Here is the next chapter! For the next two weeks I will be traveling in Italy, so I am going to try very hard to find a way to update my already written chapter two, but I'm not making any promises...
Thank you Katie for looking this over! I hope you all enjoy this, and please make my day with your reviews!
Show and Tell- Chapter Two- Judgment
The room was spacious. But as Michelle lowered herself into the strikingly uncomfortable chair the walls seemed to lean in a little, the air became hotter, a bit harder to breathe. "I wonder if Chappelle turned up the thermostat to make us even less comfortable in this "meeting"… she thought idly, trying to not think about the impending ordeal, or how Jack always used this tactic to get information he wanted, at the expense of the interrogated. The back of her mind alerted her to stay focused.
She watched Tony sit in a matching seat next to her, and her eyes followed Ryan Chappelle as he eased himself into a plush rolling office chair on the other side of the desk. He kept his lower back rigid, but still allowed his shoulders to hunch as he placed his hands together on the clean table in front of him. Michelle realized exactly how piercing Chappelle's eyes were at that moment. Now she remembered why she was so terrified of him when she started working at CTU.
With a sinking revelation in her stomach, Michelle took note of the sudden deafening silence and tried to talk—to say anything to fill the void. But she couldn't. Her throat felt dry. Michelle was never the type of woman not able to express her emotions, but in a situation where her future was on the line, she simply couldn't put anything into words.
Tony saw his fiancée's eyes slowly start widen as each person waited for the other to start the conversation. Now or never, thought Tony, and decided to take the plunge.
He deliberately reached the few feet to take a hold of Michelle's slightly sweaty hand and squeezed it tight as he leaned forward to begin this suspicious early-morning meeting. He had opened his mouth to begin with a friendly "Mr. Chappelle…" and Tony was taken a back when the man in question interrupted him.
"I had a feeling this was coming," Chappelle started, sounding gruff and irritated while watching their fingers loving tangled, hanging in the open space between their two metal chairs. Then he looked at Michelle who was flushed pink and Tony, who wore an unclassifiable expression. "Ever since we talked a few months ago, I've been waiting for this day. Are you coming to me to talk about your relationship? Or do you two just like making me come to work early on a Monday?"
It was an open-ended, meaning-loaded question. Neither knew how to immediately respond. Michelle's skin was feeling hotter by the second, her whole body felt flushed. Again, she found herself unable to use her voice, so she was thankful when Tony expressively looked at her then straight at Chappelle while replying, "Yes. We're engaged."
Michelle could feel the tension building in the room. She knew that if she said nothing now, it could be bad. The sweat prickled on her hairline and the words suddenly came flowing out of her. "Mr. Chappelle, we are good workers…good at what we do here…work well…together, just please—" Although they were what she had been planning to say, they were not presented as eloquently as she would have wished.
"Enough!" his fist lightly banged on the desk, causing a few papers to quiver. "I will not be spoken to like this." Michelle was only slightly comforted by the gentle circular stroking of Tony's thumb on her hand.
"You, Tony," Chappelle continued, "know very well why inter-office relationships are frowned upon!" The soft stroking abruptly stopped. Michelle realized that Tony was about to go off on Chappelle, and that now it was her turn to soothe him. She tenderly tugged his hand towards her, which forced Tony to turn his head and catch the message in her eyes.
He sighed and turned his focus to Ryan, "I love her and no matter what you say we're getting married. The question is, are you willing to lose your two top agents?"
Michelle, sensing it was her turn to pipe in and solidify their bond to this man said, voice unwavering, "Your choice Mr. Chappelle."
The three of them sat in silence. Out of the blue, Tony was strangely reminded of the day, not too long ago, when he and Michelle sat united against Chappelle in a holding room, and together, they broke down the man in charge… Much in the way that he hoped they would now. The memory made a small chuckle threaten to escape him, but he was forced to repress it.
Face stony Chappelle replied, "I had a feeling it would come to this. I am not happy…" he trailed off as he reached across the desk to reach the phone. He pressed one button and when the operator came on, he barked at her, "Get me Hammond over at Division on the line… now." It was uncanny, thought Michelle, how his eyes never left us while making his phone call.
It was all up for grabs now.
Less than a minute later the opposite end of the speakerphone line crackled to life, introducing a new participant in this fight. Months ago, Chappelle told Tony and Michelle, that for safety and undisclosed reasons, he would notify Brad Hammond of their involvement. At that point, neither Tony nor Michelle wanted anybody else in the office to know the details of their relationship. And, although it was never brought up, they both noticed the tell-all glances Hammond made between them during District-wide meetings, trying to see if anything work-distracting was between them. Of course, Hammond found nothing, Tony and Michelle made sure of that.
The couple found themselves re-explaining the situation to Brad on the phone, this time more articulate and moving, this time Michelle found her voice enough to make several valid points. When there was nothing left for them to say or point out, Tony and Michelle fell silent. The groan of an adjustable cushiony chair could be heard, followed by a deep sigh.
For what felt like an eternity to the pair being judged, Hammond finally spoke. Three people listened intently, hung on his every word. "This, well, this is not a good position to be in," Michelle moved restlessly in her chair, Tony felt himself making a face at the phone's base.
"…But, as you've shown no problems in the office thus far, we have no choice to tolerate this," Weight was lifted off Michelle's chest; she could practically feel herself floating farther from the floor. The happy pressing of Tony's fingers on hers made her incredibly blissful.
And Hammond continued, "But one too many mistakes from one or both of you, and there will be major problems."
"Thank you Mr. Hammond, thank you so much." Michelle breathlessly spoke in the direction of the phone set.
"That will be all, thank you, Brad" said Chappelle gruffly before disconnecting the line. Again, there was silence, but this time there was no sense of fright or foreboding. All was going to be ok…
"I might not fully agree with his decision, but this will have to be put up with."
At this, Tony and Michelle shared a smile, nearly oblivious to the fact that Chappelle was still staring them down.
"And, Tony… Aren't we all already late for the Monday morning meeting you are supposed to be running?" Chappelle snidely commented while rising from his seat.
Tony looked at his watch, and noticed his tardiness to his own meeting. Chappelle walked out the door, obviously heading toward the conference room, forcing the other two to trail in his wake.
Halfway out the door, Tony turned to his fiancée and kissed her. They rested their foreheads together, a brief moment of rest before tumbling into the rest of the day's work.
Michelle absentmindedly fiddled with the ring on the chain around her neck as she walked beside Tony as they made their way to the conference room.
The hard part was finished, she thought, but the day was not yet over…
TBC