by Zoey Lennox
“Yep. These furballs are a lot more like us than you’d first think.”
The kittens were surprisingly sturdy for such tiny balls of fluff, and Alexis laughed when one took her shoelace in its mouth and played tug of war.
Ramie ruffled the overzealous kitten on the head. “So,” she said, “how are things with you and your stepmother? You said you had a fight the last time we spoke.”
Alexis sighed and petted the mother cat, who had come to lie with its front paws on her lap.
“Pretty awful to be honest. Sometimes I wish I could just get away. Have a place of my own, you know? I think it would help ease the tension if nothing else.”
Ramie studied her with solemn brown eyes. “Then why don’t you? Get a place of your own, I mean. You’ll have to slum it a bit and rent in an area that’s up and coming, but it’s a small price to pay if you’re as miserable as you seem to be at home.”
Alexis held in a groan. Ramie was right, and it made her predicament all the more frustrating.
“If my stepmother didn’t demand so much rent from me, I could have saved up for a deposit ten times over by now. As it stands, though, I barely have anything to my name by the time the end of the month rolls round. I’m literally living hand to mouth.”
Ramie tickled a kitten’s tummy while Alexis slumped forward in despair.
“What about your real mum? Can she not help you out?”
For the briefest of moments Alexis felt her lower lip wobble. “No, she died a while back.”
Ramie squeezed Alexis’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I can only begin to imagine how hard that must be. How long has it been? Is that why you had to pull out of uni?”
“Yeah, I left to help take care of her when she was diagnosed with cancer. She died just over three years ago, but I decided it wasn’t worth taking on the debt to go back and finish my degree.”
“It sounds as though your dad remarried pretty quickly. That must have been tough. Especially if he allows her to take advantage of you.”
“Yeah, he remarried barely a year after my mum’s passing and Carol’s been ruling the house with an iron fist ever since. I think my dad just likes the company to be honest. He was married to my mum for twenty-two years before she died, so he’s never really had to fend for himself. And I wouldn’t mind, you know. I’m old enough to know he’s got his own life to lead, but his decisions are now having a direct impact on me. Like this whole rent thing for instance; dads convinced Carol’s helping me out by taking so much of my income. Only the other day he said it would be good practice for when I have to pay rent for a place of my own someday.”
“That’s ludicrous.” Ramie scoffed. “You’ll never leave home if she keeps stealing your hard-earned cash. I know this is none of my business, but if I were you, I’d get out of there. You’d need a deposit and the first month’s rent, but you could make it work if you started to withhold your money. I reckon you’re well within your rights after all they’ve had out of you.”
If only it was that easy.
“Even if I did manage to scrape together enough rent and get my own place, I doubt any landlord would be interested in taking me on. Carol’s always reminding me I’m not exactly a landlord’s dream tenant. They want professionals, not dropouts with dead-end jobs who earn a pittance.”
The space between Ramie’s eyes scrunched up into an adorable crinkle.
“Wait. Your stepmother actually said that to you? Wow. She sounds like a lovely woman. You don’t believe that rubbish, do you?”
Alexis shrugged. Of course she believed it. She may hate Carol, but even she had to admit her words rang true.
“She’s wrong, you know.”
Alexis’s gaze snapped up from her lap at the fierceness of the statement.
“I’ve only known you for a short time, but I can already tell you’re all kinds of amazing.”
The sincerity of Ramie’s voice brought a lump to Alexis’s throat. She wasn’t used to people caring about her.
“You shouldn’t let her have so much power over you. She’s obviously a very unhappy person.”
“I don’t let her have power over me.” Alexis bit back.
“You sure about that? She’s got you doubting your ability to move out.”
In the space of just a few minutes, Ramie had managed to see right through Alexis. Carol’s disparaging comments fed into her darkest fears. Not measuring up. Failing in life. Why try when she was destined to fail at everything?
“You can’t go on like this, you know,” Ramie said. “And I’m betting if your mum were here right now, she’d agree with me when I say you’re capable of just about anything you set your mind to. Do you know what I think?” she asked, straightening up.
“What?”
“I think we should go flat hunting—when you’re ready. It’ll give you a chance to see what your budget will get you and prove to you that, regardless of what Carol may think, you’re a desirable tenant to most landlords.”
Alexis perked up. “You’d really go flat hunting with me?”
“Of course. But only if you want to. It’s got to be your decision.”
“No, I want to,” Alexis assured her.
She’d never considered Carol’s scathing comments to be a form of control but now that the suggestion had been put to her, it kind of made sense. Carol was a master manipulator, but her days were numbered. As soon as Alexis was able to find a place to call her own, she was getting herself out from beneath that woman’s clutches.
Chapter 5
Alexis spent the following week reliving her ‘almost date.’ For the first time since she’d started dating, she was privy to what all the fuss was about. The movies hadn’t been lying after all. When you were into someone, it was electrifying. Alexis suddenly found herself glued to her phone in case Ramie happened to call, and she spent several hours lying awake each night wondering what it would feel like to press her lips to Ramie’s beautiful skin.
She was sliding into something bordering on obsession. Was this normal? She hoped so. Her footsteps had an extra spring in them, and her heart fluttered wildly at the prospect of meeting up again sometime soon.
When Friday morning rolled around, the grin on Alexis’s face still hadn’t wavered.
“Someone looks happy,” Maddie teased as she passed by on her way to the break room.
Alexis tried to hide behind her hair, embarrassed though she didn’t know why.
Maddie soon returned with a mug of coffee. “By the way, I just wanted to check that you’re free to come to our dinner party next Friday?”
Alexis smiled. “Of course.”
“You can finally meet Hope. She’s taken a special interest in you since Ramie mentioned the two of you hung out last weekend.”
Alexis’s face burned. “Ramie told you about that?”
“Yep, I got all the juicy details.”
“We only met up as friends,” Alexis rushed to clarify. “I told her I wasn’t ready to date again after everything I went through with my ex.”
The last thing she wanted was everyone piling on the pressure. Right now, what she and Ramie had was fun.
Maddie smiled like she knew Alexis was full of shit. “Yeah, I know. Ramie said as much, but sometimes the best relationships start out that way, don’t you think?”
Alexis’s stomach twisted with nervous excitement. “Yeah, I guess.”
Maddie wandered back to her desk, leaving Alexis with her thoughts. She startled when a ping in her inbox alerted her to a message from the big boss.
Fear scuttled up her spine. He wanted to see her in his office at 11am.
She checked the clock. 10:52.
“Fuck.”
Half jogging, half walking, she made her way to his glass-walled office. Her insides tensed when she spotted Marty’s imposing figure behind his walnut desk.
She could only guess why he wanted to see her. The last time they’d talked one-on-one was when he’d interviewed her for her current
job.
“Hello, Alexis.” Marty looked up as she entered the room and gestured for her to take a seat on the other side of his desk. “Would you like a drink? Vera can get you a cup of tea if you’d like. Or maybe a glass of water?”
Alexis cleared her suddenly parched throat. “No thanks.” With her insides churning the way they were, it would only come straight back up.
Once she was settled, Marty clasped his hands. “I’ve requested this meeting today because it’s been brought to my attention that you have filed a sexual harassment claim against another member of staff.”
“That’s right.” Alexis fought to maintain eye contact and pulled her cardigan tighter across her chest. “I was told an investigation would be launched. Does this meeting mean it’s now complete?”
Marty bobbed his head. “It certainly does. After collecting overwhelming evidence supporting your claim, Patrick has been let go.”
Wow. She never thought she’d see the day when justice was finally served.
“As I’m sure you’re aware,” Marty went on, “sexual harassment of any kind is unacceptable here. I’m sorry you’ve had to go through such a distressing ordeal. If you would like to talk to one of our counsellors, I’d be happy to set up an appointment.”
“Thanks, but that’s really not necessary.” No way was she going to spill her guts to a stranger.
“Well if you change your mind, all you have to do is ask.”
Anticipating she was about to be excused, Alexis rose from her chair.
“Just one more thing.” Marty held up his finger. “An interesting piece of post hit my inbox today which I’d like to discuss.”
Post?
“Here.” Marty extracted a crisp, university-headed letter from his desk drawer and pushed it towards Alexis. “Read it. It may jog your memory a little.”
When she leaned forward to scan the first few lines, Alexis’s stomach dropped.
Shit. The university post office had requested a reference. The advert had clearly stated that interviews wouldn’t be held for another couple of weeks, so she’d been certain she still had plenty of time to prepare for this awkward conversation.
“Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble,” Marty said. “It’s perfectly natural that you would look to seek employment elsewhere when your work life has been made difficult. However, now Patrick’s been taken out of the equation, I’m hoping you’ll have a change of heart.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, gripping the arms of her chair. “I’m incredibly grateful for everything you’ve done for me, but I really do think a transfer would be for the best. There’s a real conflict of interest if I stay here. I’m not sure if you’re aware, but my supervisor, Nia Caldwell, is Patrick’s girlfriend.”
“She is?” Marty’s eyebrows disappeared into his hairline.
“Yes. And even if she wasn’t, it wouldn’t change my decision. I’ve been thinking about changing careers for a while now.”
A deafening silence filled the air before Marty rubbed his neck. “Well this certainly changes things. I can see why you’d have concerns. The last thing I want to do is lose you, Alexis, but if you have your heart set on a transfer, I have some contacts. I’ll see what I can do to help."
Was she hearing correctly? Was he actually offering to assist her?
“Thank you,” she said. “I’d really appreciate that.”
Maybe there was a way out of this soul-destroying office after all.
Chapter 6
The following afternoon, Alexis invited Ramie to meet her at the Ice Cream Shack in town to celebrate Patrick’s demise. Piling into one of the many booths that lined the black-and-white chequered floor, they set about devouring the most gluttonous dishes on the menu along with a couple of chocolate milkshakes.
Kids ran about screaming while they ate, spreading the contents of their snot-ridden noses with sticky hands. Alexis didn’t care. She was on a natural high. Nothing could dampen her good mood.
“You must be relieved to finally have that jerk off your back. I can’t even begin to imagine what it must have been like to have him breathing down your neck twenty-four-seven.”
“I am.” Alexis licked a trail of ice cream which had melted down the side of her spoon. “I’m going to be at least fifty percent more productive now that I don’t have to look over my shoulder. Too bad I won’t be staying long enough to take full advantage of it.”
Ramie’s eyes lit up. “Yes, tell me more about this transfer. Did you say it was at the university post office?”
“Yeah. The work will be a lot more physical, but I’m up for the challenge. I’ve been unhappy in my job for a long time now. I should thank Patrick, really. He was part of the push I needed to put myself out there.”
Ramie reached across the table and squeezed Alexis’s hand. “Good on you, Lex. You know what they say: If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. I’m so proud of you.”
Alexis’s cheeks heated as she basked in Ramie’s praise. “Thanks.”
“You know what? I think this calls for a special toast.” Ramie lifted her milkshake and signalled for Alexis to do the same. “To new beginnings,” she said, clinking their glasses together.
“To new beginnings,” Alexis repeated.
A deep line punctuated Ramie’s brow when her phone beeped on the table.
“Hold on, I have to get this. It’s the LGBTQ centre. They only ever call if it’s an emergency.”
Alexis made a ‘go-ahead’ motion with her hand and after a lot of back and forth, Ramie finally ended the call.
“Argh.” She threw her head back and scrubbed at her face. “Will you hate me if we wrap this up short? They’re having a real crisis at the centre. A teenager’s just been kicked out after coming out to his parents and there’s no one there to counsel him. I’d usually insist someone else do it, but the other counsellors are either out of town or unavailable.”
Alexis’s disappointment must have shown.
“On second thoughts,” Ramie said, standing up and gathering her stuff. “Why don’t we just take a detour? It’s still early, and this little crisis should take no more than an hour. If you’re willing to hang around for a bit, we can find somewhere to have a few drinks afterwards.”
Alexis was ecstatic. “Great. Sounds like plan.”
The LGBTQ centre was an unassuming, end of terrace property in the older part of town, and the front door opened straight into a welcoming living room area. Worn leather sofas ran along each of the walls, and a group of rowdy teenagers were sprawled in various states all over them. It appeared they were watching some sort of rom-com film, but not much could be deciphered due to their constant bickering.
“Ramie!” one of the girls screamed upon seeing them enter. She was no older than fifteen or sixteen and had long, bleached-blonde hair and a face full of thickly applied make-up.
“Hey, Lacey.” Ramie gave Lacey a warm smile before turning her attention to the other kids. “Hi guys. How’s it going?”
“Hey!” The remaining teenagers gave her an enthusiastic greeting before returning their attention to the wall-mounted television.
“I won’t be long.” Ramie leaned in close and pressed a peck against Alexis’s cheek.
“S-sorry,” she stuttered when Alexis tensed. “I guess I forgot this wasn’t a date for a second.”
Alexis let out a nervous laugh and touched her tingling skin. Wow, Ramie’s lips really were as soft as she’d imagined.
“Are you two dating?” Lacey asked.
“No.” Ramie’s voice was matter of fact and left no room for further questioning. “Alexis and I are just friends. Would you mind looking after her for a bit while I go and see what Kenya needs help with?”
Lacey shrugged. “Whatever.”
When Alexis turned back to face Ramie, she was gone.
The only teenage boy in the room patted the empty seat beside him. “You can sit here if you want.” He had spiked brown hair and larg
e green eyes that exuded warmth. “It’s the girls’ turn to pick a film so we’re watching the DVD of The L Word. It’s cheating, really, cause it’s a TV show, but there’s three of them and only one of me, so I’m pretty much outnumbered.”
Alexis crossed the room and perched on the edge of the sofa. Although the rest of the kids were watching the TV, their gazes pivoted back in her direction every now and then, their curiosity getting the better of them.
Great. She was in the spotlight again. The world must really have it in for her.
“Want some popcorn?” the boy asked. He shoved a large plastic bowl beneath her nose.
“No thanks.” She tried to relax.
“I’m Corey,” the boy said. “And those bitches over there are Grace and Fran. You already met Lacey.”
“Hey!” one of the girls protested. She chucked a handful of popcorn in Corey’s direction. “Watch it, freak.” The corners of her lips twitched, though, betraying her attempt to hold back a laugh.
For the next hour and a half, Alexis found herself increasingly immersed in the TV show. Things started off innocently enough with two women meeting up in a bar, but before she could compute what was happening, clothes were coming off and the women were totally going at it with absolutely no censoring. By the time Ramie reappeared in the doorway, the spot between Alexis’s legs was decidedly moist and throbbing.
“Keeping yourself entertained I see.”
Alexis’s face heated. Shit she’d been caught ogling naked women. “We were just, uh…”
“We’re watching The L Word. You wanna come sit? We’re just at the bit where Shane fucks Jenny.”
Alexis squirmed. Did Lacey have to be so graphic?
“No thanks. I’ve got plans with Alexis. Enjoy your show, though. Kenya will be coming through in a moment with a newbie so be nice, okay?”
The words were barely out of her mouth before a striking woman in her late twenties with poker-straight caramel-coloured hair cut into an angular bob entered the room.
