I headed for the bedroom and slipped into my best suit and made sure I was everything that represented the firm. I looked classy and put together. I looked powerful. When I walked out of the bedroom, I didn’t miss the almost sad expression that Anna wore at the sight of me in the suit. It was like she hated that this was who I was, but I couldn’t change that. I worked my ass off for my position and I wouldn’t give that up.
Anna
After watching two movies, eating all the pizza, and drinking the entire bottle of wine, I called it a night. It was well past midnight and I was tired from all the wine. I didn’t want to go to bed though, not in this fancy apartment. It didn’t feel like home, and even though it was comfortable and luxurious, it felt stale and too clean all at the same time. Even though my trailer was drippy and ugly, it was still more homey than this white room that made me feel like I needed a straight jacket.
I played with the controller, trying to figure out how to lower the shades. I managed to get every light in the house to turn on, make a pot of coffee, and turn the television on full blast, but I had no luck with the blinds. Tossing it on the nightstand, I flopped back down on the bed and sighed. This was not what I thought this weekend would end up like. I had imagined us laying around and talking like we used to, but we had barely talked at all. It was like we were missing so much information from the past thirteen years that we didn’t know where to start.
I wasn’t sure what possessed him to take me out to that fancy dinner or to buy me those clothes, but it wasn’t me. After knowing me all throughout high school, how could he possibly think that material things were something I craved? He knew that I wanted a family and someone to love. He knew that with a drunk mother that never cared, I craved someone’s attention. That hadn’t suddenly disappeared after all these years.
I rolled over in bed and beat the pillow, hoping I could find a comfortable position. I tossed and turned all night, but still nothing helped. When the sun finally rose in the sky the next morning and there was still no sign of Robert, I decided to call him. The phone rang and rang, but he didn’t answer. What if he got in an accident? In a small town, I would hear about it immediately, but in Chicago, he would just be another person out of millions. It’s not like I would turn on the news and see his face. Right?
I went into the living room and found the keyboard thing to turn on the TV. I got pretty good at using it last night. After pressing a few buttons, I finally found the news and started flipping through the stations, sure that I would hear about his dead body being found in a dumpster or in the river. I passed a new station, but suddenly flipped back when I thought I saw his face. It wasn’t him. It was just a TV anchor that looked similar. I flicked the TV off and got up from the couch, moving to the kitchen to make myself some coffee. Except, I forgot that everything here was run by a damn computer and I couldn’t figure out how to work it.
I got dressed and headed out, snatching the spare set of keys on my way out. I needed coffee and food, and then I could decide what I was going to do from here. It took me fifteen minutes of walking around to find someplace to have coffee that wasn’t extremely overpriced. Who would pay seven dollars for a coffee? I sat down and scrolled through my phone as I drank my coffee and ate my scone. All the rest of the food was healthy stuff that I wouldn’t dare put near my mouth. I decided to try Robert again, just to see if he was coming home sometime soon, but I still got no answer.
Sighing, I grabbed my coffee and headed back to Robert’s apartment. But when I got there, the doorman stopped me from entering.
“Excuse me, ma’am, but you’re not allowed in unless a resident lets you