Chapter 1 - Office Life

Eric Gidian sat in his cubical in an office building after hours doing overtime. He loosened his tie as he leaned back in his chair, sighing. A can of cold coffee tapped down on his desk.

“I can’t believe you’re still here,” his coworker and long-time friend, Karen Moltz, said as she leaned on the top of his cubical wall.

He picked up the can, mumbling a thanks before taking a slurp. “Ah… Well, I could say the same to you; you’re still here at…” he glanced at his watch. “Holy crap, it’s already 10 pm.”

"And for your information, I finished a long while ago. I had enough time to go grocery shopping and drive home before I realized I had left my house keys in my desk. I wasn't actually expecting you to be here still. They don't pay you enough to stay this late.”

"I need the money," Eric sighed. “And didn’t you forget your keys earlier this week, too?”

“S-so what?” her face turned bright red as she frowned. "It can happen to anyone."

“Maybe you should get a clip and attach it to either yourself or your purse. You know, one with those long springy things, so you can use it while it’s still attached.”

“What am I, a little kid?”

“Well…”

Karen rolled up a few papers on his desk and smacked him in the head.

“Ow. Watch it; those documents are important,” Eric reached out to take them from her.

“Ah!” She fell back and bumped into the cubical wall. The papers scattered across the floor. “Sorry,” she knelt down to pick up the papers that trailed to the other desks.

“Don’t worry about it,” he sighed and tried to reorganize his papers.

“How much do you have left to do, anyway?”

“I just need to print out this last report and hand them in.” He downed the rest of his drink, hoping it'd at least help him get home without passing out.

“In that case, I’ll wait for you.”

“You don’t have to—”

“You haven't had a car in a while because it broke down, right? The busses have already stopped, it's too far to walk, and it’s too pricey to take a taxi, so I’ll drive you.”

“I don’t know… it sounds dangerous.”

Her jaw dropped. “Are you insinuating I’m a poor driver? Geez, I try to be nice and this is what I get?” she stomped away.

“Wait, wait, wait! I’m kidding.” She stopped. “I’d appreciate a ride home. Thank you.”

“Okay then, I’ll wait for you in the lobby.” Karen gave him a small wave and left.

“Okay… and printing.” He made his way over to the printer. “No paper… Why can't anybody else refill it? I swear it's always me.” He grumbled to himself as he rummaged through the cupboard for the right paper. He slid the paper into the tray. "Please work. Please don't jam; I don't want to deal with that right now..." He printed out his report. "Thank goodness," he sighed.

With his newly printed and older documents in hand, he stapled them together and placed them on his boss’ desk.

“I should finally be done with overtime for a while,” he said to himself in a sing-song voice.

Eric made his way to the lobby. “Sorry for the wait, Karen.”

“At least you showed.” Karen glanced at her watch. “I was starting to wonder if you got lost or passed out at your desk again.”

“I’m not that late.”

“Whatever, let’s go,” she pulled out her car keys.

Eric loosened his tie, and after putting a frozen dinner in the microwave. He flopped down on the couch, letting out a long sigh.

Knock, knock.

With a groan, he forced himself off the couch and headed for the door.

“Eric, your rent is late,” his landlord, Mr. Lawrence, said as he loomed over him, arms crossed and foot tapping.

“Sorry… I get paid in two days; can I get it to you then?”

“Two days? Yeah, okay. You’re a good, quiet tenant, so I can wait that long.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Sure, just try not to make this a habit or I'll have to evict you.”

“I’m sorry; money’s tight while I keep paying off my student loans.”

“Ah, I see. I was wondering about your situation,” he glanced past Eric at the mostly barren apartment. It didn’t seem as if he was wasting money on things he couldn’t afford, but it was hard to tell.

“It’s ridiculous how much it costs to go to college or university these days; that’s why I started a fund for my kids right after they were born. I doubt it’ll end up being enough to cover it—”

“No, it’s a great thing for you to do. Any bit helps, trust me. They’ll appreciate it in the long run.”

He nodded. “Anyway, I’ll leave you be now, bye.”

“Two days,” Eric said to his retreating figure.

Beep, beep, beep. The microwave went off. “I’m so glad these meals are cheap.” He had stocked up on frozen dinners when they were on sale for a dollar.

Eric sat in front of the old TV he found on the side of the street a few months ago, with his hot mac and cheese dinner in front of him. He ate as he watched the news on one of the few free channels he could get.

‘CEO Charlotte Burne has done it again with the successful opening of her new business, further securing her spot as one of the top businesswomen in the world.’

Eric stared at the woman on the TV in her business suit with long, beautiful brown hair.

She barely looks older than me and she’s a multi-billionaire. Eric thought as he glanced at his rundown apartment. At least I have is a roof over my head… for now, anyway.

Eric plowed through his dinner and flopped onto his bed. He was still hungry, but he passed out instantly, so the hunger pangs couldn't bother him.