The notepad sat open on her lap as her eyes continued to skim over the thread. On the lined paper was a long list of questions she had for this mysterious original poster. Even though she was situated in a cluttered and hectic office, she easily ignored everything going on around her. It certainly wasn't typical office-dwelling behavior, but it wasn't considered uncommon for her colleagues, either.
A Cheeto came flying out of nowhere and assaulted her shoulder, leaving a smear of orange cheesy goodness on her favorite sweater.
"Erin I swear to God, you better have eaten breakfast this morning." A familiar masculine voice scolded her from behind.
"I did," she said automatically.
"Uh-huh. And I assume you're shaking just because of the air conditioning? That we don't have?"
"Will you can it?! I'm working on something!" She snapped, before taking a calming breath and turning her attention to a clean-shaven but still scruffy looking young man no taller than she, wearing a pair of acid-washed jeans and a polo shirt.
"I'm just… really concentrated on this." She muttered finally.
He snorted. "I can see that."
"Oh, relax." She waved him off. "Plus, I did eat this morning. I had a couple of shots of Dayquil before I left."
"That's… not food." David quipped.
When he didn't get the snarky response he was expecting, he glanced over to his companion, who was biting her lip in clear concentration and furiously typing away on her laptop.
He rolled his desk chair across the room, coming to a stop next to her desk.
"What's caught your intrigue today, my dearest colleague?"
She rolled her eyes, tucking her short red hair behind her ear. "Nothing," she said before adding, "just a personal project. So if you don't mind, I'd like to return to it." And with that she turned back around to her laptop, glancing over her notepad once more before starting to type again.
He grabbed her arm, halting her typing mid-sentence. "I'm pretty sure that can wait until after you've had something to eat. You know, ACTUAL food."
"What? B‐but I'm busy!" She screeched, horrified at the thought of losing her place in the writing. When he didn't relinquish his grasp on her she finally said: "David, I swear to god, if you don't let go of me I will actually kick in your kneecaps."
David raised a brow. Her exhaustion seemed to have shortened her fuse quite a bit.
At David's look, she sighed and tried again. "Look, I know you're concerned, but I really think I have an interesting story developing, and it requires my full attention." She protested as she pulled her arm out of his grip. "It's a damn good story, too. I wouldn't have to worry about rent for a long time—"
"How are you supposed to write if you haven't eaten anything?"
"David, this is really important, just look!" She said, gesturing to the laptop, where she had the thread open. He rolled his eyes but obliged, letting go of her arm in favor of scooping up her laptop and reading its contents.
At the laboratory I was stationed at, we were testing on the people in the surrounding area to develop a new virus. The main strain of Guilt I worked on was named Triti. It was developed from a failed cancer cure that we managed to get our hands on.
"Okay, that's… kinda fucked up." He mumbled before looking back at her and sighing at her smug expression.
"Okay, I'll admit, it caught my eye, but something like that can't be real, Erin. It's gotta be a hoax. Now c'mon," he said, snatching her arm once more, "I think it's time we get some food in ya. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, after all."
Before her cold-riddled brain could react, he pressed a hand to the small of her back and began to push her out of her cubicle.
"C'mon David, I'm not feeling so hot." She groaned.
David paused, before shaking his head as he ushered his friend into the elevator. "We'll just go get coffee then."
"Well, alright…" she muttered.
He huffed out a laugh as they continued out of the office doors and down to a diner across the street.
She glared up at David as he pushed them through the door. "This place? Really?"
"What? What's wrong with it?" He asked.
"It's gross…" she mumbled under her breath as they slid into a small booth.
"Calm down, Erin. All diners smell like this." Just to accentuate his point he inhaled, before faltering and doing a horrible job of hiding his cringe as the putrid stench of grease assaulted his senses.
She wheezed out a laugh that sounded a bit more congested than usual, before pulling out her phone and continuing to read the threat where she'd left off.
He sighed heavily at the sight. Boy, when she wanted to do something, she just went ahead and did it.
"Alright, so what the fuck did I just read back at the office? Do you want to explain it to me?"
"Isn't it insane?!" She asked eagerly. She was clearly excited about the idea, but she quickly schooled herself, laying her boney elbows down on the table.
"This guy was talking about this… doomsday cult. That's what it sounded like to me, anyway." She began to explain, her eyes never once leaving the screen. "This story just has too much detail for it to be made up! … I wonder if this organization is real, and if the user chose to join it or not…" She wondered aloud, before breaking out her pen and jotting it down on her forearm. At this point her arms were littered with notes.
"Does it?" He asked, starting to get a bit curious. From what he read, it seemed like a hoax, but he knew Erin better than to have fallen so easily for some random internet post. There obviously had to be more to it if it caught her attention.
She nodded, continuing to scrawl the thought onto her skin with one hand while she slid her phone over to him with the other. He picked it up and began reading.
That was when the US government found us… We had no choice but to flee. After all, we couldn't risk being caught by Caduceus. If we were, they could get a hold of our notes, and use them to develop cures even faster than they were already spitting them out.
David pressed his lips together, before he muttered the first thing that came to mind.
"What the fuck is 'Caduceus'?" He asked.
"I don't know, but it's exciting, isn't it?"
He glanced up, smiling slightly at the excited gleam in her eyes.
"Yeah, it is," he agreed. He had to admit, it was an interesting idea. Plus, it always made him happy to see the way Erin's eyes lit up like that whenever she found a story like this. She'd been down in the dumps lately, so seeing this look of elation on her face was always a nice change.
"Can I get you sweethearts anything to eat?" The waitress asked.
David's eyebrows shot up into his hairline as a blush broke out across his face. Erin simply rolled her eyes.
"We're just friends." She simply, very much used to telling others by now.
"Oh, goodness, I'm so sorry!"
"It's fine. It happens all the time," she said.
"Er… w-well, can I get you anything to start with?" She tried again.
"Just a pot of coffee for now, thanks. Oh, and maybe a stack of pancakes." Erin said, and the waitress nodded and left for the kitchen.
"I… thought you weren't hungry?" David questioned suspiciously.
"I'm not, but I didn't think you'd be able to order anything while you were too busy blushing like a virgin."
"Oh my god," he hissed, his cheeks flushing red as he pushed her from across the table. "Don't fucking start with me, Miss Introvert."
"It's your fault for bringing me to this… greasy breakfast… hole."
Before he could comment on that statement the waitress set the pot down on the table, along with two mugs and a small tasse of creamer. David thanked her as she walked away, before turning back to Erin with a sigh.
"Look, I get that it's an interesting story, but still, you can't starve yourself over a story."
"Watch me," Erin muttered into her steaming mug. "With coffee, I can pretty much do anything… including starve myself" she added with a sarcastic tinge to her voice.
"Jesus, Erin, you need to get your priorities straight. Like… how about food? And nutrition? And sleep?"
"Coffee first, then priorities." She uttered, taking a sip and reveling in the heat it brought her shivering body. She looked back up at David and tried to say something before sneezing violently, nearly dropping her mug. She sniffled. "Ugh, this cold is screwing me up."
"Yeah, and you're getting sick because you're not eating."
"No I'm not. I just… haven't had enough Dayquil, clearly." She mumbled into her cup with a frown. "Oh, speaking of which, can we stop by the store and grab some more on the way back to the office?"
"Sure, as long as you eat something, first." Dave replied.
"Fine," she said finally, before picking up the menu and idly flipping through its pages. "I'll see what they have."
He knew she was pouting at the point of him forcing her to eat, but he wasn't too concerned about it. After all, she had to eat at some point.
He sat back, sipping his coffee as he watched his friend flip through the menu and silently contemplated what this 'Caduceus' thing could be.