CONFIDENT

WKLY Prompt #28: CONFIDENT

↪ CONFIDENT ↩

"Do you know why I hired you to be my assistant, April?" Mrs. Clarke peered at her with charcoal gray glasses at the tip of her nose. A sinister smile crept upon her face, which was typical.

What wasn't typical was Mrs. Clarke's acknowledgement of her existence. April swallowed in fear, not saying a word, and Mrs. Clarke took that as her cue to continue,  "Exactly, April. Because you know when to stay silent. Not all assistants can do that."

She let out a sigh of relief.

Just the normal, unpleasant attitude. No crazy rant thrown at me today, and she didn't find out I'm resigning from HR yet. She thought, triumphantly. Mrs. Clarke never paid attention to emails from HR anyway; most went directly to April.

April nodded, excusing herself after informing her that her younger sister would be coming upstairs soon. She didn't want to end up being told to run a million errands, so she got out of there as fast as possible, closing the amber stained wooden door behind her.

"Don't forget to send off those finished articles!" Her loud, demanding voice called out in the distance.

Today, I won't be quiet. I'll be confident. She chanted to herself repeatedly, attempting to raise her spirits. Still, anxiety sat deep within the pit of her stomach, causing her to spill coffee everywhere in response to the rich sound of a familiar voice.

"You've got to be kidding me." She muttered to herself, erratically patting her black pencil skirt. At least it won't show.

She raised her head with a blush, already aware of who stood in front of the tall desk that surrounded her. She tucked some of her honey colored curls behind her ear to see her longtime crush clearly. A set of beautiful, earth-shattering blue eyes pierced through her, and not long after, a captivating smirk crossed her visitor's face.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you, April." Her visitor said, stuffing her hands in her khaki shorts.

"That's a lie, Ryker." She rolled her eyes, and that made Ryker grin harder.

Ryker held her hands up in defeat. "You're so easy to mess with, really, it's your own fault."

When April was admitted into NYU for journalism five years ago at the age of eighteen, she thought all her problems would be solved. Everyone raved about how she'd be able to kick her struggle with anxiety in college and emerge as a spirited butterfly rather than a timid caterpillar. They said it would come naturally.

That wasn't the case at all.

Instead, while most of her friends became independent, bold young women, she cowered in the closet, afraid to face her biggest secret. Only her psychiatrist knew, after years of digging into the true reason behind her uncontrollable anxiety. It wasn't till her last year of college that she came out to her best friend, Alia. The courage she fostered in that moment was unlike anything she encountered before. In truth, nothing in her life came naturally. It was her who humbly worked to improve her writing skills. It was her who paid rest of her way through college after being awarded as many scholarships she could find. It was her who landed a job as an assistant to a top editor in the field, and it was her who fought her way through a nearly debilitating mental illness and won after so many years of her life were taken away.

Now, the only thing that was left was to stand fearlessly in her truth: not only in one identity, but in both.

She was ready to show Ryker the real her, the April that wasn't just a bashful mess. They'd had countless conversations before about Ryker's bisexuality, so she knew wouldn't judge her. Even if she turned her down, April decided she'd move on because if there was any lesson she learned, it was that some things weren't meant to be worried over.

"Ryker,—" The beginning of her question was interrupted by Mrs. Clarke's overbearing presence.

"April, can you take all of Emilia's birthday gifts to the venue. I have my 3 o'clock before heading over there, and I just don't have the time..." She trailed off and took a second to look over Ryker's outfit before substituting her expensive prescription frames for sunglasses.

"...and make sure you change before her party, Ryker. Preferably, something less masculine. This won't do at all." She walked pompously into the elevator, leaving Ryker behind.

"Sorry, April. Hopefully, we can talk another time when the dragon can't interrupt." She winked and followed Mrs. Clarke out.

"I guess I blew it. Maybe there isn't a right time for a reason." She mumbled to herself. It was her final opportunity to ask Ryker out for a drink, and she blew it. We can't win them all. She reminded herself. What was more important was that she finally worked up the courage to start a new journey in her career, something she never thought she could do.

Because Mrs. Clarke's daughter was having a thirteenth birthday party, she told April it was fine to leave early. Her final responsibilities were the thirteen large, hot-pink gift boxes cluttering the seats, trunk and roof of her car. After struggling to make it across town, April got out of the car and began unloading the gifts with the help of the event planner Mrs. Clarke hired. She counted them all twice before leaving the venue due to her constant demon: apprehension.

But now, she was finished, and she was finally able to become to freelance journalist she originally set out to become. It was the freedom she always craved, and it was the freedom she was finally mentally ready for.

She was back at the office and began writing her resignation letter when the infamous tone she set for Mrs. Clarke rung on her desk.

Mrs. Clarke urged, "One last thing, April. There's an extra present I left in the left drawer of my desk. It's much smaller than the others. I'll be back in a few moments to get it."

"On it, Mrs. Clarke." She replied before hanging up. It didn't take her long to lock the door again and make her way to the lobby of the building. The warm summer air rushed into the air-conditioned building, and April's expression turned to one of surprise at the sight before her.

"Ryker?" She questioned. Her heart rate sped up, and a variety thoughts began rushing into mind. The biggest one being: take the chance!

"You didn't think the dragon lady would actually pick it up herself?" Ryker joked while April placed the small pink box in her hand. Ryker slipped it in her pocket and couldn't help but stare at April.

For once, April didn't think anymore. She didn't let the outrageous thoughts govern her entire existence. She didn't let the anxiety of what-ifs stop her. "Do you want to go out for drinks tomorrow night? Just you and I." She blurted, stumbling over a few words.

Ryker didn't seem surprised. In fact, her expression held her usual grin. Her reply was simple, completely different than the millions of scenarios that dominated April's mind:

"Definitely."

It seemed that all April ever needed to do was go for it.

word count: 1224