A True Rhombic Comes in Time

4

Seeing that I was still on the phone, the guy whispered, "And can I transfer the money to your Rhombic account?"

I nodded with an apologetic smile and gave him my debit card.

My day's earnings were disappointing as usual. It had been pretty much the same everyday for the past few months, but it still made me want to sigh to see how much I WASN'T making.

I was out of the exchange store and heading toward the bus stop when I heard Sarah finally finishing her lecture.

-... would make you a Support. And I know everyone thinks it's cooler to be the Lead, but Support is a very important role too! At least that's what I always say! So if that's what you're worried about... That your Defense number is much higher...

"Nope, that's definitely not it. It's something else," I replied quickly.

Gosh, at this point, I didn't care one bit if I was going to be a Lead or not. I wouldn't have cared even if my proportion was 0:100, making me a Support with zero attack power.

All I wanted was to have the full Power value just like everyone else.

-Alright, well... but if you could give me even just a hint of what you want to ask the CIO, I really think I might be able to help. And if I can't, I can give the CIO a heads up about what your problem is. Don't you think this will make the meeting go more smoothly? That way, you won't be wasting too much of the CIO's time.

If I had both of my hands free, I would have totally applauded her. Wow, it was quite a skill Sarah had to guilt someone while still sounding so sweet. I admired her for THINKING she was doing her job, but I had a sneaking suspicion that she knew she was crossing the line. I have explained to her more than once now that this was a private matter.

Sadly for Sarah, her passive aggressive bullshit wasn't going to work on a devil worshiper like me.

In a sickeningly sweet voice, I admit I was mimicking her a little, I replied, "Oh, but Sarah dear, both you and I know that this is about very personal and private information! And you should know that I am NOT quite a dodo head as everyone might believe."

Gosh, even I hated how I sounded right now. It was like I was possessed by one of those mean girls from that movie. But I was done trying to convince Sarah in a nice way. My problem was serious, and I needed help RIGHT NOW from the RIGHT person.

I continued firmly, "So I'm afraid I would rather talk to the CIO directly."

-Oh, no need to apologize, Leah.

Umm, I DIDN'T apologize, but okay. I didn't point this out, and instead, I let her continue.

- I'm your Contact, and I'm here to help. So I'll give you a call when I arrange an appointment for you.

I hung up and sighed. That call was unnecessarily long and tedious.

I had poured over the internet regarding my low Power value, but I couldn't find anything. It appeared that there had never been a case where a Rhombic's total Power wasn't 100.

Sarah was a nice enough girl, and she was my Contact, but I couldn't trust anyone with my problem. As a matter of fact, I had been agonizing over whether just telling Sarah that I needed help with my Power value was a safe thing to do.

My worst fear nagged at me. If a wrong person finds out about how weak I am...

The RAC's priority was to keep all Rhombics as safe as possible. This sounded all good and reassuring, but I suspected that this could work against me. If RAC found out that I was incapable of passing even the first floor test, they could easily prevent me from ever entering the Door.

It wasn't that I didn't consider the possibility of losing my chance at being a Rhombic. In fact, it was a struggle not to give up all hope. Sofia would say that I was too pessimistic, but I like to think of myself as a realist.

No matter how much I thought about it, the odds were against me. I had been working hard for the past four months, yet I was still only Level 1. On top of that, my Power value has not budged at all.

But just maybe, this CIO will know what's wrong with me.

The CIO of the RAC was responsible for the growth of the local Rhombics. She was supposed to be well versed in the research of Rhombics' abilities and potentials. If anyone was going to have an explanation for my odd situation, it was going to be her.

Bzzz.

I was deep in my own thoughts when my cell phone vibrated. I saw that it was a text from Sarah.

Well, that was quick.

It looked like my Contact managed to make me an appointment with the CIO.