Chapter 13

After they finished dinner, they all went their separate ways but Meg texted Christie after she got home.

-How was the ride with Ralph? -

-It was ok, but you know that I have been... kind of... seeing someone. -

-But you said he hasn't tried to make it official, and I know for sure that Ralph really likes you! You should give him a chance. -

-Meg… I really like this guy; I'm not really interested in anyone else. -

- All the more reason to break things off if he doesn't feel the same, save yourself some heartache. -

-Idk… we just have this connection that I've never felt with anyone else before. -

-Does this guy feel that way about you too? -

-I'm not sure... he hasn't asked me out on a date officially, and he is really confusing. -

-Well, I would hate for you to just get strung along, especially when such a cute guy has the hots for you...-

-LOL, the hots?!-

-Just give Ralph a chance, you are technically single, so what's the harm in one date? -

-I'll think about it, but I don't think I can just tell my heart to move on. -

She connected her phone to her charger. 'Maybe Meg is right about Erik… But Ralph just seems so superficial…' she thought. For the rest of the night, she couldn't get Erik out of her mind, the way he took such good care of her, and how he was so tender when they were alone. She just couldn't understand why he wouldn't kiss her, or ask her on a real date. The last time someone had hit on her, Erik had gotten him fired, and even though she wasn't crazy about Ralph, she didn't want that to happen to him.

The next day, when she got off of work, Erik wasn't waiting for her like he usually was. She looked for him at his desk, but he wasn't there. She sent him a text asking him where he was, and if everything was ok, but he didn't respond. She waited for over 15 minutes and then started to worry. She waited another 20 minutes back out by the elevator and then walked home alone.

The darkened streets seemed darker and more threatening without Erik walking beside her. When she finally got home, she messaged him on Skype and emailed him, with no response from either. She finally called him and left a voicemail.

"Erik? It's me… umm… it's Christie, I mean. Is everything ok? Please tell me you're alright. Just call me or text me. I'm a little freaked out, but… umm… just call me back. Bye." She ended the call and stared at her phone. "Maybe he is sick or sleeping or something… I just hope you're ok. You better be ok." She said aloud.

The next day was the same, and that entire weekend, she didn't hear a word from him. She was sure that he had died or that something terrible had happened to him. On Monday, she went down to the basement during her break and he wasn't there. After work, she invited Meg over because she didn't want to be alone. They walked to Christie's apartment and they drank hot cocoa. Christie finally told Meg everything. About how Erik was the guy that she was seeing (kind of) and how he was also the tech guy and about his burns. She even told her about how he had gotten Joe fired. She also told her how he would walk her home and cook for her. Meg took it all surprisingly well.

"So, what made you tell me all of a sudden?" Meg asked when Christie was finished.

"Because he disappeared and I don't know how to find him and I'm going crazy keeping it all to myself. I haven't seen him since last week and we used to see each other almost every day. I don't know what to do. He doesn't answer my texts or calls, or emails. I go down to where he works every day, but he isn't there!" Christie's eyes filled with tears. Meg leaned over and hugged her.

"Don't worry. I'm not sure what happened to him but we will find out. We can ask Ms. Gary tomorrow, maybe she will know something." Christie nodded, wiping her eyes. It was such a relief to talk to someone about all this. Christie and Meg spent a few more hours talking before Meg had to leave.

The next day at work, they went into Ms. Gary's office together.

"What can I help you girls with?" She asked, giving them her full attention from the start.

"We were wondering if you could check on an employee." Meg asked.

"What do you mean, 'check on them'?"

"It's Erik Bellom, you know the tech guy who works in the basement. Christie is friends with him and hasn't heard from him in a while, so we just wanted to make sure that he is ok." Ms. Gary looked from Meg to Christie solemnly. Something in her expression made Christie think that she knew all about Erik. Ms. Gary began typing something into her computer. She clicked through a few different screens then looked up at the girls.

"Well, he seems to be fine. He has been clocking in and out each day at his normal times and he hasn't had an unscheduled absence in some time." She looked at Christie and smiled, but her eyes looked sad. "Maybe he just needs some space." Christie looked down and nodded, she and Meg left the office.

"Why would he just be ignoring you? I don't get it." Meg said.

"I guess he just doesn't want to talk to me… I mean, it's not like he owes me anything… "Christie responded sadly. At lunch she went to the basement again. She went to his desk and saw that there was a half empty water bottle there that hadn't been before. She reached down and felt the chair, it was still warm. She whirled around and squinted at the dark shelves. "Erik? Listen, I know you're there… What did I do? Just tell me what I did wrong." Her voice broke and tears filled her eyes. "Why won't you talk to me…?" She whispered and sank to the floor, silent sobs wracking her body. She heard footsteps and when she looked up, Erik was standing at the edge of the shelves, just within the light cast by the computer screens. "Erik?" She asked, quickly standing up. He smoothed his hat down almost nervously.

"Listen, I think you should go." He said distantly. His voice returning to the odd clipped manner that it had been when they first met. He was keeping his distance at roughly two or three yards. Christie longed to close the distance but when she stepped forward, he stepped back.

"Erik, are you ok? Where were you?" She asked him desperately.

"I'm fine, but you should go." Was all he said.

"But… what's wrong?" She stammered, utterly confused.

"I don't want you coming down here anymore." He said ruthlessly. Christie choked back a surprised sob.

"Erik…I…"

"Would you just leave? You shouldn't be here! You should never have come down here." He interrupted angrily, the room echoing his words to her. Christie suddenly felt a surge of anger; she wiped her tears and steeled herself.

"Not until you tell me why." She said with clenched teeth. Her hands balled up into fists. He sighed exasperatedly.

"You are getting too attached to me. It would never work between us and we are just kidding ourselves with whatever this is." He gestured between them. All of Christie's doubts and fears came rushing back. This explained why he never tried anything… he just wasn't attracted to her that way, she thought.

"Thank you for being honest with me." She said numbly with tears running down her cheeks. Christie turned slowly and stiffly walked to the door, he didn't stop her. She walked down the long hall and got into the elevator.

"It's better that I know how he really feels." She told herself. She went to the bathroom to compose herself and then finished her day at work. She told Meg that she had seen him and he told her that he didn't want to be friends anymore. Meg tried to console her but Christie didn't need much consoling, she seemed fiercely optimistic. She told herself that she was done crying over him. If he didn't want her, then she would prove to herself that she didn't need him, she was no stranger to loss.