Mercy [Completed]

Chapter 13: Crossing Lines

Brooklyn kept herself busy with tasks until Saturday came around. The soup kitchen knew her name now and running became a source of peace. The unexpected down spell was gone but she still faced the stress of how to move forward with Stephen. Speaking of, she hated surprises. How was she supposed to dress? What if she hated it? As if Stephen could hear her thoughts, her phone buzzed with a text from him, instructing her to dress casually. That made her relax a little. Casual meant the chances of her feeling comfortable with wherever they were going were a bit higher.

She waited in front of her building to deter any chances of Stephen trying to come up to her room. She didn't want him so see the squalor she lived in.

"So, where are we going?" she asked when she got in the car.

"To the movies."

"Seriously?"

He laughed. "Yes, seriously. I was thinking of taking you out on my yacht and having my personal chef cook a five star meal for us. Candles, music, city skyline in the not too far distance. But I figured a movie would be better."

"Yeah, movie is great."

"You sound disappointed."

"No! I'm relieved." Brooklyn was actually uncertain. She loved the idea of being wined and dined but that kind of luxury still left a bad taste in her mouth.

He turned to look at her at a red light. "You confuse me."

Brooklyn laughed nervously. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know, I just had this feeling that an extravagant night out wasn't your thing, but you can say you're not disappointed all you want, I can tell you are. I just don't know how to do something in between," he said, laughing at himself.

She shifted in her seat to face him. "Look, I want to know you. So do what you would do, not what you think I'd want."

Stephen pressed his lips together in thought. Brooklyn could see him making a choice and he did a u-turn. He drove to the business district and passed the cafe Brooklyn worked at. This part of the city was quiet on Saturdays.

"This is where I work," he said, pulling up in front of a building. "Come." He got out and led the way to the main doors.

Brooklyn was confused.

"Trust me," he said with a smile, holding out his hand.

Brooklyn took it and he went to a side door, swiping a pass to unlock it. The lobby was eerily quiet and almost reminded her of the church at night, only this church served a different kind of god; money. You could see the wealth everywhere. You could see it in the chrome finishes, the perfectly crystal clear class, and shiny floors. It was hard to believe that a place to pristine housed hundreds of working people.

They took the elevator up to the nineteenth floor and Brooklyn's stomach flip-flopped from the speed. An unmanned reception area greeted them with only the lights behind the company name and logo lit. Stephen led her past cubicles and then through a few hallways.

"This is my office," he said absentmindedly while clicking through his phone. He put it away and motioned for her to look. The view was astounding. "This is where I come to work, but it's also where I come to unwind. Nothing, beats this view. The city sprawled at their feet in a plethora of twinkling lights. The main roads and highways ebbed and flowed with more lights from the moving traffic. The moon was high in the sky, almost full, and the only thing bright enough to fight the light pollution of such a large metropolitan city.

"It's beautiful," she whispered.

Stephen had a seating area that faced the floor to ceiling windows and they went to sit, at opposite ends of the sofa but facing each other, bodies leaning closer as if drawn to one another like magnets.