He looked over the people as they slowly sauntered in and took their seats. Surely none of them suspected the secret lives that Kim and Marcia lived, which made him wonder what secrets his other co-workers kept hidden. Who was having secret extra marital affairs? Secret workplace affairs? Who was secretly a swinger? An exhibitionist? Who enjoyed being tied up or dressing up like a freak on the weekends? He marveled how you never really knew someone. So many people have a public persona and face they wear, but behind closed doors, their true selves are revealed. Like how Kim and Marcia publicly played the part of the corporate professional, but secretly they harbored a raw sexual desire and a sexually submissive streak. They longed for a strong man to take charge of them and sexually own them. It's how Nick had managed to take over their lives so easily, and he couldn't help but wonder if all women were so easily influenced.
Nick himself was pretty sure his coworkers largely viewed him as a harmless, clueless recent college grad still learning how to navigate the adult world. Marcia still didn't realize that her Master was Nick, the newest worker in her own department. He had played the part of the nice guy at work, giving her a shoulder to cry on in her most vulnerable state, and she had already confessed her innermost secrets to him. He wondered how she would feel when she finally learned his true identity and the extent to which he controlled her life. He knew that time would come sooner or later, although he was satisfied to have Marcia view him as an innocent trusted friend in the meantime.
Nick sauntered through the crowd and snaked his way to an empty seat toward the middle of the room. He was content to blend in with the crowd, but he wanted to make sure he had a good view for the town hall, especially for his two slaves that would be center stage for the event.
*****
Marcia took notice of Nick entering the room. She smiled at her newest employee as he took a seat, and he returned a smile. He was proving to be a keen worker and fast learner, quickly earning her trust, both personally and professionally.
People were filing in and taking seats. She saw so many familiar faces, many she had worked with for years and years. Then, Marcia saw Ted Gaines, the VP of Operations, walking up the main aisle and approaching the front stage where she was. She panicked, unsure how to feel. They had shared a torrid affair that recently ended after her Master began blackmailing her with evidence of her illicit affair. She thought she should feel guilt over ending their affair, or at least awkwardness, and yet, she felt... nothing.
Both she and Ted were married with kids, and her Master's threats to expose her affair were enough to scare her straight, and she effectively ghosted Ted from that point on. Marcia became so embroiled in the relationship with her Master, she had not stopped to think how odd it was that Ted never even reached out to her. And then a thought occurred to her. What if Ted was behind the blackmail? She felt so stupid; how could she not have seen it? Ted was the only one with all of her private pictures and videos that she had sent him. Surely it must've been him behind everything the whole time. And yet, it didn't make any sense. She had met her blackmailer, her Master, last weekend, and even though he wore a mask to hide his face, he was definitely shorter and younger than Ted. And yet, Marcia couldn't shake the nagging feeling that somehow Ted had some kind of connection to her Master.
When Ted came within 10 feet of the front of the stage, something caught his eyes and stopped him in his tracks. Marcia looked in the direction of Ted's gaze and saw Kim glaring at him in an impatient, foreboding pose with her hands on her hips. Ted seemed dispirited by Kim's look of disapproval, and he turned away like a puppy with its tail between its legs.
Marcia took note of what she had just witnessed. She knew that Ted had been promoted alongside Kim, and they had worked closely together for years. It seemed that Kim was punishing Ted with her gaze. Her glare was intensely mean, almost belittling, and Marcia was left to wonder if maybe something was broken in Kim's relationship with Ted. Did Kim know about her affair with Ted and confront him about it? Or what if Kim was having her own secret affair with Ted? The possibilities frightened her, and Marcia suddenly felt unsure about everything.
*****
Ted cursed under his breath. He had abruptly cut off communications with Marcia after Kim confronted him about his affair last week. He felt guilty about effectively ghosting Marcia, although he was hurt and confused that Marcia never once reached out to him about it. Contrary to what he told her, Ted knew he would never leave his family to be with Marcia, but he had grown intensely enamored with Marcia.
Seeing her now, he hoped to at least say hello if not outright clear the air, but Kim caught sight of him approaching Marcia and gave him a death stare. Ever since Kim had confronted him about his affair, she had effectively emasculated him after threatening to expose his affair and ruin his career.
Then a thought occurred to Ted. He had never questioned how Kim obtained the evidence of his affair, but he suddenly realized there was a logical explanation. He shook his head, wondering how he failed to put together the puzzle pieces sooner. Marcia must have gone to Kim about their affair and given her the evidence. It was the only logical way that Kim could have obtained the pictures and videos. And it also explained why Marcia had not contacted him ever since.
The more Ted thought about it, the more he was sure that Marcia was behind it all. The only thing he couldn't understand was why. Unless Marcia was also somehow secretly behind the blackmail that Kim was punishing him with. The suggestion seemed ludicrous on the surface, although he couldn't outright dismiss the possibility since nothing about his current situation added up.
As he took a seat near the front for the Town Hall, Ted couldn't help thinking how hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. He thought his relationship with Marcia, although clandestine, was fiery and passionate, and he had no inkling that Marcia harbored any dissatisfaction in their relationship, so he couldn't understand why Marcia would ruin it all by revealing their affair to Kim. He shook his head in confusion, thinking how a man could never understand the workings of the mind of a woman.
*****
Marcia looked out at the sea of faces seated before her. Kim was standing near the podium on the stage right. Behind the stage were three large screens, and in the center of the stage were seats for the town hall speakers to sit comfortably when they were not presenting.
As Kim stepped to the podium to begin the town hall, one of the event coordinators signaled that Marcia and the other presenters should all take a seat using the chairs on the stage facing out to the audience. Each of the speakers would take turns making their respective presentations followed by a question-and-answer session afterward.
As Kim spoke, the slideshow presentation was on the main screen in the middle, while the screens on the side showed close up video of the speaker for those seated farther back. For Marcia, the whole situation seemed surreal. She had always been one of the faces in the crowd. She still felt like the socially awkward girl she was when she first came to work at Geneco over a decade ago straight out of college. Only now, here she was sharing the stage with senior VP's and the CEO. She couldn't help but feel out of place, as if she didn't really belong, as if she didn't really deserve her seat up on the stage.
She scanned over the audience and saw so many colleagues and friends. As her gaze drifted back to the stage, she glanced behind Kim and was shocked by the image on the large side screen of Kim speaking. Marcia tried to suppress the look of surprise on her face, but Kim's nipples were prominently poking through her blouse in high-definition resolution for the entire company to see. It didn't take much additional scrutiny to see the dark outline of her areolas also showing her blouse. The stage lights were focused on the podium and almost seemed to shine through the turquoise material of her blouse like an X-ray making what lay underneath plainly visible.
Suddenly, Marcia realized that might be what she looked like up there in a few minutes. From her seat on the stage, Marcia could clearly see Marcia's nipples poking through. Once you saw it, you couldn't unsee it, she realized. She was sure people in the first few rows could also see it, although it would likely have been unnoticeable to everyone else if the video on the large side screens wasn't focused on Kim, making it plain as day for all in the audience that their CEO had not worn a bra that day.
Marcia thought it was strange that Kim would forego wearing a bra for such a large, public event, although who was she to complain since she was in the same situation? Bras were terribly uncomfortable at times, so she understood why some women didn't bother wearing them, but it still surprised her that Kim would adopt that practice for such a public moment. Kim was always the consummate corporate professional and seeing her make such an obvious fashion faux pas that detracted from her air of respectability was a jarring sight. Maybe Kim just didn't realize how badly her nipples would poke through her blouse and how obvious it would appear on a large screen. Marcia felt sorry for Kim, assuming that it was just a gross wardrobe miscalculation on her part. She knew how crude and cruel some people were, and she saw more than a few people pointing questioningly at the screens showing Kim. If Kim was aware or concerned in any manner, she didn't let it show. She effortlessly marched through her presentation in her typically cold, efficient manner. Aside from her wardrobe indiscretion, Kim appeared to be her normal authoritative presence.
Marcia felt a mix of terror and arousal to realize it would soon be her standing in front of the audience with her nipples prominently on display. She felt butterflies in her stomach, but she couldn't tell if they signaled her dismay or excitement. Maybe it was both. She wondered all over again who her Master was. She saw Ted seated in the front row. She strongly suspected he was somehow behind her whole situation, although she couldn't quite figure out the details. She caught sight of Nick seated in the sea of employees, and it brought a thin smile to her face; he was like her emotional safety net at the moment, what with her crumbling marriage and all. And then she was left to wonder about her mysterious Master. She still didn't know his identity. Was he somehow watching? In a few moments it wouldn't matter; she had a presentation to give.
