Thelma sat with an unenthusiastic slouch as she did her office work. Ever since Alex left the office, she had been expecting him.
A loud bang pierced through the silent room. Thelma glanced at the wide door. Alex staggered in. He was dishevelled. His shirt was wrinkled and his rolled-up sleeve of his white shirt revealed his forearm. His shirt was not properly tucked in. Alex ran his fingers down his tousled hair and his gray suit was draped on his shoulder. He slid into his swivel chair.
"Did you finish... Did you..." he hiccuped and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. "Did you finish the work?"
Alex rose to his full-height and walked up to Thelma who was standing, saucer-eyed. He leaned towards her. To avoid this, she leaned away. This made her lay on her desk. He leaned more and she found herself on the desk. Alex was invading her personal space.
She caught a harsh stench of alcohol. He was drunk. Her heart leaped. Alex's eyes shut and he fell completely on her. She was on the large black desk with Alex's body on her. She smiled at first and slowly pushed him aside, trying her best to keep him from falling.
Wow! Something must be bothering him. He drank to get his mind off of it. She was sure that's what he did.
***************************
"Hey!" Kelvin greeted.
Theresa was back from home. The traffic was slow so she had been on the road for a long time. She was coming from the picnic she had with Don. She fumbled the keys into the lock of her room door.
"Oh, hey!" she greeted.
"Just hey?"
"What else do you want me to say?" she snorted.
"Someone's in a bad mood?" he asked, placing his arm on her shoulder.
Theresa sighed and shrugged.
"What's the matter?"
"Do you remember the past? Like when you were a jerk?" she smirked.
"Huh? Was I ever a jerk?" he chuckled.
She eyed him and replied, "Of course you were! You kissed me without my permission. That's jerkish! "
"Jerkish? Is there a word like that in the dictionary," he folded his arms and gave her a sidelong glance.
"Yeah! In mine," she chortled and opened the door.
"Is that all?"
"All? What do you mean?"
"What made you angry?" his soft voice was laced with concern.
"Come in," she lowered her voice. "I'll tell you"
When they were comfortable on the couch, Theresa asked, "Do you remember the guy.... Erm...in that party we went to?"
"Hmm..." he gave a quizzical look.
"The club, remember? The guy that said he would kill me!" she gazed at him intently.
"Oh, yeah!....Wait, is he back?" Kelvin jolted and his brows snapped together.
"Kind of" and with that, she gave him the full information about Don.
"So... Do you think I should accept his request?" she concluded with a question.
"Hmm.. Duh?"
"Excuse me?" she gasped.
"That guy is dangerous. Just pretend till he is tired of you. What if he decides to take revenge. Think about it" he said, flailing his arms wildly in the air.
"You are such a coward," she yelled.
"I know!" he snickered. "But seriously, guys used to tell me that I am just a small boy that the real bad guys... are horrible" He ran his fingers through his light brown hair as he thought deeply.
"To think of it, why do you act like a jerk in public?"
"Women love guys with a speck of bad boy attitude" he winked. "So why not be a bad boy!" and he gave a badboy-like pose.
"Well, you haven't meant a woman like me" she gripped his wrist and pulled him up.
"I don't like bad boys but rich boys. Get out!" she threw him out, smiled innocently and slammed the door.
How dare he tell her to accept Don? Doesn't he know that Don was a crazy man?
*************************
Alex's head was resting on his table while he sat on his seat. He hasn't woken up since he fell asleep. Thelma was rounding off her work.
"Aargh!" a low growl echoed. Alex rose his head and massaged his temple with his fingers.
"It hurts!" he whimpered and groaned.
"Are you having headache?" Thelma called from her seat.
"Yeah!"
Swiftly, she pulled the pain killer tablet from her purse and ran to him.
"Take this" she said and handed the tablet and a bottle of water to him.
He swallowed it and placed his head on the table.
"I will drop you as soon as you're done. Okay?" he whispered.
"No, sir! You are drunk!" she whispered.
"I'm not drunk!"
"You are, sir!"
"Fine! My drive will take you home! Good?"
"Much better!" she smiled and patted his head. She was stunned by the soft and silky texture of his hair. She ran her fingers in it. Her body quivered as a strange emotion disseminated throughout her body.
Alex chuckled, "That tickles!"
"Oh, sorry!" she removed her hands.
"No, please continue! It's comforting" he rose his head and smiled genuinely.
He placed his head down again.
"Mr. Roger, what happened? Why are you gloomy today?" she asked.
He winced and his mouth was set in a hard line. They grew silent and the sound of nocturnal creatures rented the air. The moonlight permeated into the room and the atmosphere at that moment was cool.
"Please, share it with me. I want to help" she pleaded and slipped her hand into his. She squeezed it tenderly.
Alex rose his head and sat straight.
"I will tell you all" he mumbled. "It hurts to keep it to myself".
He sniffed which made Thelma alert. She wanted to see if any tears would drop. She wanted to know if the great Mr. Alexander Roger could cry and she wanted to be the one to catch that teardrop and comfort him.
"Well, today... Hmm... I mean the date... Well, this is the day my dad died... Like the date not the year" he sighed. "I am sure you understand"
"You mean today is your Father's death anniversary?" she inquired.
He nodded and sighed. She noticed that his eyes were watery and red. Staring into his eyes was like having a needle pierced into her heart.
"The death of my dad was caused by a wicked witch. A beast that led to.... " he trailed off.
Thelma stared eagerly as her eyes also got watery.
"My dad loved my mom. He loved her with all his heart but she was a gold digger. She married him for the money. She never loved him and never loved me" he gasped a little air and continued as tears spilt down his smooth cheeks.
That was devastating. Thelma felt touched. Why? Why was his mother like that?
Something rolled down Thelma's cheeks. She brushed it and stared at the teardrop on her finger.
"On this specific month...on this day but years ago, my mom argued with my dad. She wanted him to sign a divorce paper," he sucked in some air. "She was a model and she was dating different celebrities. She wanted to be free. After an exchange of harsh words, she stomped to the street about to cross the road but there was a fast-moving trunk moving towards her. My dad ran and pushed my mom. He saved her but not himself".
Thelma gasped and took in a deep breathe. She rubbed her eyes and whispered, "And?"
"The car crushed him. Blood spilled like water from a tap. I ran to him only to see him take his last breathe. Days after the funeral, my mom moved on. She forgot completely about me and my father" his bottom lip quavered and he burst into tears. Thelma also shed tears. She hugged him and rubbed his back. She needed to be strong but her heart was weeping for him.
~~~Author's note~~~
I hope you cried!! Just joking! 😂
I feel so sad for Alex. He has gone through a lot.
Who is going to mend his heart? Who is going to make him see life in a different way.
❤❤❤❤❤ Pls vote and comment. Thanks again💋💖