Pregnant Pause [H.S]

Chapter 17

Eyes

I'd helped Fitz to shape up her resume, but she appeared to be studying it, muttering the finer details of her past experience to herself as she sat on a stool at the counter. I stood on the opposite side, shoveling cereal into my mouth as fast as I could.

It was the first day of our product launch and I knew it was going to be a long one. In fact, the next several weeks promised longer hours and plenty of stress. I wasn't exactly looking forward to it, but at least I had a few days of vacation surrounding Fitz's birthday.

"What are you doing?" I asked her after swallowing the last mouthful of cereal. I'd been raised reprimanded for rudeness, but I tipped the bowl and drank the milk straight from it anyway.

"I have an interview today," she said.

I frowned. "You do?"

She nodded matter-of-factly as I racked my brains to recall if she'd mentioned this. I remembered nothing of it.

It was true that things had been tense with us ever since the heat wave. We'd become even stiffer after the conversation surrounding a loan for her brother. But I still told her the everyday happenings of my life, and I thought she'd been doing the same.

"What are you interviewing for?"

"Technically nothing. It's a Skype interview. A meeting, actually. It's with someone at York who'll give me some information on courses. Liam set it up."

"Liam?" I asked, ears pricking. I began to wash my bowl, nodding to myself. "That's good. He's got lots of scholarly connections. It's smart to be in touch with him."

I glanced in her direction to find her rolling her eyes, a bored smile tugging at her lips. Eyes still focused on the screen, she said, "Shut up."

I shrugged. "What?"

She gave me a pointed glare when I turned off the tap. "As if you're surprised. I know you were the one who urged him to offer his help to me in the first place."

Brows furrowing, I feigned confusion. "Who told you that?"

Fitz was still staring, though the smile was back on her face. "How dense do you think I am?"

I shrugged, feigning innocence. "I don't know what you're talking about."

She smiled again, rolling her eyes. "Well, now I have a meeting to tell a strange man all about my recent employment history so that he can steer me in the right direction and offer some ways to get there. If all goes well... things are finally getting started."

"Brilliant," I said with a nod. I finished drying the bowl and put it back on a shelf in the cupboard.

"And I know it's because of you, so..." She held my gaze, finishing shyly, "Thank you."

I shook my head and frowned. She raised her eyebrows pointedly, not giving in. I shrugged. She nodded matter-of-factly. An equally shy smile pulled at my lips.

"You're welcome," I said quietly.

She sighed in satisfaction, her eyes returning to the screen of the laptop. "I know it's stupid, but I'm nervous."

"Why?"

"I always get so muddled when I'm put on the spot. I just say anything."

"You said it's not even an interview; you're just talking."

"I'll get muddled anyway," she said with a laugh. "If I give him the wrong impression of myself, maybe he'll guide me somewhere I don't want to be. I mean, how much can someone really get to know about me in a ten minute exchange over Skype?"