Hearts Under Ice - CS Patra Page 0,20
a prick to anyone, and he never treated them like they were below him. He even put a few dollars into the tip jar at the cash register, which she rarely saw anyone else do.
“I hope you don’t mind me picking this place.” Olivia found a booth for them and squeezed into one side. She had picked a simple lunch: a turkey and avocado bagel sandwich with a bag of chips and a small iced tea. It wasn’t much, but she was starving, and it fit into her budget. “I wanted to choose somewhere that’s close by. I know you are pretty strict about taking lunches on time.”
“Oh, you didn’t need to worry about that. We’re in this together, so no one can complain. Besides, this is just what I needed. I’ve had paperwork up to my chin, and I’ve barely gotten through most of it.” He admitted, getting settled into his seat. “Thank you, Olivia. I wasn’t sure how to interpret your message at first, but I like this. I like being able to talk to someone outside of work for a change.”
“I know that was kind of unexpected of me, but I’m glad you said yes.” Olivia twirled a strand of her hair around her finger. She considered telling him about forgetting her lunch, but held off. There would be a time to talk about her absent-minded nature, but now wasn’t it. “I don’t really know anyone else here, and my Internet’s not working at the moment, so I can’t waste time there.”
“I’ll make sure they take care of that problem,” Donnie promised. “You probably won’t be using the Internet that much during our work, but I know what you mean about wasting time. I rely on it, too. It helps make the day go by faster.”
“Oh, yeah.” Olivia nodded, searching in her mind to keep the conversation going. It felt strange that he was so smart, yet no one really knew him. “Can I ask you a question that might seem a little strange?”
“I highly doubt that any question you have will be strange. I have had people ask me about everything, from aliens to zebras.”
“Well, this one is a little more personal. You may not want to answer.” She took a deep breath. “How come I’m the only one allowed to call you by your nickname?”
“Everyone’s allowed to call me by my nickname. It’s just that they choose not to.”
“Have you ever wondered why?” She looked down at her coffee cup. “You told them that it was no problem to call you by that nickname, but they treat you like their boss. I mean, you are their boss, but—”
Donnie’s face fell. “I know. I’ve tried to be friendly with everyone, but I guess I have always given off that kind of vibe. People just turn away from me, even though I try to be nice. I want to hang out with them, like they do with each other.”
“Is that why you’ve opened up to me?” she asked, though she already knew the answer. “Was I the first person who didn’t turn you away?”
“I guess. You were willing to listen to me ramble yesterday, so I figured that maybe you might be interested in what I had to say.” He shrugged. “Tell me the truth, Olivia. Am I creeping you out with all this? I’ll stop. I get a little carried away sometimes.”
“Huh? No!” she shook her head strongly. “I was a little confused as to why you’ve opened up to me before, but I know why now. I found out from other people, so I guess I felt a little sorry for you.” She immediately regretted the words as soon as she saw the look in his eyes change to one of dejection.
“You don’t have to pity me, Olivia. In fact, you don’t have to talk with me just because you’re feeling sorry for me,” he insisted. “I’m used to feeling this way. I was so excited that you talked to me that I guess I must have given off the wrong vibe again.”
“It wasn’t out of pity, and you weren’t giving off any wrong vibes. I just—you intrigued with all your time travel talk.”
“Really?” he perked up again. “Do you believe in bending time and space?”
“Not exactly. It’s just that it’s interesting. It scares me a little bit,” she admitted. “I’ve read way too many stories about people who did mess with time, and it altered everything. What if your calculations were wrong and you