Mr. Smith.

A cold shiver ran down her spine as she dropped her purse to the ground. She had only briefly taken out her phone, nothing more and nothing less, yet they knew? She glanced around the room, trying to spot the cameras she had always assumed would be installed, but like all the other times, she couldn’t spot any. After crumpling the paper in her hand, she dropped it into the bin. It was only a warning, so she wouldn’t need to worry more. As long as she worked hard, they wouldn’t fire her.

She pushed the files to the side to make a little more space before picking up the first file. Mr. McCarthy said the work was urgent and needed today, so she made it her goal to finish this before midnight. Hoping they would then also forget about the misstep she had made today. Even if it meant spending her entire birthday in this grey, stuffy office. All alone.