Alice swallowed down her jealousy; her best friend deserved all the happiness in the world, and she was the last one who was allowed to be mad at her for getting it. That was when a pang struck her, as she realized what day of the week it was: Sunday.
“Not that late,” she answered, as guilt took over her senses. “I just… I need to talk. God, I’m sorry, I know its Sunday, and that’s your twosome day but… dammit Bianca, I’m in trouble. Man trouble.”
Listening to her words, all she wanted to do was punch her own face. What a demanding bitch she was. First, acting like a total idiot when she learned about Bianca’s pregnancy. Which was why she had already decided to ask her best friend if she was in her right mind should she ever ask her of all people to be the godmother of her first born child, and now, invading Bianca’s and Matt’s Sunday.
“God, Bianca, I’m sorry,” she jumped in before her best friend would send her fiancée away so that they could talk, or even suggest that she would come over. “Don’t say anything. I’m a moron; I know Matt’s working overtime for weeks and on Saturday’s on top of that, right?”
“Yes,” Bianca answered softly. “But really, if you need to talk I can ask him to…”
“No, hell no, I don’t want to steal his boss’ boss the total douchebag of the century title,” Alice cut her off. “Damn, have I always been such an egoistic bitch? Was it wrong to cut Greg loose?”
The first answer was another giggle from her best friend, this time however Alice was the reason.
“Well, realizing that you might have an abnormal view of things is the first step,” Bianca answered defensively.
“You always have this gift of wrapping cruel facts into these kind, diplomatic words,” Alice sighed. “Tell Matt, I’m sorry. I’ll make up for the stolen minutes. Can we meet up for Lunch tomorrow? I mean, I know we usually do, but. I mean real lunch, a one-hour break. I’ll come to you and pick you up. I’m buying.”
“Wow, this… spiritual guidance and yoga class at your new fitness center of yours does really have an effect on you,” Bianca spoke in code – as if she had read Alice’s mind – and Alice almost spit out her sip of coffee and burst into laughter.
“Yes, it does,” she chuckled. “It really does.”
♠ ♣ ♥ ♦
Alice managed to live through Sunday with junk food, chips, red wine and binge watching, North & South. The subdued tone of the four films helped her ignore the fact that her aching body was yearning for something different. However, when she woke up on Monday morning there was no way Alice would be able to ignore the need of her body, so she had to take care of it on her own, in the shower. Needless to say, it was nothing in comparison to King of Diamond’s treatments.
Somehow Alice was able to distract herself with work, and had one of the most efficient mornings in the office since she could remember, almost missing lunch, if it hadn’t been for her calendar reminder and the fact that they were working not only at the same company but in the very same department. So, Bianca was about to get going to pick her best friend up as Alice knocked and opened the door of the tiny office.
The two women had befriended each other when they both started working at Hale Inc. and had become best friends after a time. But while Bianca had studied Finance and was an analyst and Alice was the department’s manager’s assistant, they didn’t spend much time together. And soon, Bianca wouldn’t be working here anymore, although their boss only knew that she was getting married and not that she was already pregnant. Every time one of them needed to get something off their chest they would go to their favorite Italian restaurant, right around the corner. Usually, they would try to meet up every other day there and just pick up something to eat or bring it with them, to eat in the department’s kitchen, like everyone else. Often enough their schedules would collide, or they would go have lunch with their teammates.
Today, however, thanks to Alice’s call, they were meeting up outside the office at the restaurant. The only problem was that, although they had no possible colleagues eavesdropping on them, they were now sitting in a public place, which still meant people could overhear what they were talking about. Alice really didn’t want to get herself or her best friend into trouble.
“So, what’s up?” Bianca instantly asked as soon as both of them had gotten their menu cards.
Alice needed more than just a moment to find the right words. She felt embarrassed, which she disliked. There was nothing to be ashamed of and yet, she couldn’t stop her cheeks from flushing.
It was so overdue to find a code.
“I’m stuck between Mr. Blackmail and …,” she sighed. “Mr. Fantastic.”
“That’s how you call him now?” Bianca spoke suggestively and wiggled her eyebrows.
Alice burst into laughter, as it was the first time she saw that expression on her best friend’s face.
“Oh, come on,” Bianca’s shoulders slumped. “I can’t go there, let me live that adventure through you.”
“Okay,” Alice nodded. “And yes, I’m calling him that, now, you have no idea. But I’m not going to tell you any details about Saturday, okay? They are going to throw us out because we’re going to end up doing a modern re-enactment of that scene from ‘Harry Met Sally…’.”
Bianca snorted with laughter but managed to compose herself, when she realized people were turning around and looking at them including the waitress who returned to take their order and pour them some water. Alice waited for the girl to leave before she picked up the conversation again:
“I know, it’s been just a few weeks but,” she sighed noisily. “I think I’m addicted. But the worst thing is that it’s not, just about… you know,” she leaned over to whisper, barely able to hold back the torrent of her words, “the sex. It’s actually both of them. They are so different, and yet I love how I feel when I am around them, for entirely different reasons. One makes me feel powerful and dominant and admired, and the other gives me the feeling of completely being taken care of, protected and that I can let go completely. And I want both! Shame that there is no combination of the two of them, but then I don’t know if I really want to meet that guy. I just know if I continue like this, I will not be able to control my feelings. So, I thought of quitting the whole thing before my whole world revolves around it.”
“Are you serious?” Bianca looked at Alice as if she had just decided to become a nun.
“The alternative would be staying clear of the two of them,” Alice shrugged, and her best friend nodded slowly.
“I get that, really,” Bianca eventually said. “I mean, if you are worried about getting attached to both of them, when you shouldn’t; because of the whole ‘no strings attached’ philosophy. But, Alice,” her best friend looked at her earnestly, “since you have been a member at that… ‘gym’, you are so different than you were before, more relaxed, happy even, and also, honestly, easier to be around. Do you really want to give it up because of these men growing on you? Isn’t the whole idea that you don’t have to worry about anyone’s feelings? That if you feel uncomfortable that you just move on?”
“That’s what I thought,” Alice agreed. “I could just… change ‘classes.”
“So, what do you need me for then?” Bianca tilted her head thoughtfully, giving her a small grin.
“Maybe just for confirmation?” Alice shrugged. “And because the guy who showed me all these amazingly great things is also the guy who invited me and appears to have also paid for a silver membership for me.”
“For what?”
“It’s a membership that includes all meals and drinks and access to specific rooms,” Alice explained. “He really wants me there, apparently, but I just don’t know if I can handle him… emotionally.”
“But you don’t know what the guy looks like, or his name, profession, or barely anything?” Bianca obviously tried to wrap her mind around it. “But didn’t you see him if he’s Mr. Scotch?”
“Yeah,” Alice blushed. “Like briefly. But
I still can’t remember his face, because I remember everything else from our meet-ups. God, Bianca, I barely know anything about him, and I would still marry him instantly if he’d ask me. And that’s crazy.”
Her best friend almost choked on her sip of water.
“Well, maybe you shouldn’t just stick to that one ‘class’ because it’s good,” she explained while she watched the waitress approach them with their salads. “You should try other ‘classes’ just to be sure that you don’t miss out on something, and in case you are simply overly excited about this… trainer.”
“I guess I needed to hear that from someone else,” Alice smiled at her best friend. “Especially from you; for a moment I felt like a… like a cold-hearted bitch.”
“Honestly,” Bianca sighed. “If it weren't for Matt, I would beg you on my knees for an invitation to that place. And if the others knew about you hitting this jackpot… damn girl there would be sleepover parties at your place just to hear what you’ve experienced. I’m really happy with Matt, ‘though it’s rather… tame, if you know what I mean. You have the chance to experience everything your mind has ever come up with, don’t throw that away because you’ve gotten too attached to these two guys. We women are like that; it’s in our genes, to become attached to real providers. Did you tell me that?”
“That’s the explanation I used for why I broke up with Gary,” Alice was flabbergasted that Bianca remembered.
“Yes, and you are right,” she agreed. “I love Matt. He’s my guy, and maybe one day I’ll have the guts to make a suggestion about … Yoga.”
Alice chuckled, trying not to imagine how sweet Bianca would bring a suggestion like being bound and strung up on a canopy bed. She shook her head, not wanting that picture burned into her mind. Alice grinned widely.
“Hey,” Bianca protested, knowing the facial expression Alice made when her imagination was running wild. “You will have to give me tips on that.”
“Okay, okay,” she laughed. “I’ll just switch courses and see what I can get. And when you’re ready just set the date and come over, I will make sure to give you some insights. But I will have to do more research.”
After that, their conversation continued being light-hearted, but they weren’t able to bring up references in their new secret language and Alice ended up trying to tell Bianca about her last visit to the Dark Alley, which was equally flustering and hilarious.
♠ ♣ ♥ ♦
Although Alice had agreed on not giving up her “Yoga” at the Dark Alley, she couldn’t bring herself to go there during the week. It wasn’t only because the club opened at 10 pm, which simply was too late for her, but also because she still hadn’t made up her mind on what to do, especially if she met one of the men, or – even worse – if they asked for her. Could she really deny their request? Technically, of course, but she wasn’t sure if she could live with the conflict. So, Alice simply told herself that she needed to gather a few more overtime hours in the case of emergencies.
All in all, she tried to find new excuses each day to make it through the week and be so tired at the end of each day that she just wanted to drop dead onto her bed. The downside of her decision to stay away from both King and Aquarius had made her nervous because she worried that whoever she was paired up with would not live up to the standards Alice already had grown used to thanks to the both of them.
When Friday finally had arrived, she was eager to leave work early, completely ignoring the fact that she was sacrificing those overtime hours she had worked so hard to collect.
Alice was just about to grab her jacket and leave as her boss stepped out of his office, looking straight at her.
“Alice, a word please,” Maxwell Johnson demanded, as he was already turning around to get back behind his desk.
Her boss was in his late forties, with dark brown hair slowly turning gray and had wrinkles around his brown eyes, which showed he was frowning a lot. He wasn’t athletic but not overweight either because he skipped lunch a lot, which made her skip lunch a lot, too.
Alice suppressed a sigh and dropped her purse on her chair, grabbed her notebook, and quickly followed her boss back into his office, closing the door gently behind her. Sitting down he gestured for her to do the same.
“Please, take a seat, Alice,” Maxwell spoke softly, which was, including having her take a seat, never a good sign. “You won’t need to make notes, either.”
Alice’s heart dropped to the floor.
Her boss had been looking tired and overworked for weeks, but today was even worse. She had barely seen him the last few days as he had been in several meetings, but that wasn’t very unusual at the end of a business year. But now, as she had time to look at him face to face, she could see that the gray hair at his temples had increased, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to be deeper than before.
“First, I am not letting you go,” her boss told her, giving her a hint of a smile before massaging the bridge of his nose, frowning. “It would be a wrong decision, so don’t worry.”
Alice allowed herself to let out the breath she had been holding, and her heart was calming down slowly.
“The management has been keeping this under wraps, but next week there will be an official announcement that our company has been purchased by Grantham Global,” Maxell explained, watching her, his fingers building a tent. “That being said both a team on our side and Grantham Global, have been working together to make a fusion plan that will be as painless as possible to you employees.”
Bianca’s fiancé Matt was working at Grantham Global, and it now seemed obvious to Alice that this was the task his boss had him working on all the time.
“However,” Maxwell’s voice ripped her out of her thoughts. “Because of my seniority at our company, I have been offered a new position with the management board’s consulting team at Grantham Global. I’ve been working at both places the last few weeks, but my transfer will be official next week.”
Alice was used to her boss dropping information and watching her react to them, waiting for her to say something that he disapproved of, most of the time.
“Congratulations,” Alice smiled at him timidly.
“Thank you, Alice,” he nodded.
“My successor, however, will be bringing his personal assistant with him from Grantham Global,” he explained.
Alice froze in confusion. She had heard him telling her that she wouldn’t be laid off, hadn’t she?
“As luck would have it our consulting team needs a new assistant, and I highly recommended you,” Maxwell smiled at her proudly.
“Thank you so much, Sir, I am humbled,” Alice tried to answer not too quickly, and he nodded knowingly.
“However, there will still be job interviews,” he said, and Alice nodded quietly, despite her confusion about his choice of words. “Since the managing board is in need of an additional assistant, too, there will be two interviews,” Maxwell elaborated. “The first interview will be in about two weeks after I have moved to the new position and the second interview will take place in four weeks. Until then you will stay in your current position and help the new assistant settle in.”
“Of course, Sir,” Alice controlled her facial expression, pretending that she was grateful and excited about her quasi-promotion.
She loved her current job and had never thought of applying for a different one and definitely not at another company, but that decision had been taken out of her hands. Alice wasn’t sure if she liked that, but she didn’t have a choice in that matter obviously. Her old job was gone, and now she had a chance at two new positions.
Slowly it sank into her mind that both jobs didn’t only mean more responsibility and new tasks but probably better salary as well.
“Thank you so much for this chance, Mr. Johnson,” she quickly added as she realized that he had been silent.
“I just hope that the managing board doesn’t snatch you away, Alice,” her boss got up, which she instantly did as well. “I’ve g
rown used to you and don’t want to let you go,” he admitted, and she was surprised by his unusually open compliment.
“Thank you, Sir,” she said goodbye and left his office.
Grabbing her bag Alice’s thoughts didn’t return to the possibilities of the late evening, but of those that had just opened up to her. She knew how much more the assistants of board members were earning at this company, and who knew how much more that was at Grantham Global?
Alice could imagine that as the assistant to a consulting team to the board members of such a massive holding company such as Grantham Global, she could at least expect to earn as much as Bianca currently did, maybe even more. As assistant, only one single thing was more important than excelling in juggling calendars, contacts, and computers: trustworthiness.
As Alice stepped into the elevator that would bring her to the ground level, she realized how highly her boss must think of her, when recommending her not only to his new team but also giving her the opportunity of joining the race to become a managing board assistant.
With a proud smile on her lips, Alice realized that she now knew exactly what to do to distract herself from overthinking her upcoming ‘yoga class’. She would find out more about Grantham Global and the managing board.
Sixteen
When getting ready for the night, Alice felt like she was walking on clouds. Before being introduced to the Dark Alley she probably would have dreaded taking on a new job, but now she felt blessed, and she was looking forward to the interviews.
Alice knew what she was capable of, she knew she could take the reins in her own hands and she could take on the new responsibility. All this, her experiences at the club had shown her. She wasn’t scared, nervous maybe, but not scared.
Alice had spent most of her time on the computer, after doing the chores she had neglected throughout the week, trying to get more information about the different board members. The only group photo she had found had been too small to really distinguish any faces on them, and there had been no chance to enlarge them either. However, she wouldn’t allow herself to be discouraged. She managed to get at least a list of names, which she already had begun to work on, entry by entry. She concentrated completely on her task, so that she almost forgot to get herself ready.
Dark Alley: Part One: Episodes 1-4 Page 17