Caching In (17 page)

“Excuse me, Ally, we’re in the middle of something.” Daryl straightened his stance, placing his hands on his hips.

Chelsea remained seated, her bottom lip quivering. In all the years of our friendship, I won most of our arguments. I fought hard, sometimes loud, and she always backed down, let me get my words out, and rarely responded in a negative way. That was the thing about Chelsea - everyone walked all over her. She did anything anyone told her to do. “Ally…”

“You did, didn’t you?” For two months I tried to prove myself to Daryl for the job, and took on extra responsibilities no one in the office would do. I slaved for that man when everyone else came in just wanting to do their job and be done with it. The problem with people today was no one wanted to work. Everyone wanted something for free. Not me. I worked my ass off, and when the opportunity for promotion presented itself, finally, I worked myself even harder, and my best friend hijacked the job! But that’s what working ethically got you - on the pathway to failure.

“Ally, I know how much you wanted this promotion, but Daryl said I fit the job perfectly.”

“You screwed him, didn’t you?” Only explanation possible. She wasn’t smart enough for the job, and Daryl said himself
I
was in line for it.

Chelsea’s face fell, turning different shades of red before white. “How…why…”

I laughed so loud my voice echoed. Bingo. I was right! “How could you be so stupid, Chels? Do you think he chose you because you’re right for the job? We both know I’m the one who is supposed to get it. Yes, you need the money more. I get that. But, first you bad mouth me to him, and then whore yourself out for the position? And while you’re
pregnant
?”

“Whoa!” Daryl threw his hands in the air. “You’re
pregnant
?” Realizing the door still hovered wide open, Daryl hopped over to shut it. “You’re pregnant, Chelsea? How far along are you?”

She shrugged. “Almost three months.”

He raked his fingers through his hair, ran his hands down his face, and kept his hand on his mouth as he opened it wide. “I can’t believe this. Why would you … how could you … while you’re
pregnant
? I wasn’t aware you were even seeing anyone.”

My naive, pregnant best friend slept with our boss to win a promotion over me. I thought back to the conversation with my mom, and how she had been right. Chelsea wanted and needed to win. Nothing stood in her way to come out on top. She didn't win arguments with words - she fought dirty and won with her actions. “I can’t believe you did this.”

The tears welled up in her eyes. As they began to fall, she shook her head and dropped her head in her hands. “I’m sorry. I need the money, Ally. I can’t raise this baby on my own on what I make. And I didn’t sleep with him. I just -”

I put my hands in the air. “Stop. I don’t want to hear what you did or didn’t do.” I stared at her, my heart breaking as I realized she felt sleeping with Daryl was the only way to get the promotion and do something good for her baby. Had I not been so bull headed, and told her to take the job from the beginning, maybe Daryl wouldn’t have harassed her and made her sleep with him. Who was I kidding? He probably would have done it anyway because he was scum. That’s what scum did. Still, Chelsea didn’t deserve this. “I’m sorry, Chelsea, for everything.”

Daryl stood there, finally sitting back down as he tried to process the information of what unfolded in front of him. “Me, too, Chelsea.”

“Yeah, right.” I couldn’t hold back. “You’re not sorry for a damn thing, Daryl. You told her the only way to get the promotion was by sleeping with you. Even if you knew she was pregnant, you probably would have made her do something else. You’re a piece of shit, Daryl, and you know it.” My body shook and my heart pounded as I approached his desk. “You should be fired for what you did to her.”

Daryl stood at his desk, his arms folded. “I didn’t make Chelsea do anything she didn’t want to do. Did I, Chelsea?”

She tightened her eyes, looking at me, seeking the words. “I … he didn’t come onto me, Ally. I came onto him.”

“No. You didn’t. Daryl’s a shit bag. You can sue him, and you should.” I pointed my finger at him. “You tried to turn me against Chelsea, when in reality, you wanted me to suck you off, too.”

“Stop it, Ally!” Chelsea jumped up from the chair. “Just stop it! I didn’t do a thing I didn’t want to do. I thought it would help me, sure, but Daryl didn’t force me into anything.
I
took advantage of
him
. You may not think it’s possible for me to have my own thoughts in my head and to make my own decisions, but I do. I’m sick and tired of you thinking you can run my life and like you live this perfect life, too. Get over yourself, Ally.”

I didn’t know how long my mouth hung open, or how many minutes I stood there, staring at Chelsea, debating between being upset with her, or loving she finally stood up for her.

“Chelsea,” Daryl said, “I’m sorry you thought you had to do that. I, well, I like you. That’s it.” She lowered down to her chair, obviously clueless to his feelings. “Forget what happened. The job is still yours if you want it.” He then turned to me. “I don’t appreciate being wrongfully accused of sexual harassment, Miss Couper. You can leave. You’re fired.”

I had that one coming.

----------

As if the week couldn't get any worse, now I went from a possible promotion to no job at all. How in the hell could this happen? I prided myself on having my crap together. How would I pay rent, buy food, and what would I tell my mom? I refused to move back in with her, if she would even have me. How long would it take me to find a new job? The whole thing was ironic. So much of my time I spent being afraid to find something different, gathering the courage to search for a new job. Now, I didn't have a choice.

I rushed out of the bank so fast, customers could've mistaken me for a robber. I jumped in my car, realizing I didn't grab my lunch. Shit. No more incoming money meant I needed to save every piece of food I could get, but I was never going back in that place. Ever. I planned on closing my account because I didn’t want to keep my (soon to be dwindling) account there. In order to avoid embarrassment, I would need to go to a different branch. Fine. I left behind a yogurt and banana - barely two dollars. Possibly, the part of my brain that liked to overreact was taking over, too.

I started the car, and the tears flowed, trickles of my security racing down my cheeks, under my nose and tracing my mouth. I gulped in the air, until I drove with not only a fit of tears, but a case of the hiccups, too. Certain Chelsea probably accepted the job, I tried to remember despite how disgusting her methods were to obtain it, and she truly needed the money. If forced to live on Ramen noodles at thirty cents a pop, so be it. She needed to feed her baby.

The bank was only opened a mere ten minutes when I rushed out. What was I going to do with myself? I wanted to call Seth. I wanted him to pick up the phone so I could scream at the top of my lungs, asking if he was back together with his ex and why he lied about it. I wanted to shove my past in his face, and make him feel like a piece of shit for screwing me over the same way Josh did. After I finished with that, I would add the tidbit I just got fired, to make him feel worse.

Except it wouldn’t. Guys like Seth and Josh - they didn’t care about anyone but themselves. As long as they got laid and didn’t get infected with some STD, they moved through girls like we occupied a conveyor belt. Today proved I should accept my single status for life. One-night stands didn’t suit me, either, so I probably needed to invest in a cut out of Harry Styles and a vibrator. Of course, with no income, I would settle for a CD cover and washing machine.

The song “Happy” began blaring out of the radio, so I pressed the button to shut it off, surprised I didn’t hurt myself in the time being. “Fuck!” I smacked my hand on my steering wheel, pain vibrating through my hand. “Fuck!” I yelled again. I turned my head and saw a little old lady in a Cadillac next to me looking at me like she witnessed me eating someone’s head for a snack. At least if I were a zombie, I’d have a means to eat, and the whole losing my job thing wouldn’t make a difference.

I needed something - or someone - to snap me out of it. I grabbed my phone off the passenger side seat, well aware that I’d probably have to dump the smart phone at my next contract renewal if I didn’t find a job by then, and dialed.

“Perry!” I yelled his name at the sound of his voice.

“Hey, Ally. What’s up? Why are you calling me in the middle of the day?”

I pulled over to the side of the road to chat with him. I was nothing if not uncoordinated if I used my phone the same time I drove. “I had one hell of a night and probably an even worse morning.”

“Oh, no. Did you and that Seth guy get totally shit faced and do it in a public place, only to get arrested for indecent exposure?”

“You wish,” I told my brother, known for his inability to hide his affections in public places. “Worse.”

“What could be worse?”

In one breath I filled him in. “Well, I went to visit Seth last night after my boss told me how Chelsea sold me out to secure the promotion I deserved, and found out he was hanging out with his ex-wife, and I went off on my boss this morning when Chelsea got the promotion instead of me, and accused him of sexual harassment, and he fired me.”

“Slow down, Ally. Breathe.”

I snorted as I sucked in more tears. “What am I going to do?”

“Come see me. Come to Nevada.”

“Um, did you hear me? I lost my job like five minutes ago. I can’t afford that.” Every penny to my name I needed to use wisely, and only one more paycheck was coming. After that, my income ceased to exist. I would join the unemployment line, and I had no idea what kind of an income that gave me. “Besides, I want to be here for Chelsea. She’s pregnant, and she’s finally coming to terms with the fact that Daniel isn’t going to be around.”

“You what? Why would you stick around for her? She screwed you over to get ahead, and it’s not your fault she’s pregnant.”

“I understand, Perry, but she’s Chelsea. She did what she thought she had to do, and I’m sure she didn’t mean to hurt me. She’s not like that.”

Perry didn’t respond for what seemed like a full minute. “Just come to visit. Crash here for a while.”

God, I’d love to. I’d never been out to visit him, and I wanted to explore the casinos and the desert land, hopefully run into a few movie stars, during a big Vegas red carpet event like the Billboard Music Awards, and take long bike rides and clear my head. But, my frugal mind took over. I couldn’t use my reserves for a trip. “Sorry, Perry. I want to, but, Chelsea aside, it’s not a smart thing to do.”

“What are you going to tell Mom?”

“Nothing yet. She doesn’t need to know. The same way I didn’t need to know…” I stopped myself. It was my mom’s responsibility to tell him about Paul, not mine.

“What, Ally?”

“Forget it.”

Not one to pry, Perry said, “Your secret is safe with me.”

Secrets. Everyone had them, and everyone swore to keep them. Biggest lie ever. Secrets weren’t meant to be kept. The same way trust was meant to be broken. Show me a one-hundred percent loyal person, and I’d be able to show you a hundred backstabbers.

“So what should I do, Perry?”

“Open up the classifieds. Start looking.”

Obvious point. “And Seth?”

He sighed. “I don’t know this guy, but it sounds like you like him a lot. Confront him. Put it out there and listen to what he has to say.”

“What if I don’t like what he says?”

“Then you don’t, and you move on. But you’ll never know the truth unless you ask for it.”

I hated when my brother was right.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

The dry heat hit me as I stepped out of the airport and into the cab waiting for me. The last time I came to Las Vegas was when Perry first moved away years ago. At twenty-five, he insisted moving out of state would guarantee his success. I worried about him getting lost in the casinos and gambling away every cent to his name. Over the course of time he lived there, he proved me wrong and then some. Not only did he barely set foot in a casino, he immediately obtained a job as a personal assistant and maintained a steady income. When some acting opportunities began rolling in, he quit the assistant job to focus on his dream. The smart guy he is, he created a savings account for himself, and when the acting jobs stopped, the money allowed him to continue his lifestyle for a few months. Thankfully, a full-time gig opened up and his income started increasing again.

I mulled over Perry’s offer to visit for the entire day as I waited for Seth to call or text me. For the life of me, I couldn’t understand why he didn’t at least try to explain. Kate didn’t like me, so I didn’t doubt she hid from Seth I stopped by, and if she did tell him, she probably made up some lie to make him not call me. His unwillingness to even put an effort into our relationship pained me in a way I didn’t think possible. I wanted to try with him, as Perry suggested. When he called me to explain about Alyssa, I planned to hear him out and try and make things work, if we could. Apparently, he didn’t feel the same, and Chelsea, well, that friendship was destined to be damaged for a while, if not forever. She should have talked to me instead of swooping in underneath me and taking the job. Never did I feel more alone, which was why I needed to go see my brother. The next day, I purchased a ticket with my rewards credit card and sixteen hours later, boarded on a plane.