Her posture was relaxed. During the week, she held herself as stiff and as upright as a ruler. Sitting here now, curled up with her feet tucked under her, watching a movie, she looked too young to be anyone’s personal assistant. Hell, she looked like she should be hanging out at a sorority house, not her boss’s house. Her older boss’s house.
Damn, he never really thought himself as old until that moment and thirty-two really wasn’t that old, but looking at Holly suddenly made him feel that way. Old. And creepy for continually staring at her. Shaking his head, he put all of his effort in to watching the movie.
“Do I have something on my face?” That got his attention and as much as he wanted to not look at Holly again, he could not ignore her question.
“Excuse me?” He coughed.
“I said, is there something on my face? You were just staring at me.”
“Oh, that, well, it just struck me how truly different you look today. “
She huffed with annoyance. “I thought we covered this last night. Yes, my hair is down, yes I’m in sweats, I don’t have my make up with me…Geez, Stephen, I’m self conscious enough about it; thanks for bringing it up.” She was mortified. She rested her face in her hand to cover the side of her face that was facing Stephen and went back to watching the movie, hoping that he didn’t want to keep talking.
Ninety minutes later, she had to move, she just had to. The credits were rolling as Holly stood and stretched. Stephen followed suit and now it was her turn to stare. Earlier, she had been so preoccupied with prepping the food and coming down to watch the movie that she hadn’t taken the time to notice that he had showered, shaved and changed and was dressed casually. Twice in one day of seeing Stephen dressed like a normal person was devastating to her senses.
As he stretched, his plain black t-shirt rose up about the waist band of well-worn, snug jeans. The word ‘yummy’ came to mind and she decided the only thing she could do was start collecting dishes so that she stopped staring before she started to drool. How un-cool would that be? Stephen joined in and between the two of them, the theater was back to normal in less than ten minutes.
Holly followed Stephen up the stairs and in to the kitchen where they continued to work together in silence as they scraped and rinsed dishes before loading them in the dishwasher. When the task was done, they stood awkwardly facing one another, each unsure of what they were supposed to do next.
“So, um…I don’t think either of us is going to want to eat any time soon, right?” he said for lack of anything else to say.
“Definitely not.” A glance at the clock and saw that it was only six o’clock. What were they supposed to do for the rest of the night? She walked over to the kitchen window and saw that it was almost dark and the rain was still coming down. The theater was soundproof with no windows so for all she knew, the rain could have stopped but no such luck. “I cannot believe that this storm has not passed yet!”
“Maybe we should turn on the news and see what they have to say. Come on, I’ll turn on the TV in the den.” Holly followed and for the next thirty minutes they sat on the sofa – at opposite ends – and watched the local news. Then, still unsure of what to do, Stephen turned on the Weather Channel ‘just to verify’ what the local news had said. By seven o’clock Holly had had enough of staring at a TV screen and had to get up and move around.
“Okay, I have not sat around so much in my entire life. I can’t do it anymore!” Her tone was light but Stephen knew that she was serious. “I just don’t know what to do with myself. I’m out of sorts and I can’t help but think about all of the things that I am supposed to be doing at home!” Holly was pacing but more out of the need to not be still and not out of
Damn, he never really thought himself as old until that moment and thirty-two really wasn’t that old, but looking at Holly suddenly made him feel that way. Old. And creepy for continually staring at her. Shaking his head, he put all of his effort in to watching the movie.
“Do I have something on my face?” That got his attention and as much as he wanted to not look at Holly again, he could not ignore her question.
“Excuse me?” He coughed.
“I said, is there something on my face? You were just staring at me.”
“Oh, that, well, it just struck me how truly different you look today. “
She huffed with annoyance. “I thought we covered this last night. Yes, my hair is down, yes I’m in sweats, I don’t have my make up with me…Geez, Stephen, I’m self conscious enough about it; thanks for bringing it up.” She was mortified. She rested her face in her hand to cover the side of her face that was facing Stephen and went back to watching the movie, hoping that he didn’t want to keep talking.
Ninety minutes later, she had to move, she just had to. The credits were rolling as Holly stood and stretched. Stephen followed suit and now it was her turn to stare. Earlier, she had been so preoccupied with prepping the food and coming down to watch the movie that she hadn’t taken the time to notice that he had showered, shaved and changed and was dressed casually. Twice in one day of seeing Stephen dressed like a normal person was devastating to her senses.
As he stretched, his plain black t-shirt rose up about the waist band of well-worn, snug jeans. The word ‘yummy’ came to mind and she decided the only thing she could do was start collecting dishes so that she stopped staring before she started to drool. How un-cool would that be? Stephen joined in and between the two of them, the theater was back to normal in less than ten minutes.
Holly followed Stephen up the stairs and in to the kitchen where they continued to work together in silence as they scraped and rinsed dishes before loading them in the dishwasher. When the task was done, they stood awkwardly facing one another, each unsure of what they were supposed to do next.
“So, um…I don’t think either of us is going to want to eat any time soon, right?” he said for lack of anything else to say.
“Definitely not.” A glance at the clock and saw that it was only six o’clock. What were they supposed to do for the rest of the night? She walked over to the kitchen window and saw that it was almost dark and the rain was still coming down. The theater was soundproof with no windows so for all she knew, the rain could have stopped but no such luck. “I cannot believe that this storm has not passed yet!”
“Maybe we should turn on the news and see what they have to say. Come on, I’ll turn on the TV in the den.” Holly followed and for the next thirty minutes they sat on the sofa – at opposite ends – and watched the local news. Then, still unsure of what to do, Stephen turned on the Weather Channel ‘just to verify’ what the local news had said. By seven o’clock Holly had had enough of staring at a TV screen and had to get up and move around.
“Okay, I have not sat around so much in my entire life. I can’t do it anymore!” Her tone was light but Stephen knew that she was serious. “I just don’t know what to do with myself. I’m out of sorts and I can’t help but think about all of the things that I am supposed to be doing at home!” Holly was pacing but more out of the need to not be still and not out of
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