Evening descended upon the vast complex of SAGE HQ.
Still dressed in white shirt and jeans, Lourdes ate her dinner of prawns, lamb chops and mashed potatoes at the Employees Cafeteria. A tall glass of orange juice stood beside her white food tray.
"Can I sit with you?"
Lourdes looked up and saw Georgia, smiling and carrying a tray.
"Sure," Lourdes said.
Georgia sat down and ate her salad. She'd ditched her lab coat for a more casual sleeveless pink blouse.
"You okay?" Georgia asked.
Lourdes dug through her mashed potatoes. "Yeah, I mean, considering. I just feel so overwhelmed right now."
"That's understandable, it's really a lot to take in. That's why we want you to take your time."
"Schmucks, I'm really expecting to wake up any moment now. This is all just a dream, right?"
"Don't worry, sweetheart, you'll be just fine."
Lourdes watched Georgia fork her salad. "How long have you been working here?"
"Nine years this June, transferred from NASA, which was my first job out of college."
"What's your field?"
"I'm a neurosurgeon, but I also have a degree in robotic engineering."
"Wow, how nerdy can you get?"
"Oh, you don't know the half of it. I haven't even told you what my hobbies are."
They laughed.
"Is he a monster boss?" Lourdes whispered. "I mean that Castle guy? He seems so grumpy."
"Oh, not at all. BC3 is a good man, a very compassionate man, actually. If you ask me, I think his stern, stiff appearance is just an act. I think it's his way of hiding his soft, gooey side."
"Obviously it's working. I don't see it at all."
Georgia dabbed her lips with tissue paper. "Don't worry, I'm sure you will. Maybe sooner than you think."
Sporting a gray tank top, black jogging shorts and white Nike cross trainers, Lourdes jogged around SAGE HQ just as the sun was rising. Beads of sweat formed and slid down her forehead. She ran along stretched rows of tall trees and heavy foliage, interspersed with white buildings of different shapes and designs.
Going back after her fourth lap around the campus, she spotted Jeeno coming out of the Personnel Quarters building, holding a sandwich on one hand and a cup of coffee on the other. He donned his usual sleeve-folded, plaid, button-down shirt, jeans and NB sneakers.
She crept up behind him. "Hey."
He turned around, startled. His coffee spilled as he swung his arms.
"Aw!" He grimaced when the scalding hot liquid seared his hand.
She squirmed. "Oh, sorry, are you okay?"
"Yeah," he squeaked. "I'm fine."
"Where you headed?"
He pointed straight ahead. "I was on my way to that bench over there to eat some breakfast."
"Oh, may I join you?"
"Ummm, sure, that'd be...yes, that'd be great, where's your food?"
"I'll grab some, wait right here." She dashed to Personnel Quarters.
YOU ARE READING
Wrath Of The Butterfly: Rayah Reyes Chronicles Book 1
ActionLourdes was just a typical teenager who'd recently graduated high school, until a heinous crime left her family dead and put her in a coma. Her medical condition attracted the attention of a mysterious international security agency, which took her i...
