Break Away

by Robin Edwards

  “Yeah, I didn’t even think about that. I think you’re right. I am DEFINITELY not writing him or her back.” I sighed and closed the email.

  “I didn’t even tell you to write him back.” Monica laughed as Luke the company sleaze ball approached us.

  “I didn’t even tell you to write him back.” Monica laughed as Luke, the sleaze ball, approached him.

  “Ladies, the meeting has been pushed back an hour and unfortunately there have been a lot of changes.” Luke said as he leaned in and sniffed Monica. “Is that you? What is that ever so wonderful fragrance?”

  “It’s called I’m married, your boss, old enough to be your mother and you should know better.” Monica rolled her eyes.

  “Where can I buy a bottle?” Luke winked and laughed before he realized that his sense of humor didn’t come across like he wanted and walked away quickly.

  After the delayed meeting was over, I passed by Beth’s desk and I noticed a beautiful bouquet of flowers on Beth’s desk.

  “Those flowers are gorgeous. Are they yours?”

  “No. Someone just had them delivered here. There was no name on it or anything. I think they are so beautiful so I’m just going to keep them.”

  “That’s odd. Maybe they are from your secret admirer.” I said jokingly.

  “Oh, that would be so wonderful. Romantic, too.” Beth gushed.

  “Wouldn’t that bother you?” I asked.

  “What would?”

  “Well you know, the idea of receiving unwanted attention from a secret admirer. Wouldn’t you worry that they were weird?”

  “God, no. It would ruin the fun to think that way, right?” Beth gushed again.

  “Hmm, interesting.”

  After our secret admirer conversation, I walked away and headed straight to my desk, turned on my computer and opened up my email immediately. There they still were, the two emails from my secret admirer. I sat there contemplating my lack of suitors and at the moment, I couldn’t help but think about all of the worst possible outcomes that could happen if I responded to them. However, if I didn’t respond, I could be missing out on Mr. Right. If there was such a thing.

  I hadn’t thought about nor believed in the concept since Kyle’s father left almost nine years ago but then again a little whimsy couldn’t curt. I didn’t know what to think but a part of me wanted to take the risk. I was completely curious by the notion of someone being fascinated by me. I haven’t felt like that in a long time.

  I opened up the most recent email that the secret admirer sent and clicked Reply:

  SUBJECT: Re: Some Things You Should Know About Me

  BODY: Do I even know you? If so, where from?

  ****

  SEAN

  I CONTINUED TO SIT THERE the next day, anxiously waiting for a response. I had agreed with Patrick that if B, the mystery woman, didn’t respond back by noon I was going to take it as a hint to move on. Just when I was ready to give up and just focus on my work day ahead, I got an email notification. I clicked on it immediately and noticed it was from B.

  “Hell yeah! It’s her, Patrick! It’s her! She has final written me back!”

  “No way!” Patrick said excitedly and walked over to my desk to read the read the email response with me. “What does it say?”

  “I don’t know, I didn’t even open it yet.”

  “What the hell are you waiting for? Open it already.”

  “Okay. I need to prep myself and breathe first.” I said panicked and then I slowly clicked the email open.

  “Do I even know you?” Patrick and I read aloud.

  “Do I even know you?” Patrick repeated. Exasperated, he turned back to his desk and sat down.

  “Wait. Hold on now, that’s a very valid question. I mean she did receive a random email from a stranger. How else is she supposed to respond?”

  “Well, it isn’t exactly exploding with enthusiasm or joy.” Patrick said.

  “Sure but if I was her, I’d have responded the same way.”

  “That’s why I told you to talk to her when we were at the café, it’s a lot more normal than an email. How do you think she’s going to react if you ever did meet up to find out you chose to email her than just to approach her. She’ll end up thinking you’re a weird guy and not exactly suave.”

  “No, but this is a great start and I have to start somewhere.” I muttered to myself and began typing a response.

  “Don’t tell me you are already responding to her.”

  “That is exactly what I’m doing.”

  “She’s going to think you are certifiably desperate. Wait a few hours.”

  I ignored Patrick’s suggestion, he didn’t know what he was talking about. He was just as single as I was. I did not think it could hurt to respond quickly and doubted that anyone would analyze the timing of an email and attribute it to the quality of the person.

  SUBJECT: Re: Re: Some Things You Should Know About Me

  BODY: No, but I am fascinated by you. Isn’t that a fantastic place to start at?

  ****

  BRIDGETTE

  LATER THAT AFTERNOON, I checked my email one last time before I went home. My secret admirer responded to my initial inquiry as to who he or she was. It had been a long work day fielding requests from coworkers, my own projects and attending meeting after meeting. I didn’t know how long I would be able to keep up with the chaos that my life was. I needed time to relax. All of my efforts certainly deserved a promotion or at least a raise. I had been working at NSK101 for a long time and had been stuck as a Marketing Coordinator when I deserved to be a lot more but it being a small business there was a lack of vertical growth.

  As I shut off my computer, I was plagued by the thought of having to do all of the chores that needed to get done at home and I guess due to a million other silly reasons, I convinced myself that I had no time for games because I had real responsibilities at home.

  Hours later after all of the housework was almost completed, I thought about the string of emails I received over the past couple of days and I was highly tempted to check them. If I wasn’t thinking about the emails, then I thought about how easier it would have been if there was someone else to share these chores with but that reason left years ago.

  When I was finished and I put the vacuum back into the hallway closet, I couldn’t help but wonder if I was making a mistake by not answering. I eventually gave into temptation and I turned on my laptop and opened up my email and read the response of being fascinated by me. I prayed that they weren’t a nut and I replied.

  Chapter Five

  SEAN

  AFTER WORKING HARD FOR WEEKS on winning the account of the one of the biggest hotel brands for a long time, Patrick and I decided it was about time that we hit the town and enjoy ourselves. We liked to try new spots and check them out from time to time but in the end we couldn’t decide on where we should go so we ended up at the local tavern we constantly hung out at.

  Business had been so busy lately that I haven’t had time to focus on the raving beauty that I was not in communication with and frankly, I had forgotten about it which surprised the hell out of me. That night, though, I was curious to check in to see if she had responded.

  “Hey Patrick, check this out.” I said excitedly when I found out she had responded and didn’t scare her off like Patrick believed I would.

  Patrick took his turn in our game of shuffle board, “Let me guess, mystery woman responded?”

  “You are more certainly correct. She did respond.”

  “Well go ahead and read it. Let’s see if you scared her off or not.”

  SUBJECT: There are a million reasons why I shouldn’t be writing you back, but five reasons why I am.

  BODY: I am emailing you back because I have never had a secret admirer before and I’m trying to convince myself that you are not some crazy felon and I like your choice of words. To be honest, you are starting to make me feel alive and I also believe in true love.

  But the
fact remains that I don’t have the slightest clue as to who you are or what you even look like which is technically a huge disadvantage for me, considering you know what I look like. It’s kind of creepy and scary.

  While I am not comfortable meeting you in person, I am pretty okay with trying to get to know you through email.

  P.S. I could eat more Italian food than most men.

  “I should send her a phone,” I said as I stared at my phone.

  “No. Don’t send her any pictures. What if the whole thing goes bad and she ends up running into you, then you might get punched in the face.”

  “Yeah, I wouldn’t want that to happen.” I agreed.

  “Look on the bright side, she did not get scared off and although she ideally is hesitant about meeting you in person, she is still open to keeping in contact with you even if it’s just through email even without knowing what you look like.”

  “Yeah, it goes to show that she wants to get to know me first which proves to me she has good judgement by not wanting to be swayed by physical appearances.”

  B and I started emailing each other every day after that often sharing little stories about each other. There was no pressure to give each other our names or really personal information and I was glad that things were easy going and relaxed. The current tidbit that we were sharing about each other was our first major crushes.

  I had confided in her that my first major crush was my 6th grade teacher, Ms. Wilson and that I was a little heart breaker back then. I’m not sure what it was about Ms. Wilson and now that I think about it, Ms. Wilson was older than I first realized. She had to be in her seventies by now.

  I have no idea what I was thinking back then or what it was about Ms. Wilson that created that feeling of infatuation. It was nice to hear that B’s first major crush was her next door neighbor’s father. Turns out the guy got arrested for robbery and home invasion and that was the end of her crush.

  We spent weeks like this going back and forth confessing our embarrassing lives and it was the first time in a long time where I felt like I was truly getting to know a woman for who she was, secrets and all. I never had that with any of the women I was with since college and I definitely didn’t have that with Amy.

  ****

  BRIDGETTE

  “HEY BRIDGETTE, did you hear the great news?” Monica rushed over to me.

  It had been weeks since I agreed to continue my email discussion with my secret admirer. Turns out my secret admirer was male and there was nothing wrong with the fact that he could have been female, I was just not into women like that.

  My secret admirer who wanted to be called ‘S’ seemed like a fabulous guy who always sent the first email of the day, every day, with a funny story about himself and we traded emails throughout the rest of the day bantering back and forth at my new found knowledge.

  Sometimes I would throw in facts about myself and he would often be complimentary and inquisitive about what he just learned. It felt good getting to know someone who could hold a conversation and was intelligent. I was tired of coming across men who would hit on me yet were unable to participate in a conversation about things that I was interested in. They would often try to redirect it back to sex or consistently pester me with coming with them for a night cap at their place. The most annoying part of it was they think their lack of honest effort was enough. As if they didn’t give women enough credit or didn’t care if the woman had any morals or were really easy. They didn’t care about our minds.

  When Monica approached my cubicle, I was glued to my computer screen reading the latest email from S. Monica bent over to snoop and realized who I was conversing with.

  “Are you actually writing emails back and forth with that internet guy?” Monica asked surprised.

  “Yeah, I guess. I don’t really know what I’m doing but I thought I’d give it a chance.” I shrugged.

  “Why don’t you tell me about it?” Monica said laughing.

  “Well we haven’t met yet. We’ve just been sending emails back and forth to each other every day. I don’t even know his name nor what he looks like but he seems like a really intelligent and nice guy. He’s got a great sense of humor too. I’m really enjoying myself.” I confessed.

  “Be careful. You don’t want to end up hurt.”

  “Yeah, I know. So, what’s the big news?” I asked curiously as Beth walked over with a box full of her belongings and placed it on the cubicle adjacent to mine.

  “Howdy, neighbor.” Beth crooned.

  “Beth got promoted to Marketing Coordinator. It seems like Vince liked some of her ideas when she was in the training program.”

  “Was this because of the project you told me about?” I asked.

  “Yeah. This is all so crazy huh?” Beth beamed.

  “Well, congratulations. You must be so excited.” I hugged her excitedly. I was really proud of her and all of her efforts. She deserved it.

  “I am completely shocked and overwhelmed but I am ready to dive right in.” Beth said as Luke came over with another box of Beth’s belongings.

  “Here are the rest of your stuff, Beth. Remember, if you ever need anything just ask Bridgette. She knows everything around here.”

  “Okay.”

  “Not to change the subject entirely but would you like to join me for lunch? It’s my treat. Let’s say it’s a congratulatory gift on your big promotion.”

  “Yeah, sure.” Beth agreed.

  Luke tried to hide his joy but he couldn’t help himself, “Alright! She’s going to have lunch with me.” He said as he strutted away.

  Beth’s promotion reminded me that I had longed for a change. I had been a Marketing Coordinator for years and it seems like all of the promotions that were taking place were for positions that were lower than mine. I wondered if I was doing the right thing by choosing to stay in a stable position rather than taking a chance and moving onto something else that had a more opportunities for growth. I needed to ponder it some more when I had the time.

  I was looking forward to getting home that evening so that I could relax for once until I remembered that I had a few loads of laundry to do. One of these days I needed to take the time to show Kyle how to do his own laundry. It was a life skill that I believed everyone should have regardless of what gender you were.

  As I carried a loan of freshly laundered items I called for Kyle, “Hey buddy, your laundry is done. Come and get it.”

  Kyle showed up immediately and I handed over the laundry basket, “You know what to do with it right?”

  “Uh huh,” Kyle said as he grabbed the basket and scampered away to his room. Thank God he knew to fold his clothes at least. Took me a while to teach him that one but he finally got the hang of it without complaints.

  Exhausted from a long day at work, I cracked open a pint of chocolate chip ice cream and turned on my laptop and check my email. I received an email from S that morning but had been too busy to respond to it. It gave me a great sense of joy and I always looked forward to getting a response from him. The new email was a hysterical tirade of the things he used to do to convey to his 6th grade teacher about his infatuation with her. My response:

  I find that there is great irony that the first man I have ever had feelings for had gotten arrested for robbery and home invasion. What was his he convicted of? Stealing my heart? Yeah, I know what you’re thinking – such a corny joke that didn’t even make sense. Don’t worry, I realized it the second I typed it.

  I clicked send and S responded immediately and we spent the rest of the evening and well into the night emailing each other back and forth with the worry of having to be up for work in just a few short hours. I was far too caught up and having a great time conversing with him:

  S: My best friend in the entire world is my dog, Corey. He’s a Border Collie mix and is named after my favorite actor of course. Brownie points if you can guess which one. He’s all white and because dogs that are all white in color have different genes some sort of d
egenerative condition, most are deaf.

  B: Awww, that’s so sweet. He sounds like a lovely dog, I would love to meet him some time. What was your weirdest job? Mine was being a samples giver at a warehouse club.

  S:, Thank you, I would love for you to meet him. That is a weird job. I hope people loved your samples. My weirdest job was when I worked at a fast food restaurant. Sounds completely normal but this manager we used to have who was only three years older than me at the time, had a husband that was completely jealous and would often call the restaurant and threaten all of the men that worked there and accuse them of having an affair with her. Sounds fantastic huh?

  B: My samples? I think you are the only person I know who would take a completely safe subject and turn it into the corniest innuendo. I can’t believe working at a fast food restaurant was like starring in a reality television show. Quick question: Have you had a lot of women in your life?

  S: My life is like one reality show episode after another. Yes, I have had more women in my life than most. I have a lot of aunts, grandmothers, cousins, nieces, sisters, etc. Did you have any dreams as a kid?

  B: Nice segway! I did have one dream as a kid or at least one thing I constantly played make believe with. When I was younger I always believed I was a rock star, at least in my mind.

  S: I always pretended I was a star athlete in the majors. Realistically, I couldn’t even catch a ball. Think fast, what’s your favorite dessert? I love cheesecake.

  B: Who doesn’t love cheesecake?

  Chapter Six

  SEAN

  “WHO IS A GENIUS? Me, that’s what!” I gloated the following week as I sealed a stack of envelopes of our latest marketing proposal and campaign ideas for our potential client and gave it to the receptionist to ship out.