Starkissed

Chapter Two

T W O

     It turned out that part of my contract was that I was required to stay at the facility during my shifts. I was to work four on, four off in twelve hour intervals. It seriously bothered me that I didn't know what I was going to be doing. Were they planning on trying to turn me in to a navy seal? Cause' I'd hate to tell them that there's no way I'd be getting into that murky water.

I shivered at the thought of seaweed brushing against my bare skin.

Gross.

I continued to let my thoughts wander as I waited for Jeff to come out of his office. After he had me sign the paperwork, he had passed them off to one of his assistants and asked me to sit in the waiting area while he took a phone call. He was going to personally show me around the building.

It felt like hours had passed but I stayed patient; I didn't think it would look too good for me to decide I was done waiting for his slow ass and walk myself to the nearest bus stop.

Especially since he had taken a chance on me for this job posting in the first place.

I watched the round clock hung on the wall tick by slowly. It reminded me of high school and the many hours I spent just waiting to get out of class.

I sighed deeply, leaning back in my chair. I started to count the specs on the ceiling when someone cleared their throat nearby.

I jumped slightly, straightening my posture. "Oh, hi." I answered hesitantly.

I'd never met this person before.

He was a tall, somewhat frail looking middle aged man with a balding hairline. In fact, his hair kind of reminded me of a cul-de-sac. 

You know, the no-exit streets typically found in suburban neighbourhoods that rounded out at the end? Those.

Despite this, the only thing I found myself able to focus on was his extremely thick, round glasses. They reminded me of the ones Bubbles from Trailer Park Boys wore. He was also wearing a lab coat. I crinkled my nose in confusion.

When he didn't say anything and just continued to inspect me, I realized he must have said something while I had been judging his hair. He cleared his throat.

Awkwardly, I sent him a guilty looking smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear what you said before. My name is Emily. I'm new here."

The mans face scrunched into what I would call a very poor attempt at a smile. It seemed as though his face didn't stretch that way very often.

I resisted the urge to cringe at him as he spoke.

"My name is Brian." He practically grunted out. Oh god, if this was all I had to work with when it came to co-workers there was going to be an issue.

Sixty dollars an hour. The little voice in my head reminded me. I blew out a frustrated breath of air.

"What can I do for you Brian?" I inquired, giving him a polite, somewhat confused smile.

"Jeff told me he's going to be longer on the phone than he originally thought. He's talking to the higher ups about budget cuts. I'm supposed to show you around; give you an idea about what you'll be doing here." Brian put his hands in his pockets uncomfortably. I wondered why he seemed so weird around me.

I stood up, giving him a nod. "Okay, great. I'll follow you then."

He led me down the hallway that had military personnel guarding it. Their guns looked large and intimidating, and I felt uncomfortable being this close to them.