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Lilly knocked twice, then waited, heart pounding. William answered the door, book in hand. “Hi Lilly.”
The pair hadn’t spoken outside of committee meetings in over a month, but Christine said they needed a meeting to start putting together the day-of plans since the carnival was less than three weeks away.
“Is Christine here yet?”
“She’s not coming. You really need a cell phone. She asked if we could reschedule for tomorrow. We tried sending you an email, but I’m sure you were working.”
“Yeah, this boss isn’t quite as lax on internet uses as my last one.” She smiled. “Sorry. Tomorrow’s not good for me, though.”
“Oh? Is there a better day this week?”
“Not really. I got a second job, and it’s most evenings.” She shifted her weight. “I’ll see if they’ll let me take it off, but it’s literally the second week and I’m not really in a position to ask for time off yet.”
“I thought you were getting enough from the one job?” Concern furrowed his brow.
“I went to see one of the guidance counselors at the college this last week and we went over the finances for school. I was banking enough to handle tuition, but I didn’t factor in books and supplies and all that. If I want to make my goal, I need almost double what I’ve got saved right now.”
“Did he talk to you about financial aide or scholarships?”
“Yeah, but until I’ve filed my taxes by myself, and not as a dependent, I won’t qualify and they’ll want my mom’s income. That’s why my goal was to start in the spring a year from now. Even then, I’ll probably make way too much to get any sort of help.”
The silence stretched. “I guess I’ll head out. If Christine can meet tomorrow, I say do it. You two can finish up the planning and just let me know what you need me to do.”
“Lilly. I’m sorry about—what happened. I shouldn’t have rushed out. It’s just that it’s been a while since I last kissed anyone, and even then, I don’t think I’ve ever been kissed like you kissed me.”
She watched the red creep up his face, fascinated. “Don’t worry about it. I get it. We all regret some of the choices we make in life.”
William coughed. “The thing is, I don’t regret it, but it’s not wise. You’re so young. There are so many opportunities for you to date men your age and find a relationship with someone on your level.”
She wanted to scream. “My level.” She chuckled under her breath instead, venting her annoyance. “What exactly is, my level, William? No, it’s okay, don’t answer that. It’s best to just pretend it didn’t happen. I’m good at pretending.”
He eyed her, probably hearing the bitterness in her tone. “Can we still work together on this project?”
“We have been for the last month, haven’t we? I could tell the minute you ended the kiss that you regretted it, so I already wrote it off. Just don’t worry about it. Send me an email with what you need me to do over the next week or so and I’ll get it done.”
She turned, not quite storming away.
* * *
Dear Lilly,
We missed you at the meeting. Two weeks and counting. Christine and I were wondering what your plans are for the day of and the day before. I know you’ve got two jobs now, and the carnival is on a Friday, so how will that fit into your schedule? If you’re available for the setup, Christine will not be and she wondered if you would be able to oversee the audio-visual team, and the front entrance decorating and setup. The subcommittee heads should have everything under control, but we all know there are last-minute challenges. If you can handle the front end, I’ll handle the back half.
If you can’t make it, don’t worry, I’m sure I can manage all of it, we just thought we’d ask. Do you have a cell phone yet? I’m sorely tempted to buy you a cheap prepaid just for the purposes of managing these next two weeks. It’s going to be hard doing it over email.
On a side note, I got the photo boards constructed and the faces cut out, but I could really use some help getting them painted, if you’re available? I’ll be working on it Saturday morning before the heat of the day.
I’m really sorry, Lilly. I feel like I ruined something great. I miss having you as a friend. I enjoyed our weekly planning meetings. Enough said. Come if you want to, if not, I understand.
Sincerely,
William Doughan.
Lilly read through it twice, debating. “Camille, do you know if they’ve approved vacation for next month yet?”
She shrugged, giving a gesture to let Lilly know she was still on a call. Lilly logged out and set down her headset. She traced through the call-center booths until she found someone not on their phone.
“Tim, did they approve vacation for next month yet?”
“Yes. Schedule’s up too.”
Lilly hurried toward the unused break room. She pulled out her familiar notebook and transferred her schedule, noting that she had not received permission for her requested days. Grumbling internally, she stopped at Sally’s office on her way out.
“Can you tell me why I wasn’t approved for my vacation request?”
Sally finished stuffing her computer into the carrying bag and looked up. “Sorry Lil. We approve vacation based on seniority, and a lot of people wanted one or both of those days off.”
“But it’s the first time I’ve asked for vacation since I started working here. On top of that, I put my request in three months ago.”
“I know. I’m sorry. It’s not a matter of how long ago you did it, it’s a matter of how many people want it off, and how many we need on calls that day. You picked one of the busy weekends, unfortunately. If you switch it to the next one we can probably re-work the schedule.”
“It has to be that weekend. I’m in charge of a fundraising event for a local charity. We’ve been working on it since before I started working for you and it’s that weekend only.”
“Oh! Did you write that on your request? That should have moved it up in priority. We always want to encourage community involvement.”
“So, you’ll grant the request?”
“No. I’m really sorry Lilly, I can understand how frustrating this must be, but my hands are tied by the company policy.”
“Can you come with me to Bart’s office to see if he’ll make an exception?” She moved aside to give Sally access to the hallway.
“He could help, but I doubt he will. He’s pretty stickler for the rules, and he usually requires some sort of tit-for-tat payment for his help. Anyway, I have to run today. You can always convince someone who’s not on shift to switch with you.”
Lilly’s shoulders dropped. She watched Sally hurry to the elevator and disappear, then turned her attention to the next level up.
“Bart?”
He grunted and continued typing.
Lilly waited until he’d finished before she tried again. “Uh, Bart, sir, can I have a word with you?”
“Sure.” He leaned back and gave her a smile. “Go ahead and shut the door.”
“I’d rather leave it open.”
A slight irritation flashed through his eyes. “Sit down and tell me what you need.”
“Well, sir, I turned in a vacation request a few months ago, and it’s for two weeks from now, but Sally said there were a lot of people requesting that day so I didn’t get it. The thing is, it’s for a charity fundraising event that I’m in charge of.” Her words spilled out fast, nerves and frustration combining.
“And you want me to override the rules and give you the day off anyway?”
“Well, yes, I guess that’s what I’m asking.”
“Why should I make an exception for you? If I do it for you more will ask, and rules are there for a reason.”
She watched him stand and close his own door, a strange nervousness in her stomach. There was a rumor that was completely unsubstantiated, and she didn’t like to listen to rumors, but—
Lilly licked her lips. “Well, company policy does encourage employees to involve themselves in community events, especially those related to non-profit organizations. It’s one of the reasons you hired me, and since this is of the main annual fundraisers for the charity I volunteer for, I thought—”
He came closer, settling in the seat next to hers. “You thought that might qualify for an exception?”
“Yes?”
He leaned forward, patting her knee, but when he stopped patting his hand lingered. “Lilly, I can’t emphasize enough the need for rules and consequences. We’ve found that the greatest success comes in obedience to the rules because the guidance is designed to create success. Does that make any sense?”
“Yes, sir, it does, but—”
“Tutut.” He lifted his other finger, leaning in further to touch it to her lips. “I think I can understand your position, and I want you to know that I sympathize with it. I’ve had many times in my life where I’ve had to sacrifice for the company. That said, I do think there’s a way we can use your reasoning to help defend the need to bend this rule, this time, but it’s going to take quite a lot of effort for me to re-work the numbers and convince my bosses that letting you have the day off isn’t going to cost us a lot of money.”
The lilt at the end suggested he wanted a response, or some sort of reaction. She struggled not to shove off his hand and break his nose in the process. “I can work an extra shift, or come in late that night to cover the midnight shift if you need me to.”
“You’ll be exhausted after two full days of working, won’t you?” His expression seemed concerned, but his eyes were predatory. “I think we can find a much easier solution.”
His hand slid up a few inches.
Lilly had hoped for the best; that the rumors were unfounded, but she could see now that they weren’t. She stood, knocking her chair backward and dropping his hand in the process. “Thank you anyway, sir, but I’ll just see if I can switch shifts that day. I appreciate your concern.”
She attempted to leave but he stood and blocked her path. “Lilly, what’s wrong? Did I make you feel uncomfortable? I’m really sorry. Physical contact is one of my communication methods. I’ve had a few others misunderstand my intentions, and if that’s the case here, I’m sorry for that. I just want to help you get what you want.”
“Please step aside.” She kept her arms at her side, afraid her RAD training might get her into trouble.
“Let’s just take a moment to calm down. Take a seat and we’ll talk.”
“No, we won’t talk. I’ll handle this, it was a mistake to come to you alone.”
“Lilly,” he admonished, “be reasonable. We’re both adults, we can handle this in a mature way.”
Lilly stared at the man. She’d guess he was something like thirty-five or forty. He had a wife and a couple of kids. Their pictures graced his desk. Maybe she was overreacting. Maybe he just had an over friendly way. “Alright, sir, what method are you thinking for me to get those days off?”
“Look, I can tell you’re a bit worked up about this. Again, I apologize for the misunderstanding. How about we meet after my work tonight in the bar downstairs and we’ll put together a letter of request that I can take to my bosses. If we phrase it right, I think we have a good chance of getting you the time off that you need. I’ll help you in any way that I can. Does six sound good?”
“Yeah, okay.” Today was Wednesday. Maybe she could get Pam to come with her. “I’ll meet you tonight at six.”
Because they employed a lot of college students, the call center wasn’t far from the college itself. She made it in minutes and stalked Pamela’s schedule of classes until she located her friend. The class ended fifteen minutes later.
Pamela caught sight of her as she exited with a small pack of friends. “Oh! Hey, Lilly. Did you come for me today, because we’ve got mid-terms at the end of the week and I don’t have a ton of time to play. I can probably grab a cup of coffee or something?”
Lilly bit back her request. “No. I mean, yes, I did come to see you, but it’s nothing important, I just wanted to say hi. If you’ve got midterms, that’s way more important. Maybe we can hang out next week?”
She flipped open her scheduler. “Next Wednesday is good, about this time?”
“Sure.” Lilly forced on a smile and waved as Pamela caught back up with her friends. Now what?
“Lilly?” Professor Doughan exited the classroom Pamela had just come from. Of course.
“Hi William.”
“How have you been?”
“Perfect. Couldn’t be better.”
“What’s wrong?” He switched his books to one hand, lifting the other only to drop it again.
“Nothing.” She huffed. There was no one else. “William, are you busy tonight?”
“No, did you want to do something?”
“Can you come with me to the bar below my work tonight at six? I’ll buy you a round or something to make it worth your while.”
“A bar?” His nose wrinkled. “I don’t really drink.”
“Oh.” Of course not.
She sorted through the short list of people who might be willing to help her with this, but there really wasn’t another option aside from cancelling the meeting. And it did relate to his position as co-chair, sort of. Lilly sighed.
“William, I need help.”
“Come to my office.” He gestured with his head, re-positioned his load and headed down the hall to a tucked away nook of several faculty offices for the accounting department. “Take a seat, please. I don’t have another lecture today, so I’ll do my best to help with whatever you need.”
“It’s not an emergency or anything.” She couldn’t help laughing at his grave expression. She wondered momentarily what he thought she was going to ask. “See, I turned in my vacation request months ago, but the company policy is to grant vacation on the basis of seniority, and so they denied it.”
“Vacation to where?”
“No, sorry, for the carnival dates.”
“Ah, I’m with you. Please continue.” He settled into his chair and turned to face her.
“So, I tried to talk to my boss about it and she said there was nothing she could do. I went to her boss next, and he suggested that there might be something he could do, but—” She struggled, not wanting to poison the well, but needing to explain why she wanted William there. “If I said I just don’t feel comfortable around Bart, would that sound wrong?”
“Has he ever done anything inappropriate to you or anyone you know?”
“Not that I’m aware of, but there are rumors.” She held up a quick hand. “I try not to listen to rumors, but then when I went to talk to him, he was just a little too—touchy—for my level of comfort.”
“What exactly did he do?” William’s expression was stony.
“He, uh, touched my knee, and put a finger of my lips to tell me to stop talking once, and then he leaned forward and his hand moved up a little higher. That’s it. I stood up and told him that I’d figure it out on my own. Then he gave me a whole spiel about how he realizes sometimes people misunderstand, and that he didn’t mean to make me feel uncomfortable. He offered to meet me this evening at six at the bar below my work so we could put together a letter of request to his bosses asking for an exception.”
He listened, jaw grinding, and finally slapped the arm of his chair. “You want me there so he doesn’t try anything?”
“Yes. I’m not suggesting that he will, but I think precaution is the best policy.”
“Done. I would cancel class to be there with you, Lilly.”
Relief flooded through her, relaxing a knot in her shoulders. “Thank you. Oh, that makes me feel so much better.”
“Would you like to get dinner with me before we head over?” He glanced at his watch. “The schools’ cafeteria area has about six different countries represented – loosely represented, I might add.”
“Sure.” Lilly felt buoyant.
William dedicated himself to making her laugh, cracking very lame accounting jokes for most of their walk over to the cafeteria, and then peppering her with questions on all of the time he’d missed over the last month. She had to fill up her water twice before the meal was over.
They opted to drive together, and Lilly led the way into the bar searching for Bart among the crowd of after-hours drinkers.
Wending her way through the growing crowd to his table, she held out her hand. “Hi Bart, I hope we’re not late.”
He smiled back, pulling out the chair that was conveniently located next to his, and out of proportion with the rest of the table’s chairs. “Come and sit down.”
William slipped between them and settled in the too-near chair, leaving Lilly to take the one across from Bart. She wanted to giggle at the affronted look on her boss’s face. “Bart, this is William. He’s the co-chair on the committee with me. I thought I’d bring him along to help us write this out. I know you said it was important that we get it right and impress them.”
“Yeah, of course.” He seemed nonplussed, dropping into his chair with a defeated air. “So, uh, I forgot my papers on my desk. Let me go up and grab those and I’ll be right back.”
He stood and William stood as well, blocking his escape. “Let’s be clear, Bart. Lilly told me about your meeting this afternoon. I’m wondering if we even need to go through the effort of a formal written lerule or whether we can just end the conversation right now? She needs those two days off. I think you can make that happen?”
Bart met his gaze, his face paler than normal. “Yes, I think I can handle it without a written letter.”
“Oh, I’m glad to hear that.” William patted the man on the back and Lilly saw her boss flinch. “She said you communicate through touch. So do I.” He patted again. “I really appreciate the opportunity to meet you. Lilly has told me some great stories about working in the call center. I know she enjoys it. I hope I continue to hear great stories.”
Bart nodded, getting the message. “Yeah, okay. It was good to meet you, too. Don’t worry about a thing, Lilly. I’ll take care of everything and you can consider yourself off for those two days.”
Lilly followed William out of the bar and they got into the car in silence. As they hit the edge of campus, she finally spoke. “You didn’t need to do that.”
“Men like him can’t be allowed to think their behavior is okay.”
“No, but if it’s not me, he’s just going to prey on someone else.”
“What are you suggesting?”
“Giving him enough rope to make his own noose.”
“I’d prefer not where you’re involved.” He clenched and unclenched a fist over the shifter.
“Thanks for that. I guess you have the answer to your email now. I’ll take the front, you take the back?”
William’s ominous aura broke. “And Saturday?”
The complete shift from murderous to excited kid made her laugh. “Yeah, okay, I’ll be there Saturday.”
“Okay. Come hungry and early. I’ll make us breakfast and then we can start work.”
“You don’t have to feed me.”
“Are you saying that you’d eat breakfast before you came over if I hadn’t said anything?”
“Well, no, but.”
“But nothing. I’m feeding you. Get used to the idea.” He started to open his door, then stopped. “Lilly, I’m really glad you asked me to come today.”
“I’m really glad I did too.” She felt herself blushing and glared toward her steering wheel until he shut the door.
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