Mystery Crush

             Rose  

“ shut up jauna”  bemused, i toss my phone back on the bed, i shouldn't have told you the first time you know” she giggles over this phone, “ hey!, don't blame me, you told me you had no feeling for your boss “

   “ I know , i don't,  was just_”

   “ shut up, if you had no feeling why were  you so heated up in a car” she said, guilt flushed over me, “ it's just my mind , nothing more”,

    “ well your mind has always been smarter but your body has been dumb you know” she said, shoving some  root beers in her mouth

    “ i want to go to bed, thanks for making it worse” i said ending the call as i fell back on my bed devastated, how stupid of me thinking  he was trying  to kiss me, fuck!,  my hand wrapped around my phone, I am sure he was  aware I was eagerly waiting for something out of the blue, that’s why he halted, tossing my phone,  it fell on the floor, the sound of shattered glass got me.

   A broken heart and screen as well, isn't that great?  

                                ************

    “You can do this rose , you can do this”, i assured myself as i took the lift up, to the last floor, haven't been this nervous, in my entire life, the door splits in two , as  the foyer comes in view, “ hey camila” i said waving at my recent office besty. She beams at me.

   “ hey american”  her accent makes me giggles, she’s sound like sofía vergara from the modern family, my recent nickname ‘American’, still sounds as amusing as the first day she called me that, which still baffles me,  “ hey, you look nice”  I said, she blushed then back at her computer, “ you don't look bad yourself you know” she looks around then at me.

   “ seems boss won't be coming in today” she whispered, my hearts skips a beat, did i make that happen, my mind wanders  to yesterday's incident , 

 “ uhm, maybe he has something to do ” i said clearing my throat , as I felt a weird uneasy lump settling in my throat. 

     “ Well I got work to do Camila. See you at lunch break” i said, walking towards my office , can't help but wonder if i had been the reason why he doesn't want to come. Did I act too foolish, I did say he's weird.

      damn it damn it !

    Slamming my hands on my forehead, get your shit together before you get yourself prematurely fired

    Taking my seat as I  starting my day with the files, then some assignment, i had left earlier, not so much, maybe i could get the afternoon off , if i am done with this,  my mind is a mess.

    “ good morning “ i hear a voice sending me yelping up from my seat 

   “ hey jose” he had his  hands on the desk, beaming at me, “ guess who got a mystery crush” he said popping a card and a box in my hands  its all red, and rosy, “ open it” he urges, opening the box first i see a set or bourbons,lined up.

 “ Who would send me chocolates?”

  “ I don’t know, one of your Peruvian crushes, maybe me” he winks at me, I would have been quick to believe, he had been the one who just have sent it, but it wasn’t Jose at all.

  “ That question was rhetoric” I replied, he grins then points at the card, “ the card” , i see a number i am not so familiar with.

    ”uhm strange”    

“ what does it say?” 

   “ hey uhm Asher!'' Asher stood before me, his face crossed, as he stared at the gift then at me, “ hmm… good, uhm”  words fail me, “ be in my office the next ten minutes” he said then  walking past us,  jose pops his eyes at me, giving a what the hell just happened kinda look, he didn’t specify which one of us would be seeing him in ten minutes.

    Thought of  the unknown makes me shudder, as i look at the card, then at asher, who had just settled in his chair, and just then the lights went off, he's back, the dark god is back, “ guess he had a bad day” jose said, looking at the dark glass wall, then at me.

   “ call the number and get back at me, would you?” he said, passing a wink, “ don't forget our lunch break” he yelled from a distance, “ i won't! ” I replied 

    Ten minutes past, i had set an alarm for ten minutes at the dot, and it stopped four minutes ago, but my feet wouldn’t just stand, as i stare at the glass wall, i have this feeling he is staring directly at me, but i can't just put my fingers on it, what else will he be doing in the dark, if not staring?.

    Just get this over with , standing up from my chair, I brace my thoughts, what's the worst that can happen?.

   *********************

  “The  company would be having our anniversary in thirty days, and after that, you would choose if you want to resign “ he said staring blankly at me, “ 30 days?” , he doesn't reply, i shouldn’t have asked that's a stupid question.

   “ uhm ok”

 “ you may leave now”

  Walking out of his office, my heart beats frantically , 30 days to work?I should be happy that I finally have a date I would be leaving, but I don’t feel happy, it feels like a countdown the moment he said it. 

   Taking a seat, the card comes into view, who might it be from, is  Jauna messing around?She is probably out of control, any slight opportunity she might be the one, I would break hell loose, stretching my hands on the table in search of my phone but it wasn’t there.

  Damn

 I had broken it earlier.

  Picking up the landline, i dial the number on the  card, 

 “ uhm hello axel lopez on the line”

   “ axel?”

   “ hey rose, i had been expecting you call a long while ago,”

   “ you sent the gift”, looking at the boxes, totally baffled. 

   “ quite old fashioned i know, but it's just an apology for not seeing you off yesterday i had uhm, _”

   “ No worries, thanks for the chocolate” I replied, totally uneasy. I didn't expect all of this all of a sudden. 

    “ do you mind hanging out  later today, maybe i could get the chance to see you again, and apologize properly this time’’ he said , 

“I don't really know, …” I replied,

   What are you doing? Rose, you have less work to finish, you have the afternoon off , go out and make the most of it!! .

   “ Ok, I will take that as a solid yes, I will call you later this evening, bye?”, he said, ending the call.

  “ wait_”

 I  had forgotten to tell him, my phone had an issue, I should probably get it fixed.

    My Face fell on my palm, as I screamed so loud even I couldn't hear it. It's a shitty day and I know it .

    The landline rings again,  reaching out for it, “ hello?’’z 

  “ come to my office now”