This is a continuation to Changes Chapter 1. To appreciate this story I suggest you read the first part.
Thank you for your feedback and comments on my first submission. It did encourage me to continue. As always, I'm open to criticism.
This is a slow building story. I'd ideally like to submit it in one part. But that will take me forever. So I'm aiming for one chapter a week.
*****
Heather was at the AutoTech office at 10:45 on Wednesday. Dressed in a clean cut dark pants, a fit to form blazer and almost flat shoes, she paced just outside the entrance waiting for Vanessa. She wasn't a fan of high heels, always opting for practical and comfortable shoes. Catching her reflection in the window of a parked car, she instinctively patted down her hair. She realized she was fidgety and stopped to take a deep breath.
Before any important meeting she seemed to have a whole lot of nervous energy. Heather enjoyed that. She knew that the day she went into a meeting with her heart not pounding in her ears would be a day to reevaluate her job. She wanted to do well. All of last evening had been spent preparing. Going over the slides Steve had sent, thinking of how to handle any difficult questions Tim may direct at them followed by a long, relaxing bath. She'd retired early and had hit the gym before the meeting.
Several deep breaths had helped her get her telltale nervous restlessness under control. She turned around in time to see Vanessa walking towards her. Heather raised her hand to get Vanessa's attention and joined her at the entrance to the building which housed AutoTech's office.
"Good Morning, Vanessa."
"Hey, Heather. Not a very good morning, I'm afraid."
"Oh." Heather's brows furrowed as she focused on keeping up with Vanessa as they made their way towards the elevators. "Is everything alright?"
"Jules is sick," Vanessa sighed, referring to her 4 year old daughter. "Bad chest congestion. She was up all night. Which means I was up all night."
"Oh that's bad. You really didn't have to be here, Vanessa. I could have met Tim myself." Just as she said this, Heather realized maybe Vanessa didn't think she could handle this herself. "I mean, I..."
Seeing Heather falter, Vanessa reached out and touched her arm. Heather looked down at where Vanessa's hand touched her arm just above her elbow. She needed to confirm that what she felt was in fact Vanessa's hand. She looked back up and met Vanessa's eyes. They looked sad for a second before Vanessa blinked and smiled gently. "I didn't doubt that you could handle this meeting single handedly, Heather. You've proved yourself on several occasions. Since Tim was expecting both of us, I didn't want to bail."
Heather barely heard what Vanessa said. She felt flushed. Since she had started working at Bridge, she hadn't had physical contact with her boss even once. She couldn't even think of a time they'd shook hands!
Registering the concerned look on Vanessa's face, she nodded, acknowledging what her boss had said. Vanessa gave her arm a light squeeze and withdrew her hand. Heather's arm tingled where Vanessa's fingers had lingered. It must have been for just a few seconds, but had felt longer. She'd had to look away from Vanessa. She's almost felt the need to move her arm away, to break contact. Thankfully Vanessa had withdrawn her hand before her neurons could fire.
They both realized they'd stopped right in the middle of the corridor. Simultaneously glancing at their phones to check the time, they moved towards the elevators.
"This is us," Vanessa said, getting Heather's attention as the elevator dinged to a stop and the doors slid open on the 11th floor.
They were almost at Autotech's office. She had to clear her head. Heather couldn't go into the meeting in this head space. She took the thirty seconds it took them to walk to the reception to focus. She needed her wits about her. This was a crucial meeting.
Later that evening Heather finally had some time to revisit the morning's events. She'd come home after a long day, picking up some soup and grilled chicken from the cafeteria since she knew she wouldn't have the energy to cook after getting home.
The meeting had gone better than expected. Having Vanessa there was a huge help. Vanessa Bridge was born for sales. She'd immediately put Tim at ease and before long they were discussing last night's game, politics and their kids. Vanessa had deftly steered the conversation towards the agenda, run him through the slides they'd prepared and in forty five minutes they were done. Agreeing to meet for drinks on Friday they left with an annual contract almost in the bag.
Heather had played her part to perfection as well. During the meeting she had also realized how much she could learn from her boss. She really did struggle with small talk and breaking the ice. Heather knew her work and was always prepared, but effortlessly connecting with people never came to her naturally. Perhaps she could have a meeting with Vanessa one of these days and get some tips.
After the meeting Vanessa had rushed back home to be with her daughter. Heather had met Jules a few times when she'd accompanied her mother to office. She was a very well-mannered child. As long as she had a book to occupy her, she needed no supervision.
Heather knew that Vanessa was divorced but knew little more than that. She was a very private person. Being a single parent while managing Bridge must be tough, Heather thought. She knew Vanessa's sister helped out a lot. At least she had some family to fall back on.
Her thoughts went back to her reaction to Vanessa's touch. Physical contact beyond a handshake was enough to make Heather uncomfortable. She wasn't like this around her very close friends, but with strangers she always maintained her distance. That didn't explain Heather's reaction. It hadn't been just discomfort. It was almost as if she didn't know how to handle a reassuring touch. She thought back to the last time someone she wasn't very close to had held her and she knew that if it had happened, she didn't remember.
In, fact thinking about it she realized the last time she'd hugged or touched someone was when she'd visited her best friend a couple of months back. Her physical contact with people was limited to a handshake. Not a comforting thought. "Way to go Heather, you're so dying alone." She thought to herself. "Remember not to ever get cats."
Having finished her dinner, she cleared up. She wouldn't dwell on what had happened before the meeting. She told herself she was making a big deal of nothing. But she wouldn't have expected something even close to this from Vanessa. She wasn't cold, but she was always professional. A reassuring gesture as simple as today morning's was not something she'd expect from Vanessa.
She picked up Jaya, the book she had made very little progress with in the last month. She let it absorb her, diverting her thoughts till she dozed off.
Friday evening Vanessa and Heather were meeting Tim for drinks. Another thing that had surprised Heather was that Vanessa had suggested it. She'd later told Heather that it would give them a chance to discuss commercials with Tim in an informal setting. It always helped to get an idea of budgets and work around that. Another tip to make note of.
Heather had dressed in black opaque leggings and an olive green wide necked top. She wore a rough cut Lapis lazuli pendant the weight of which made it snuggle between her breasts. She wore minimal make up. A hint of eyeliner and pale pink gloss.
She hadn't check in with Vanessa since the meeting. They would have to have a quick chat before the evening Tim to ensure they were on the same page.
The first few hours at work were a blur. She ensured she was on top of all her follow ups and made a note of things she needed to get done next week as well. While munching on her salad at lunch Heather realized that she had not noticed Vanessa come in. She finished lunch and walked towards Vanessa's office. Her boss was on the phone and waved her in.
"... very helpful. Yes, I'll be there to pick her up Monday morning. And, Joe, if she's not doing well, please call me."
Heather guessed that she was on the phone with her ex-husband. She also gathered that Jules must be spending the weekend with her dad.
"Ok. Take care, bye."
