I'm just going to apologise for this from the off. I got gradually more intoxicated as I wrote this so it's likely to be awful - sorry!
"Where is it?" Serena asked herself as she hurried past Bernie, turning over every piece of paper in the office. "Where is it? Where is it? Where the fuck is it!?" Bernie flicked her eyes up briefly from her computer screen,
"What are you looking for?" she asked, eye line back on the word document she was typing up.
"The report!" she exclaimed, turning over every piece of paper in a pile up to her waist. Bernie continued typing as she half-heartedly asked,
"What report?"
"The one on the leak Bernie! The one I've spent the last month writing, where the hell is it?" Serena's panicked voice finally captured Bernie's full attention, as she knew how stressed she was about this whole situation without bringing the pregnancy into it.
"Ok well just calm down, when was the last time you saw it?" she asked softly, standing up from her desk chair and walking towards the other woman. Serena raked her hands through her hair and exhaled anxiously as she lowered herself slowly into her own seat. "I don't know, I printed it out last night before I left but I can't remember where I put it, and I'm supposed to be in a meeting with Hanssen in ten minutes but I can't go without this stupid bloody report, and I'm so tired I feel like I can hear my own eye bags!" Bernie walked over to where the brunette was sitting with her head in her hands, and placed her own hands on her tense shoulders as she knelt down in front of her.
"Ok. Just take a deep breath and chill out for a minute," she advised calmly as she scanned around the room for the report.
"Bernie I can't, I don't have the time to chill out! If I'm not at this meeting he will eviscerate me and hang my intestine up around his office for everyone to see, but actually, that might not be so bad because at least if I'm dead I won't be throwing up every five minutes." As she listened to her very anxious and stressed friend her eyes settled on something in the corner of the room. On top of the little grey printer was a stack of papers, kept together with a paper clip. Bernie stood back up from her crouched position and strode over to pick up the pile. Once she had confirmed it was in fact what she hoped it was she returned the document to Serena and explained,
"I remember now; you were clipping it together when you ran off to throw up and then you felt so ill I got your handbag and sent you straight home." Serena's eyes widened as she remembered the events of the evening before.
"Right I need to get to this meeting like..." Serena looked up at the clock "three minutes ago oh shit" and then went to practically run out of the shared office.
As she reached the double doors out of AAU towards the stairwell Serena almost collided head on with another person.
"Will you watch where y-" she stopped suddenly as she looked up from the pile of paperwork she was sorting through as she walked, and clocked the face atop the body she nearly walked into.
"Hi Serena" Robbie spoke softly, his deep voice bringing back all the feelings she thought she had ditched when he left. Instinctively she brought her hand to her belly, the sudden realisation that she was going to have to tell him, hitting her with brute force.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she forced out in barely a whisper, desperately trying to keep the tears from welling in her eyes. Abruptly coming back to reality Serena returned to her earlier task and went to walk through the doors she had been stood in front of. Robbie grabbed her arm as she went to leave, eyes widening in fear as she growled back at him with much more confidence, "I have a meeting to get to. Get your hands off me, I'm pregnant." and returned to her walk up the stairs to Hanssen's office, desperately trying to ignore all the thoughts and feelings in her head and the ever present nausea swirling in her stomach.
Three brisk knocks on the wooden door were responded to by Henrik Hanssen's stern voice,
"Come in." Serena took a deep breath and entered in haste. "Ahh Ms Campbell, nice of you to join us at last" Hanssen's face was deadpan as he greeted the consultant. Serena kept quiet and sat in the single seat at a table facing opposite Hanssen, and two board members.
"One time Henrik! How on earth was I supposed to know that would be the day someone decided to steal my car?" Serena was becoming infuriated with the CEO's line of questioning.
"Ms Campbell, the point is the press want someone to blame and I can't have it be me. Now if you'll excuse me, this will have to continue at a later date; I have another meeting to get to." Hanssen stood up and walked over to the office door in order to let Serena out. As she crossed the doorway she turned back to face Hanssen.
"I just want this to be over" she announced, her voice thick with emotion as he vision began to cloud.
"As I thought Ms Campbell, but your tardiness today suggests otherwise," Hanssen replied, moving to close the door between them. Serena took a deep breath and stepped backwards, blinking furiously to clear her vision. Through gritted teeth she replied,
"The reason I was late is I was searching for that ridiculous report you made me compose. I stayed here so late finishing it last night that Ms Wolfe had to practically force me out of the building and by this morning I-" Serena stopped momentarily, closing her eyes, trying to regain her composure as her legs fell weak. Her heart was racing against the wall of her chest as Henrik Hanssen called her name in confusion.
"I-" she tried to continue her sentence but as she felt the bile rising in her throat her mind was overcome by darkness and she fell to the floor at the CEO's feet.
"Serena?" Bernie's voice was barely a whisper as her friend and colleague was wheeled on to AAU with Hanssen at her feet. "What the hell happened?" Hanssen looked at the Major,
"She fainted outside my office. Heart rate is fast and she hasn't regained consciousness. Bernie was suddenly in an impossible situation, the debate going on her head felt like hours of strung out indecision, but three seconds later she announced,
"She's pregnant; we need to get her up to obs and gyne, now!"
"Hey honey" Serena awoke feeling groggy, conscious of the slender fingers wrapped around her own hand.
"Wh-?" She went to sit up rapidly, confusion dancing in her eyes but Bernie placed a gentle hand on her shoulder as she explained,
"You fainted. Mr T has checked everything over and baby is fine, but your blood pressure's a little too high so he's going to keep you in overnight." The brunette consultant relaxed wearily back into the pillow before her colleague began speaking again. "Serena I went to your house to pick up an overnight bag," Serena's eyes widened as she remembered the state of her home over the past few weeks. Bernie took her hand gently between her own fingers again, "Don't worry, I understand. Listen though, I was thinking; maybe I could come and stay with you for a few weeks, just until the morning sickness wears off at least, then we could take it from there." A sweet smile graced the other woman's face, as for the first time in weeks she felt safe and loved. As Serena began to drift off back to sleep, a sudden thought crossed Bernie's mind.
"Oh, by the way, I saw Robbie earlier" she stated absently. Suddenly Serena sat bolt upright in bed,
"Me too! I told him I'm pregnant and then disappeared upstairs," she announced, giggling slightly at the memory, and the look on Bernie's face.
Thanks for reading!
R x
