CHAPTER 5
Damn those lips. It just doesn’t seem right that he’s so hot and pisses me off so much, in just a short period of time. Like it matters. It’s not like I wanted to date him or anything. It just sucks when eye candy bites. Puns totally intended. Bastard.
I walk aimlessly around the hallways, as I have absolutely no idea where I was going. As I walk, the heavy feeling in my chest begins to drop to my stomach making me feel rather nauseated. Maybe if I can find a snack machine or something around here I could calm myself down. Food can cure what ails. I didn’t get to be this size if I didn’t believe that. Well, I don’t really believe it, but I sure as hell practice it.
Everything in this place is stark white. As I’m walking through halls with the white walls and white tiled floors, I get the strange feeling of being trapped in a mental hospital. Or maybe that’s just my subconscious trying to tell me something.
As I round the corner, my head lowered in contemplation - yeah, that’s it, contemplation - I am nearly knocked over by someone who is walking with a purpose. As I stumble and reach out to grab a hold of anything to keep from falling, I am absolutely petrified when I realize that I have latched onto the waistband of the pants being worn by the man who had nearly plowed me over. Thankfully he is quick enough - not to mention willing and strong enough - to hold onto me and keep me from sliding onto my rump on the floor.
As I hold onto him like my life depended on it, I look up into the face of a relatively attractive man with long, light brown hair that was pulled back into a ponytail at the base of his neck. The best part is that instead of laughing at me, his face looks genuinely concerned.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
“Aside from the tingling excitement of humiliation, I’m peachy.” He nobly supports my robust weight as I struggle to stand straight. “You would think that after twenty-seven years I would have learned how to walk without falling.”
He laughs heartily, his eyes shining with amusement, “It’s totally my fault. I should have been watching where I was going. I’m just so hungry that I was trying to get to the cafeteria as quickly as possible. But if I had to run into someone, thankfully it was someone soft enough that the impact wasn’t too painful.”
What the hell. Did he really just say that? Since he is still holding onto me, I pull my arms away from him and take two steps back. My eyes dilate with shock as my lips slightly part. I turn away from him and resume my walk without saying another word.
A heaping plate of humiliation with a side of degradation. Not exactly the comfort food I was after. Maybe it was a big, whopping mistake taking this research position. I officially feel like the universe is kicking me while I’m down. But evidently the universe is not done with me yet.
“Hey, wait!” I hear footsteps rushing up behind me. I choose to ignore them and keep walking.
“What’s wrong? I kept you from falling. I was just trying to be nice. So why are you being rude to me now?”
Dead stop. Rude to him? Oh, the gall! I turn to him with the iciest stare that I can muster. I look him straight in the eyes and sneer, “Someone soft enough that the impact wasn’t too painful?”
He smiles at me sheepishly, “That’s a GOOD thing.”
I cannot move. I cannot talk. Did I actually fall and hit my head? I just stood there, feeling stupid. How do I respond to that?
He sticks out his hand, “My name is Tucker Dutrieux. I’m really sorry that we ran into each other and I hope that you’re not hurt. I’m on my way to the cafeteria. I can show you where it is if you’re interested.”
I look at his hand, as I am not completely sure how to respond. What kind of game is this guy trying to play? Sighing deeply, I decide that it didn’t really matter as long as he led me to food.
I shake his hand, “I’m Emma Burcham.” That’s all I can think to say. He’s already called me fat, so I didn’t want to confirm his candid observation by saying “lead me to the food.”
Tucker looks at me expectantly as he continues to hold my hand, only slightly shaking it. An uncomfortable silence begins to grow. I withdraw my hand from his.
“The cafeteria is this way,” he motions down the hall, “If you want to follow along.”
Shifting my feet, I quickly smile then turn in the direction he indicated. We start walking; the silence between us is almost suffocating. It’s like the air was made thicker by the awkwardness of our encounter. I want to say something witty so that I can break through this disconcerting smog, but can’t come up with anything, which means that anything I would say would be totally lame.
We continue to walk in silence.
When we get to the cafeteria, it’s just as bland and white as the rest of the facility. There is one row of food warmers a la the high school lunch line, complete with plastic trays. I don’t know where to begin as my heart says “one of everything,” but my brain knows better. Tucker hands me a tray, then begins scanning warmers to make his first choice.
I pick and poke at the food, taking very small quantities of vegetables and meatloaf, uber-aware that Tucker is frequently glancing at me. I pick up a bottle of water and quickly move to the cashier line. After paying, I scan the seating area for an empty table, sit down and internally berate myself for the small quantity of food on my tray. I keep my head down as I unwrap my silverware and nearly fall out of my chair when Tucker plops down beside me. Ugh, now I’m not going to be able to eat at all.
“I’m starving. I didn’t get to eat dinner, so I haven’t had anything since lunchtime. Thankfully this cafeteria is open 24/7.”
I slightly smile at him, not sure if I should ignore him or attempt to be polite.
Tucker attacks his food with much gusto while I sit there making tracks in my mashed potatoes with my fork. He looks up at me and asks, “What? You’re not hungry?”
Busted. Now I have to do something. Distraction is the best course of action.
“So which team are you working with? I don’t remember seeing you in the room this morning.” I start to slowly take small bites of my food.
“Oh, I’m not a researcher. I work for the government archives. My job here is to collect data on the project for posterity and all that. In a way I’m a reporter who reportstothe government instead of reportingabout it.”
Hopefully that will be enough for him to leave me alone so I can try to eat without drawing too much attention to myself. I really just wanted some time alone to process my disastrous first encounter with Rick. I guess I could ask him to sit somewhere else, but that would be rude. My best bet would be to quickly eat my food then tell him that I needed to get back to work. I could then take a stroll around the facility while I gather my thoughts. Sounds like a good plan to me. Or not.
Tucker smiles at me, “How did you come to be working on this project?”
“I applied like everyone else. I have a background in environmental engineering and with my experience, I was one of the lucky fourteen.”
“Who did they pair you up with?”
“Rick Allstedt,” I reply.
“Ah, so you were paired with a vampire,” he states matter-of-factly.
“How did you know Rick was a vampire?”
Tucker smiles, “I’m an archivist, remember. I know a little bit about what’s going on here. I may not know faces, but I know names and some about each person’s background.”
I raise a questioning eyebrow, “So you really didn’t need to ask me how I came to be working on this project?”
He winks at me, “Just making friendly conversation.”
I look down at my tray, smiling just a little as a tingling sensation rippled throughout my body. Was the wink his way of acknowledging that he knows more about me than he’s revealing or could he possibly be flirting with me? Best not to think too much about it.
“Do you live around here?” he asks.
“Don’t you already know that?”
He laughs loudly, “I know where Emma Burcham is from originally, but I don’t know where she’s currently living.”
“Well, right now I’m currently living in Rowan. At least until the project is completed. Then I will return back to my permanent home which is in Huntington.”
“Oh, you never moved away from your birthplace?”
It is rather unnerving that he knows things about me, including the fact that I was born in Huntington. What else does he know?
“I’ve lived in a couple of different places, but none very far from Huntington. Until now. I’ve never even visited southern West Virginia, so Rowan is a complete mystery to me.”
“Maybe when you get done with your shift I can show you around town,” Tucker smiles brightly.
There’s that tingling sensation again. I feel like a fumbling fool because I don’t know exactly how to respond.
“That’s a friendly gesture.”
He grins rather deviously, “Well, I can be a friendly person...to some.”
Now I’m blushing. I concentrate on my food so I would have a reason to escape this situation as soon as possible.
“How are you and Rick getting along?” he suddenly asks.
Startled, I reply, “Fine, I guess. Are you...a....”
“A....What?”
“A vampire?”
He chuckles, “No, I’m human. You can’t tell?”
“My radar has been off recently.”
“Well, maybe that means they’re getting better at hiding it. Or else humans are becoming more animalistic.”
I give him a blank stare, saying nothing for several beats.
Tucker’s head drops. “I’m sorry. That was bigoted of me.”
I nod slowly. Wanting to change the subject, “You’re not from West Virginia?”
“Not originally,” he responds. “I was raised in upstate New York, but I’ve lived in West Virginia for the past ten years.”
I continue to nod, feigning casual interest.
“So are you a coal miner’s daughter?” he asks with a bright smile on his face.
Another blank stare.
“I’m serious. Was your father a coal miner?”
No longer able to withhold my irritation I say, “You’re serious. My father was an accountant. Not everyone from West Virginia works in the mines.”
He holds up his hands, “Whoah, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I try hard not to roll my eyes. “How can you, in the space of mere minutes, go from being an outright bigot to being naively prejudiced?”
“What?” he responds. “That’s SO not what I meant.”
I stand up, no longer caring if I finish my food. “Now what I find ironic is thatyoucalledme rude.”
I calmly walk out of the cafeteria without looking back.