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“Holy shit!” I exclaimed, snatching my hand from between my thighs. I banged it underneath the desk as I withdrew it.
“Ow!” I yelled as I jumped to my feet, colliding with the desk yet again, except this time with my knee. In the process, everything on top of the desk shifted as if it were in a small earthquake. A glass of water I’d poured spilled all over my lab notes.
“Goddamn it!”
Now completely frantic, I tried to clean up and regain my composure at the same time. Because to my horror, what I’d seen across the room, a tiny camera, had been trained on me the entire time. I'd never seen that there before, ever.
Who put it there? When? And why?
And then a more terrifying notion occurred to me.
Who was on the other side of it?
Over the next few minutes I worried to the point of near panic. But, it wasn’t long afterward my final experiment completed.
None of it mattered now…
Whoever was on the other side of the camera surely saw what I’d done. The terrible thing I’d done. Before long, I’d be summoned to Colin’s office and that would be it. And Gabe, when he found out…
I collapsed into my chair at my workstation, devastated.
Listless, I wrapped up what would be the end of my career with Hawkins Biotech, not to mention probably any chance I had at getting another job somewhere else.
Disgusted at myself, I dropped my head in my hands and immediately my grandmother popped into my mind. What the hell were we going to do now? Shame flushed to my chest and it wasn’t long before I felt the heat of tears following close behind. I stood from my chair to race to the ladies' room before they started to flow in earnest. But no sooner had I taken my first step than the speaker on my office phone crackled to life.
“Fiona,” Holly’s voice blared from the tiny speaker. “Gabe would like to see you in his office right away. It’s urgent.”
FIONA
On the way to Gabe’s office, there was a moment when I almost considered leaving the building, getting in my car and driving away. Since coming to work here, I’d experienced some of the most humiliating days of my life, and now I was moments away from what was likely to be the worst of them all.
But still, I’d come this far.
No matter what he had to say to me, I decided I wasn’t going to be afraid. If nothing else, I hoped Gabe would respect me for dealing with the situation in the lab and doing my job. Since coming to work at Hawkins Biotech, I’d taken the elevator ride up to Gabe’s office once before when he’d emailed. But for some reason, this time it seemed much longer than I remembered.
Much, much, much longer.
In fact, it might have been the longest elevator ride of my life.
In any case, I’d gathered up all my belongings prior to leaving the lab and clutched them against my chest as I exited the elevator on Gabe’s floor. I walked in the direction of Holly's desk, but as I drew near, I noticed she was nowhere in sight. I stood there for about a minute or so as I waited for her to return. She never did. However, it wasn’t long after Gabe appeared in the doorway of his office.
“Fiona,” he began with a nod as he looked at me. “Come on in. Close the door when you do.”
With that, Gabe turned away from me and headed back into his office.
I swallowed hard and readjusted my precarious hold on my belongings. Moments later, I passed through the threshold, closed the door, and as I did, I saw Gabe at his desk. As he leafed through a stack of papers, he did a half-turn over his shoulder.
Our eyes met.
“Where is… Holly?” I asked as I stopped a few feet inside his office.
“Oh, I sent her home early for the day,” he said, with a casual wave of his hand. “We’ve all got a big week coming up. And anyway, she doesn’t need to be here for what we have to discuss.”
Just then, Gabe took notice of my heavy load for the first time. “What gives?”
“Oh,” I stammered, not sure of exactly how I should answer the question. “It’s just some things from my desk in the lab.”
“I see.”
He wrinkled his brow in confusion for a moment as he looked at me. Otherwise, his behavior seemed casual as always. Frankly, for someone who caught me masturbating, he certainly seemed unfazed. A few seconds later, he nodded in the direction of a large couch in his office.
“I’m going to have to ask you to remove your lab coat, Fiona.”
My stomach clenched. Okay, here we go. I was sure my dismissal was at hand now. I nodded and with shoulders slumped, I made my way towards it. I placed my armload down in a chair adjacent to the couch and a few seconds later, removed my lab coat. I swallowed hard. Gabe didn’t strike me as a cruel man. I hope I'd judged him correctly. I just wanted this to be over as soon as possible.
“Where would you like it?”
As I finished speaking, Gabe turned around and leaned against his desk in a half-seated position. He frowned at me as he considered the question.
“Doesn’t matter,” he began. Lifting his chin, he gestured towards an arm on the sofa. “There’s fine.”
“Okay.”
Clutching my coat in my hand, I walked to the couch and draped it over the leather. I smoothed it with a final stroke before turning to face him once again. As I did, I swung my hands in front of my body, interlocking them just above my waist. Reaching down for my bracelet, I covered it with my hand and squeezed tight.
Gabe only looked at me in silence for a moment. I supposed he was used to this sort of thing… firing people. But of course, I wasn’t. My knees literally flexed and bowed as they threatened to give way beneath me. The moments dripped by in syrupy agony.
“Let’s talk, Fiona,” he said at last, as he gestured with a come hither motion.
I shuffled across the room. My steps felt as if I moved through quick drying cement.
Once I’d drawn to within about a foot of him, Gabe began to speak. “We need to talk about the situation here. With your position. You know that don’t you?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“Okay, good. This really isn’t something we need to be discussing in front of the rest of the team. You and I can handle it. All right?”
My mouth went dry. The slight wobble I’d experienced moments before threatened to transform into a complete collapse. This was really happening. Oh no, what was I going to do? What would I tell my grandmother? Nausea crept to the back of my throat, lacing my mouth with a sour taste.
Yet in spite of my internal distress, Gabe’s demeanor remained calm, unhurried. He held my gaze for a moment, confirming I’d heard his question a moment earlier. “Good. Okay then, we’ll get to that in a minute. But first, there’s something else we need to talk about, Fiona.”
I nodded, even though I was uncertain of what could be more important than my termination.
“I need to know exactly how committed you are to the company,” he began. Gabe flattened his hands against the edge of his desk, straightening himself into a standing position. “Are you willing to do whatever it takes to help Hawkins Biotech grow and succeed?”
Although I tried to mask it, I felt my face wrinkle with confusion. Why would Gabe ask me something like that when he just had me turn in my lab coat? Not to mention what happened in the lab with the video camera. Instead of responding, I stared at him as I tried to process his line of questioning.
“Fiona,” he said, snapping his fingers. “Hey. What the hell’s the matter with you?”
“Hmm?” I replied as muddled through my thoughts. “What?”
Gabe crossed his arms at his chest. “You aren’t gonna pass out again are you? The infirmary is closed for the day.”
“What? No. I just… I’m confused. What do you mean? Whatever it takes?”
He nodded. “Yeah. It’s a simple question. Are you willing to give everything to me? All you have? Yes or no? Everything about your future depends on the way you answer the question, Fiona.”
“Gabe, I… I don’t know what you’re talking about. Didn't you call me here to…?”
“Never get a straight answer from you do I?” Gabe said, cutting me off. “Hell, half the time I can’t tell whether you want to be working here or not.”
I looked away from him, tugging at my sleeves as I did. Where was all of this coming from? I’d never seen him behave this way.
“You’re always hiding aren’t you?” he said, as his tone grew in frustration. “Why Fiona? From me? What have I done to you except give you a job you’ve always wanted? I’ve been nothing but…”
Gabe bit his lip as he stopped himself mid-sentence and turned to one side, dragging his hand through his wavy brown locks. His jaw clenched and his upper body flexed beneath the fine fabric of his dress shirt. I can’t explain what happened to me next. But without reason, I found myself drawn to his anger. I was desperate, in an unexplainable way, to reach out and touch him. But I dared not. Not while he was in such a state. Instead, with every last bit of resolve I had, I said nothing… and waited.
Just then, Gabe raised his hand to his mouth as a thought occurred to him.
“Are you… a virgin, Fiona?”
As his words settled in, all the reasons I assumed I’d been summoned to Gabe’s office vanished into thin air. In its place a whole new set of concerns flooded my consciousness. I swallowed as I leaned my upper body away from him a fraction.
