It was all just supposed to be an innocent game. I had just finished my first week at my new job, one I actually enjoyed. I was just an intern that spent most of my day filing paperwork and running errands, but this job had potential. For once I was not working some retail or telemarketing job
.
I grabbed a hot chocolate from a nearby coffee shop my coworkers had recommended and was heading towards Central Station to catch a bus home. That’s where I saw him. He was leaving the same building I worked in, one of many massive mirrored high-rises all over the downtown area. Don't get me wrong, there were quite a few suits sprinkled amongst the jeans and t-shirts of the Friday evening crush. But, he seemed to stand out. At first I thought I was simply imagining things. Yet, as I drew closer, he seemed to me like a predator amongst prey compared to the people rushing past him on the sidewalk.
His dark blue pinstripe suit was perfectly tailored to his tall lean frame, as I watched he shrugged out of his jacket and flung it over his shoulder, finger hooked into it. He could have been in a commercial, he looked so good. I was approaching him fast and I could now see his ice blue eyes that went so well with his perfectly tanned skin and dark, almost black hair. He glanced up at the sky, no doubt drawing the conclusion that it will rain shortly from the dark overcast sky overhead. He ran his fingers through his expensively cut hair and that's when I saw it, the ring.
It was beautiful in a positively medieval way. A ring made of white gold, not of marriage but something different, yet no less significant. Three bands of white gold intertwined around it, and a deep, blood red gem crest the top.
This ring simply did not fit the image that he had created with the suit, tie and briefcase. It made him rather intriguing. I decided to play a silly game I used to play with friends, I would follow him for a while, to see what he did and where he went. Just to see if his actions were as interesting as that ring. Having decided to become his temporary stalker I slowed to a stop and pretended to inspect myself in one of the mirrored panels near him. I watched as he began to walk down the street in no particular hurry. I tried to stay half a block behind him so as not to be spotted. He simply strolls. Occasionally glancing in store windows but never straying from his path. Probably just heading home, I assume, how boring.
He gets to a cross walk and stops. I slow my steps not wanting to draw too near and give the game away, but the light does not change nearly fast enough and I am soon standing next to him. As the light signals to walk I glance up and watch as he glances away from me down the street then toward me. He seems to be looking at me now, but then I realize that he is looking past me in that way strangers do. Then his vision comes back and he looks down to notice me. I give a small impersonal smile and cross the street. As I step off the curb he steps out with me.
"They call you Darling in the office, don't they?" He asks. His tone is only slightly questioning. I stare blankly at him.
"Excuse me?" I am not quite grasping that he knows my name.
"You are the intern aren't you?" He presses. Did he notice me following him? It couldn't be, I
had barely been with him for two blocks.
"Um, yes. And yes, they call me Darling. It's a family name." I try not to stutter. We cross the street and are fast approaching the ultra expensive high-rise residential area. I should have turned instead of crossing if I were going to go catch my bus. I was also beginning to think I should not have started this game in the first place.
"I didn't think anyone was in the office when I left. It's Friday, I expect everyone to leave at five." His voice is deep and soothing, as though he were coaxing me to talk. And I suppose he was. I let out a small chuckle.
"Everyone did leave at five. I grabbed a drink at the coffee shop across the street. I was just heading home.” He glanced around at the surrounding buildings.
"You live here?" He inquires. I almost laugh again. One month’s rent here could very well be my entire year’s salary as an intern.
"No, no I live a bit farther down." I tell him. For some reason I do not want him to know of my slum apartment on the south side. "I just like to walk a bit before heading home." I add, hoping to give credibility to why I am in this area. His ring hand rubs his chin, momentarily distracting me as I examine it up close.
"Many of the places around here are quite expensive. I was not aware we paid our interns quite so much. Where do you live anyway?" There is an inquisitive look in his eyes. I can feel his icy gaze piercing into me.
"Oh, not too far. It only takes a few minutes for me to get there." I try not to laugh outright at that bald-faced lie. I takes forty minutes by bus to get anywhere near my neighborhood. I am warming up to this fantasy life tale I am spinning. The look he keeps giving me suggests he isn't buying it. I don't mind. He'll never bother to verify my facts. I am just an intern and he probably wont remember me after this conversation is over.
"It only takes you a few minutes to walk to your place from here?" He drawls. I smile, deciding to throw a little truth in.
"Oh, no, I catch a bus at Central Station a few blocks away." His eyebrow rises a bit at my answer. I give him my best innocent smile.
"I suppose you passed your turn because you enjoy a walk before you head home?"
"Yes, I walk to the bus station." I am beginning to become unnerved by his constant questioning. As we continue talking we approach what I assume is his building. He then stops and takes my hand. I try to take a step back but he holds on.
"I realize that I know your name but you do not know who I am." He speaks in that soothing deep way again. "Craig Masterson, Vice President of Acquisitions."
"Well, nice to meet you." I try to pull my hand away without coming across as trying to run. His hands are soft to the touch but strong and seem reluctant to let go. I jerk a little harder, freeing my limb.
"I really must be going now. See you in the office on Monday." I stammer and begin to turn.
"What stop do you get off at?" He asks all of a sudden. "I try to stall.”
"Excuse me?"
"Your bus stop, where is it?" He seems rather insistent now. I decide to outright lie.
"Ah, j-just past Park and 49th. Why do you ask?" he looks directly at me, eyes not wavering as a I stammer out an answer. "I really have to run." I repeat.
"It's going to be pouring within minutes. Let me call you a cab." He offers, the soul of discretion now.
"I can't afford a cab that far!" I blurt out without thinking, "I will just catch my bus,. I really have to go before they stop running." I try to cover my error with babble but he is not having it.
"That far? I thought it was only a few minutes by bus. It will be no more than ten dollars by cab and anyone who can live within a few minutes from here can certainly afford a cab." He stares into my now panicky eyes. I simply want to get away. I decide to change tactics.
"Why so many questions? Have I done something wrong?" My chin goes up and I level my gaze.
"Darling, just past 49th and Park there are many buildings, none of which are residential. Why are you lying to me?"
"I live a little beyond that. I have to go." I turn and begin to head back the way I had come. Just wanting to go catch my bus and get home.
"Darling, come back here." I hear behind me. Not a request but an order. I ignore it and continue walking.
"Interns are easy to find." I freeze in my tracks with a gasp. "Some practically beg to work for this company. All they are waiting for is an opening." His voice taunts behind me. I swing around.
"You can DO that!" I cry, outraged.
