CH 9: Examining the Consequences

*Claudia's POV*

Alright. Maybe I went a little overboard with the whole speech thing, but Myka has no right to assume this has anything to do with me and my mixed emotions over Sie! And I really have no right to assume anything about her and H.G., but truth is I'm caught up in it now and I feel like it's partially my responsibility they're fighting now.

I didn't get much sleep last night. I don't think any of us did, actually. Well, maybe Sie, but if I were her I'd be nervous about this big evaluation. Other than that H.G. is probably stressed over spilling the beans, Myka's freaking out over her fight with H.G., and Claudia's so preoccupied with the fact that she may have made things ten times more complicated for everyone that she doesn't even realize she's talking in third person! Oh wait...

Anyway, Artie promised Myka the day off, so I drove Sie to work today.

She yawns. "Why do you gotta get here so early? Myka doesn't gotta be here until laterer..."

"Later-er?" I inquire.

"It could catch on!"

I stop the vehicle.

"Sie, I get the feeling you're not taking this evaluation very serious." I inform strictly.

"Claud, darling, relax!" She smiles.

Yeah, and I'm the ONLY one who's been an influence on her?

"If there's one thing I know about tests, it's like auditions, and if there's one thing I know about auditions, it's that you got to be yourself!" Sie reasons. "So in order to good on my test, I gotta just be myself."

"But being yourself is what earned you this early performance review in the first place!" I stress.

"I'll be a more organized an respectful version of myself then." She shrugs.

It wasn't about her agreeing though, or even just agreeing to get it over with. I wanted her to understand how terribly serious this is, and for her to show even a little hint of nervousness.

There was no getting through to her though. I figure the best thing I can do now is make sure she gets there on time, and the rest is in her hands.

"...are you mad at me Claudia?" She whimpers in a shaky voice.

I throw my head back. "No, Sie. I'm not."

She remained silent for the rest of the trip. I didn't mean to upset her... but I didn't want to make things worse before her review.

When we finally got there, the regents were already there talking to Artie about Sie's current work ethic. Considering he doesn't want us anywhere near the actual 'warehouse' part of the warehouse anymore, it would make sense that he was telling them good things. At exactly 7 o' clock, everyone's here and the regent pulls Sie off into a private section. As much as I want to go with, I know it wouldn't do any good.

"To reiterate, due to my early meeting with Mr. Kenny, we will be holding our meeting here as opposed to the Bed and Breakfast." Artie summarizes. "So I need you all to focus! Now, Steve, originally I had you to work with Sie today, but because we're unsure of her employment status, you will be reviewing the 'tiki torch' flies on your own." He informs.

"Let's hope it stays that way, am I right?" Pete offers, but no one shares his excitement.

"Eh-hem. Anyway. Claudia, I'll have you in charge of warehouse maintenance. I think everything's cleaned up in there, but go ahead and double check to make sure everything's as it should. That is, after the regents are done with the first part of Sie's evaluation..."

"...sure."

I heard what he said, but my eyes were fixed to the ground.

"H.G. and Pete, that leaves you two on retrieval! Like I was saying about the torch, there's a similar item located in an old burial ground up by-"

Before he can finish his sentence though, the doors swung open and we all turn our attention to Myka, who strut into the room with poise.

Wasn't she supposed to have today off...?

Without swaying her sight, she continues walking at a steady pace toward the group. Artie tried to ask her what she was doing here, but her eyes were focused and filled with determination

**Myka's POV**

I pause in front of Helena. Long enough to let her acknowledge my presence, but not enough for me to stop myself and think about what I was doing. There's no turning back at this point.

Before she's able to get a word out, I sling my arms around her waist and push my lips vigorously against hers.

I felt her try to pull away at first, probably in shock of what had just happened. Soon she started to accept, though, and I felt her arms cling against my body.

"Ladies..." Artie spoke. ...or maybe it was Pete.

I couldn't tell. My head was buzzing from lack of oxygen, and all I could concentrate on was sucking Helena's face, holding her to me by pressing my hand on her upper back. Though, she didn't seem like she was going anywhere anytime soon. After about thirteen seconds, I realized that I wasn't supposed to keep my mouth to hers this long, only long enough to get my point across, so I pull away.

We were only a few feet away from each other then. Helena store at me wide-eyed, mouth agape.

"Myka..." She began, her face becoming deeper shades of red the more she realized that everyone had seen.

"I, um..." I begin, still with my eyes fixed to Helena. "I think I'm okay to work today."

There was silence. Awkward; yes, at first. There was a tinge of consent though, a certain respect about the air in approval of what I'd just done- which, I can't believe myself.

"Yes, well, if you feel capable of working then please join us." Artie mumbles.

I step aside. Obviously he didn't know how to react to this, but that's not my issue.

"...as I was saying, H.G. Wells and Pete will head out to snag the torch. Everything should be listed in the file. Myka, I think I'll have you do some research on-" He searches his files. "This."

No idea what it was, but he dismissed us afterwards. We all disperse to our designated areas.

As I'm sure people were talking about what had happened, Helena and I didn't get a chance to discuss the event. It was absolute torcher having to go all day long wondering what she must be thinking...

She was about to say something after the kiss, but it never came out. I don't know if she was happy or upset or feeling completely exposed or okay with it.

So I sat by myself in the warehouse and looked over the random file Artie had hastily pulled in order to get us all to leave. Something about an old statue? It was hard to concentrate with so much on my mind. At first Claud was coming up and bugging me, but after the actual 'warehouse' part of the warehouse opened up, she was directed to go inside.

"Don't come out until your work day is over!" He shouted.

It shouldn't be a problem for her though. He just wanted her to wander the isles and make sure nothing was out of place. She'd probably do this for about five minutes, then go away to her little hiding nook and play her musical instrument thing.

She kept claiming that what I did was bold and unexpected, and I should be proud of myself. She also brought up that I shouldn't worry about Helena not approving of what I did. Claudia has confidence that Helena enjoyed my surprise, but that's easy for her to say!

But me and Claudia are already back for the night. With Helena out on the job, and Sie not back from her performance review, all we could do is sit around and wait. And worry.

"What if she wasn't so found of my actions this morning...?" I ponder.

She was sitting across from me on the lobby couch, leaning way back with her head tilted up. "What if Sie doesn't come back...?"

"Sie's coming back." I moan for the last time. I was getting sick of her skepticism.

"Myka what if they fire her though? What if they don't want to near the warehouse, and they make her go back to college on the week days, and they just send someone to get her stuff, and she's gone forever and I never ever see her again!" The crazed women rambles, hardly breathing in between her sentence fragments.

"Worrying is not gonna help." I inform. "Just be thankful the regents are giving her a chance to redeem herself."

She looked ready to cry at this point, and I could tell she was holding back tears.

"What if she doesn't?" Claudia sobs.

I got up, sat next to her, and put my hand on her shoulder. "Look. Whether she made the cut or not, we won't know until she gets back. You're just going to have to be patient and wait for her to come to you."

She sniffles, and then looks at me. "Are you talking about Sie or H.G.?"

Oh god! Here I am telling Claudia to stop complaining, but that's all I've been doing all day. I need to listen to myself and just... be patient for Helena's return.

"We won't know anything for certain until they're back, so... it looks like we'll just have to wait."