Exasperated

(Ch. 5) Zoey's POV

            “Adam! Guess who’s on time!” Zoey exclaimed as she clocked in, right on time. Adam indifferently glanced at her, then the clock, and humored her with a golf clap.

            “Congratulations,” he intoned, disinterested.

            “Thanks!” Zoey grinned back, taking a seat at her desk next to Adam’s. “Although I guess it really isn’t all that huge a deal, considering I’ve been clocking in on time for the past three months. More or less.”

            Adam got up to go get the stapler on Paul’s desk for Sandra. “At least you kept your promise,” he said over his shoulder to her. Sandra rushed in, and before she could say anything, Adam handed her the stapler. She nodded her flustered little head and ran back out. Adam sat down again, Zoey’s eyes following his movements.

            “What?” he asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable under her gaze.

            “Oh... nothing... it’s just that... ” Zoey propped her head up with one hand, giving Adam a sidelong glance. “I never thought my new life in New York would be so... amusing. I was nervous when I first left Illinois, but I’m glad I did - it’s been pretty exciting since I’ve come here!”

          “Ha. I would hardly call this place amusing, especially if you’re including me in your exciting ‘new life’ here.” Adam readjusted his laptop screen towards him to see his screen better, inwardly scowling at the morning light aggressively streaming through the window. Dumb window placement.

            “Of course I include you in it!” Zoey exclaimed without hesitation, pausing in her search for a notepad. She looked at him and tilted her head questioningly. “And why? You don’t think that it’s fun working and living here?”

            Adam looked at her briefly before turning his head back to his desk. “Just get to work,” he said curtly, obviously ending the conversation.

            Hmph. In the three months that Zoey had known Adam, she had tried so many different ways to get him to open up. She quickly became accustomed to his blunt personality, but felt as if there was something else going on beneath the surface. She sensed that his frank exterior was just a façade hiding his true self, and she wanted to find out what he was really like. Perhaps she was being nosy or trying too hard, but darn it, she wanted to make some coworker friends! As she sent him one last glance, she frowned slightly, sighed, and returned to rummaging through her bag. For the moment, she had work to do.

* * * * *

 

            Zoey leaned back in her seat, rubbing her disquiet tummy. It was almost time for her lunch break and she was starving. She hadn’t made any plans to go anywhere yet, but she felt more confident in being able to find her way around this area in search of good lunch spots. With 20 minutes until her lunch break, Zoey started fantasizing about club sandwiches, warm soups, Asian rice bowls... she drooled a little. She glanced around and quickly wiped her chin, hoping no one saw.

            “Let me guess... dreaming of food?” she heard a very familiar voice say beside her.

            Zoey looked towards the voice, her eyes immediately lighting up once she saw who had spoken.

            “Bethany?!” Zoey practically screamed, jumping out of her seat and throwing her arms around her friend. “What are you doing here?!”

            Bethany laughed, returning her excited friend’s hug. “I got a week off for vacation. I went to Jersey to visit some relatives, and figured I’d spend my last couple of days here in New York with you! Surprise!”

            Zoey finally released her friend from her death grip, saying, “That’s perfect timing! I have tomorrow off ! We can spend the day together! It’ll be so much fun! I could show you around and... Beth? Uh... Beth?”

            Zoey noticed that Bethany was distracted. Bethany tucked a tendril of her long, black hair behind her ear and bit her lip briefly as she stared at something over Zoey’s shoulder. Zoey turned around and realized that her friend was not-so-subtly staring at Adam as he walked in from the other room looking down at a document in his hand, his hand lightly skimming the top of his neatly slicked back hair.

            As if sensing her gaze, Adam looked up at the pair, making Beth suddenly aware of her staring. She quickly turned away and grabbed Zoey’s arm to pull her off to the side, out of earshot of him.

            “Zoey. Who is THAT?” Bethany breathed.

            “Er... him? Adam?” Zoey asked, slowly catching on to the implications of her friend’s reaction. She grinned impishly. “You uh... want me to introduce you two?”

            Bethany’s pale skin reddened at her friend’s tone. “No! I can’t... talk to him, especially after he caught me staring... oh gosh, I feel like a little schoolgirl.”

            Zoey rolled her eyes, laughing. “And you’re acting like one too. Come on.”

            Zoey dragged her friend back to her desk. Adam had returned to his desk and glanced up at the pair as they approached him.

            “Adam!” Zoey addressed him brightly. “This is my friend Bethany. She had time off of work, so she came to visit me! We used to be college roomies.”

            Adam held out his hand politely to shake hers. “Hello.”

            Bethany shyly took his hand and cleared her throat to return his greeting. Zoey looked up at the clock, grinning like a fiend when it showed both hands on the big 12. An idea popped into her mind.

            “Lunch break! Beth, let’s grab lunch together, yeah? I have to tidy up a bit first, so you can wait for me in the lobby? Sounds like a plan! Okay, out!” Zoey said quickly, shooing her friend out the door. As soon as Bethany was out of the room, Zoey turned to Adam with the same devilish smirk on her face.

          Adam was just getting up to attend to his own lunch break when he noticed Zoey looming over him. “What?” he asked suspiciously.

            “Beth’s only in town for a couple of days,” Zoey started in a sly tone. “Maybe you’d like to get to know her better over lunch? With us?”

            “Eh. No thanks.” Adam got up and started walking to the coat rack.

            “What?” Zoey said, shocked, as she started following him. “Oh, come on! You’ve never told me about a girlfriend or anything... and I think Beth likes you! She’s just a bit shy. You two can get to know each other!”

            “Appreciate the offer, but again, no thanks,” Adam replied briskly as he grabbed his coat off the rack and shrugged it, walking past Zoey.

            “Oh, come on, Adam! It’s just one lunch! And she may be a bit shy now, but I think you’d like her once the two of you have opened up a bit... ” she grabbed the end of his coat. As if setting off a trigger, Adam swirled around and gave her a cold stare.

            “Zoey. I said NO. Your sudden interest in my love life and your incessant goading is quickly becoming VERY trying. You want me to open up? Fine. Let me tell you this, because it seems like no one else will: you are incredibly annoying with your constant prying, your intense desire to befriend me, and your attempts to set me up with a woman I barely know and have, up to this point, shown absolutely no romantic interest in. I am perfectly content with my current way of life and I don’t need you stepping in to 'help me out' or 'draw me out of my shell'. Just leave. Me. Alone.” Adam took a deep breath to gather himself, nodded shortly, then brusquely stepped past her and out the door.

            Zoey took a step back, completely stunned. She watched Adam’s retreating figure, feeling a mix of emotions welling up in her. That was the first time he (or anyone else, for that matter) had ever blown up at her. She felt... upset. At Adam’s stubborn personality and apparently, not-so-great opinion of her, of her own nosiness, and at the empty feeling sitting in the pit of her stomach. Right. Lunch. She sighed heavily as she quickly tidied up her desk and shouldered her bag to meet Beth in the lobby. Zoey had wanted to know what was going on beneath Adam’s hardened surface... but maybe, she thought, there wasn’t anything under that after all.

Author's Note

Let me know what you think :D