"Good morning, Dr. Cormier," the woman started, "Rachel Duncan. You'll be reporting to me. Let me show you to your lab and your team."
Rachel looked like a no nonsense, straight to the point kind of person. She was cold, her short bob angled, making her look even more rigid. Delphine was nervous, but not about the job. She was one of the top scientists in her field, she knew she could handle the work. She was anxious about meeting the people she would work with, about being in a new environment. The uncertainty was scary.
Delphine followed Rachel down a long corridor. The walls were so white, it looked like an institution. Rachel pushed her keycard up against the lock as the door to the lab buzzed open. As Delphine walked inside, she saw all the state-of-the-art equipment. She gaped in awe. She knew DYAD had a lot of money, but she hadn't realized how nice it would be.
"I hope you'll find this to your liking, Doctor. Let me know if you need anything that has not been provided," Rachel stated.
Delphine noticed the two forms at the corner table who looked up as Rachel spoke.
"Dr. Cormier, this is your team. Cosima Niehaus and Scott Smith."
"Hello," Delphine said as she forced a smile. The man was extremely nerdy looking with wireframe glasses and a dorky smile. He got up to greet her.
"Hey," he muttered shyly, "welcome. Very pleased to be working with you."
The woman followed. She was wearing her white lab coat over tight black pants with what looked like multiple shirt layers and a scarf. Her head held a massive amount of dreadlocks. She looked at Delphine through her glasses with a warm grin.
"Hi, I'm Cosima."
"I'll leave you to it," Rachel butted in before turning and leaving.
Delphine was at a loss for words. That had been a quick orientation.
Cosima giggled slightly, looking at Scott. She saw the look on Delphine's face.
"Should we tell her already, Scott?" Cosima asked him.
"Cosima, it's her first day," Scott whined.
"Tell me what?" Delphine asked.
Cosima chuckled again. "Oh, just Rachel, she can be a bit much. Don't let it bother you. We have a special nickname for her, but seeing as it's your first day, I think we'll skip that for now."
Delphine shrugged, placing her bag on the lab table. "Ok, well, would you like to get me up to speed?"
"Sure thing," Cosima answered. "Welcome to the team," she said warmly.
Delphine liked her energy. She was grateful to be working with someone who seemed so friendly. She needed that; she did not need to have that added stress in her life that came from working with terrible people. She had really been hoping this work environment would be good, and so far, she felt at ease in Cosima and Scott's presence, so she took that as a good sign.
Cosima and Scott showed her the ropes. The way they spoke about the research gave her confidence. They knew what they were doing. The day was more pleasant than she had expected it to be and she allowed herself to feel a glimmer of hope that things would indeed get better.
She arrived home, pouring herself a glass of wine to relax and boiled some pasta, sauteed some broccoli to go with it, and made herself up a plate. She sat at the table alone, quiet, as she got lost in her thoughts again.
"Do you want some parmesan?" she asked Jen.
"Yes, thanks," Jen answered, sneaking a bite of the food in front of her. "Baby, this is so delicious. I love when you cook for me."
Delphine grinned. "Of course, I love making you happy." She brought the cheese to the table, sitting to eat, staring lovingly at her beautiful partner. "So I was thinking about our honeymoon, and I wanted to know if you would want to go to Paris with me. I would love to show you around, show you all my favorite places."
Jen smiled back at her, "That sounds very romantic." She took Delphine's hand in hers, squeezing gently, "I want to go anywhere with you. It will be amazing."
Delphine's heart felt like it could explode with love.
Delphine's phone buzzed, knocking her back to reality. She looked down, seeing a text from her father, asking how she was settling in. She smiled and answered him, thinking about how much he had helped her through everything. He had been her rock.
She cleaned up her meal, washing the dishes and putting away the leftovers. She didn't like cooking for one, but it was her only option. She was used to it by now anyway; she had been doing it for almost a year and a half.
She sat in her chair with some of the documentation she had taken home from work, sipping her wine, and reviewing the research. It was very thorough. She was excited to work with Scott and Cosima. They looked to be as smart as her and she knew they could do something great together.
She began to feel tired around 10pm and decided to get in bed. She placed her papers on the coffee table, heading into the bedroom. She found her toothbrush, staring in the mirror as she brushed. The bags under her eyes were not as prominent as they had been months ago. She was sleeping a little bit better recently. She noticed the slight wrinkles starting to form around her eyes. She didn't quite recognize herself anymore.
She stripped off her shirt and bra, getting down to her boxer shorts, and climbing into bed. It had been a long day. She fell asleep before she could let her thoughts wander again.
