The ballad of Akir James

twenty -two |3|

          SOMETHING SEEMS OFF. I couldn't put my finger on it. It seemed everyone had their eyes on me, and it was making me nauseous, to make matters worse, everyone kept checking their phones. Lately, the anonymous texts kept popping in, and I have to keep having to mute them. Because I was using my phone to make notes and reminders.

    It was a general staff meeting for both branches and I wasn't too happy about it. I pulled out my tablet and laid it on the desk when Georgina plopped down beside me. We had a break for fifteen minutes, and she decided to pop over to my table to say hi.

"Is it me, or everyone seems glued to their phones," I voice out.

"It's the rumor mill circulating about a male manager staff being a batty boy. Someone overheard them in the bathroom doing it." Georgia whipped, and my body stiffened.

Was someone in the bathroom?

   My inside flips with nervousness as I reach for my pen. I dared not look up, Torando was sitting across from me.

"Look, there's a poll?" She reached for her phone.

"Excuse me, is this seat taken?" A guy dresses in a white button-up Shirt, black work pants, and white loafers. "No," I answered, and he took the seat his peppermint-scented cologne floating onto my nose. Something about his face seems familiar like I have seen him before. Didn't he exist in the bathroom before I went inside?

"I am Terrance," he introduced himself, giving me a firm handshake. I did the same.  "I am Georgia," Georgia leans over in my lap and shakes his hand, smiling at him. She likes him already.

"Which branch are you from?" She took the question out of my mouth.

"Yours, you're looking at your new branch manager." He says, and she squealed. I squeezed my ears shut.

"Are you always handsy with all your co-workers, Managers at that?" He asked, looking at Georgia in my lap. Did he just look at my crotch?

"No, we're close friends. " She straightened up in her seat. He leaned over, pressing into me, barely leaning into me, and my inside twisted at the gesture. He smiled almost flirty at me before pulling away. When Seth walks up not looking so hundred.

"I am not feeling well Ms. Georgia, can I leave?" He leaned into his friend.

"Are you sure you can manage to get home?" Georgia asked, I stood up, allowing him to sit down in my chair.

"I call someone to pick me up," he managed to say through wet eyes, resting his head on my files. I felt his head he was burning up.

My cellphone rings. I glanced down to see Venzi calling, and I answered.

"I am outside." He says into the phone.

"Can you help me get him to the front? His ride is here." I turned to Terrance.

"Here is his stuff," Aloria handed me his bag and a medium-sized gift bag.

"Thanks," I say, I took his stuff, sliding his bag onto my left hand and hitching him up as Terrance took his other side before he could hold him. He throws up, and Georgia shirks, as she reaches for a trash bin.  After we felt he was finished, we carried him out.

     "Hey," Venzi leaned off his car and rushed up towards us, reaching for Seth, his hands sliding between Terrance and Seth's waist.

"I told you to call in sick." He says to Seth.

"I couldn't leave Akir alone. The asshole is here." He managed to say.

"I am sure Akir can handle himself," Venzi says as we both set him in the car. Seth grabbed onto Venzi and was about to kiss him, but Venzi quickly pulled away. I watch him buckle his seat belt as he leans over on the dashboard, gripping his stomach.