By: Shalaine
Gelasia
“Damn,” said Tony as we stared in shock at the lifeless body basking in blood on the balcony. Pieces of glass were scattered all over the corpse. The balcony was a two feet drop from the window. As for the office window, I think this is the first it has ever been any kind of open.
Gelasia had only been in our office for a week and now she was dead. I glanced over at our boss and he didn’t look too good. Investigators were already all over him and it was only a few minutes until they’d be all over us. It was one hell of a way to start our Friday; murder at ten am.
My friend Rebecca glanced at me, then at Tony, then at me again, and I glanced at Tony. Her eyes were wide open and I suddenly felt goose bumps in odd places.
Rebecca’s the only other sane person in the office therefore we joined forces. Her cubicle was across from mine and we confided in each other. Helps us both get through the days. Tony is our third wheel and we appreciate our friendship with him considering he is one of the top accountants in our firm. She knew what happened, I knew what happened, and Tony knew what happened. We were the last three people with Gelasia and the truth would come out, eventually.
So Trump our boss had hired her Monday for his secretarial (his “do whatever I ask even if it involves sexual harassment”) position and she walked up in the office like she was Madonna. Her stilettos clacked against the office floor like pool balls.
She barely glanced at us and went straight to her little desk which was in line with the opening that led to the walkway between the cubicles. Sarah our front desk girl was the first one to make nice with her of course.
“Hi Gelasia, I am Sarah nice to meet you!” she said this and extended her arm. Gelasia in return extended hers.
The introductions continued throughout the day until it was down to Rebecca and I. I went to the lady’s room and found her on her cell phone.
“Hi, I am Chl-,” but before I could finish she threw up a hand and I guess she meant I should shut it. I proceeded to wash my hands and a minute later she got off the phone and said to me,
“Next time you’re trying to introduce yourself to someone you wanna wait till they’re not on an important phone call?”
She draped her long sandy blonde hair on her left shoulder and walked out of the restroom. I looked up at the mirror to see my squinty hazel eyes roll at her rudeness.
“What the hell was he thinking?” I said to Rebecca.
“She’s hot and she types,” replied Rebecca. She showed her pearly whites at this, something she always did when she was proud of a comment she made. Today she was dressed in a black pair of skinny jeans, a ruffled top and her most prized pair of Louboutin shoes. She was probably the tallest Chinese I knew. She took pride in her status as a fashionista. I wasn’t too bad of a dresser myself. I wore skin tight clothes that fit my petite 118 pounds body and I constantly wore heels to look taller.
“I know his secretaries are usually a bit skanky but they were always nice, like that one Jennifer chick or Lucy. I’m telling you Rebecca that girl’s a total bitch,” I said.
“I believe your restroom story, but maybe she really was on an important call. Besides that was Monday and she bought you lunch yesterday.”
“Yea give her a gold medal and put her picture in the hall of fame. Chick bought lunch for the whole office so of course she’d throw mine in there,” I replied.
Gelasia had taken everyone’s lunch orders yesterday, even Mike the custodian who never talks to anyone. She then singlehandedly delivered everyone’s lunches. She went to all twenty four cubicles, five private offices for the managers and the closet that Mike had convinced Trump to let him use instead of the break room so he could be away from civilization. I don’t see why he didn’t use it considering no one really used the break room. We all ate in our cubicles and worked through lunch. Conversations took place via email, text and random shouts across the room. Our office was busier than a bee hive during spring most of the time.
“She may be a nice person,” said Rebecca, “I introduced myself yesterday,” she winced as she said this as she anticipated my reaction.
“What? Wow, you think you know a person. I can’t believe you.”
“Chloe chill out. I’m not gonna work with the girl and just not talk to her because you think she’s a jerk. You didn’t even give her a chance.”
“What?” I shrieked. “I gave her a chance in the restroom.”
By now I was pretty frustrated so I got up and went to the coffee room. I threw a bagel into the toaster and started wrapping my fingers in my thick black curly hair thinking how sad it was that everybody seemed fooled by Gelasia’s facade.
The stupid toaster began to burn my bagel and I started muttering to myself when Gelasia walked in.
“You know, having a fit won’t fix the toaster,” she said this and smirked.
“Oh, well smirking about it won’t fix it either,” I retorted.
“That’s no way to treat someone who bought you lunch.”
“I didn’t ask you to buy me lunch.”
“Well if I was gonna buy lunch for all the losers in this office I might as well buy for you Carly.”
“The name’s Chloe.”
I rolled my eyes and left. Goodness gracious this girl was acting as if she was queen bee and this was high school. How immature.
#
On Wednesday she came up to my cubicle. “Hey um a bunch of us are going out tonight and I already invited Rebecca who won’t go unless you go so what do you say CHLOOEE, truce?”
I hated the way she enunciated my name, it made me feel stupid.
“No, I’d honestly rather not. I have other engagements,” I said. She scoffed as I said this.
I lied but I was not going to go out with this chick. No way. Her little truce wasn’t fooling me, not a bit.
“C’mon Clo,” yelled Rebecca from her cubicle.
“Fine,” I said. I was in no mood to go back and forth with Rebecca. And maybe she really meant a truce.
#
We were having a blast at the restaurant. Tony was there, Rebecca, the copy room guy Marvin, Sarah, Nicole from cubicle five, and two of Gelasia’s friends Evan and Nicholas. Evan was very cute and I was taking little glances at him all night. Tony was borderline drunk and so was Nicole. It was about eleven when the waitress came by with the checks. I got my purse but couldn’t find my wallet anywhere. I nudged Rebecca to tell her but Gelasia overheard. What she said next was amusing to everyone but me.
“So first I paid for your lunch, now you need someone to pay for your dinner?” she said. They all laughed. My face was white as chalk.
“I have money I just can’t find my wallet,” I said.
“That’s what they all say,” she replied.
Rebecca covered my tab and I left the restaurant severely embarrassed.
#
The next day at work Trump called me into his office right before closing time.
“Care to explain this?” he asked throwing a pile of paper work in front of me.
I took it up and stared at him blankly.
“I would if I knew what it was,” I replied.
“I gave this to Gelasia to give to you this morning to be filed by three pm today. It’s four o clock and I found it hanging out in the coffee room.”
“Okay. Gelasia didn’t give me anything.”
“Fine,” he said. He hit the intercom button. “Gelasia, can you come to my office please.”
A minute later Gelasia was in the office.
“Gelasia, care to explain why Chloe didn’t receive this paper work that you were supposed to give her?” he asked. His face was stern and his brows were furrowed. Then again Trump’s face always looked constipated.
“I brought it to her cubicle but she ignored me so I left it on the desk. I called her name and everything but she didn’t even bother to look up.”
She was right. She did come to my cubicle and I did ignore her but only because of what happened the night before. And as for the papers getting to the coffee room, I had no clue.
“I’m sorry sir but she really didn’t exp-,” I tried to explain. He cut me off.
“Look Watson I’m tired of your crap. The secretary comes to your cubicle damn it pay attention it might be something important. Tomorrow morning you’re cleaning the meeting room and organizing the shelves. You’re excused.”
Yep she was definitely screwing him.
#
Friday morning I went into the meeting room. Rebecca texted me a smiley face and wished me luck. I was still a bit mad at her for laughing at the dinner but she had paid for my meal so I wasn’t showing it. But I did pay her back so I could still be mad if I wanted to be.
I had been in the room for an hour before I heard the doors open up but I didn’t look. Someone’s hands met over my eyes and I knew it was Tony; same cologne for three years.
“You’re not supposed to be in here,” I said.
“Yeaaa who cares. This isn’t fair and damn this place is a mess,” he replied.
The doors opened again and it was Rebecca. She had a cup of hot chocolate.
“I feel like a prisoner guys. Come on I’m just cleaning the meeting room,” I said and laughed.
“Tragic,” said Tony and he shook his head.
Twenty minutes later in the middle of a “wind beneath my wings” rendition by all three of us Gelasia walked in. She looked at Tony and Rebecca but said nothing. She had a huge box in her hands that looked well sealed. She walked over to me and glared at me.
“You set me up, and I don’t understand why. Like what’s your prob?” I asked. My composure was calm on the outside but a volcano was erupting within.
“Nooo, your papers grew legs and walked to the break room,” she replied.
She then proceeded to throw the box at me.
“Trump wants you to sort that stuff chronologically. It’s dated back to 1998. Have fun,” she said. At that moment I realized that as long as Gelasia would be in this office, work was going to be hell for me.
“I doubt Trump dug up a box of old paper work just for me to sort,” I barked.
This is when it all happened. I threw the box back at her so hard she caught it and lost balance. She slipped backwards and her hair flew up like a haystack caught in a tornado. Suddenly there was glass everywhere and Gelasia’s five feet four, tan slender body disappeared. All I heard was her high pitched scream and then a thud. In horror we all walked over to the shattered window.
“Holy crap they really should make glass from stronger material,” said Tony. He was already calling 911.
“Gelasia! Gelasia can you hear me?” Rebecca yelled this but to no avail.
The yellow line was in place, men in uniforms were all over the room. The managers all looked pissed and scared and we were awaiting interrogation.
“Everything will be alright Clo. It was an accident and we saw it,” said Rebecca.
“Chloe,” said Tony, “you knew where she was standing, why did you throw the box so hard?”
I thought about it for a second.
“Um, it was an accident,” I replied.