Unreasonable

As soon as I saw the car I hopped in and quickly closed the door behind me, as if it could shield me from what was happening just outside. I could feel the stress to perform building inside of me as questions raced through my mind. How much longer do I have to produce results before I am no longer worth keeping? At some point will I have paid my 'debt,' or will life always be this way?

I heard the driver door open and felt the car shift as Geo took his seat. "Are you alright?" he asked. I heard his voice, but it was drowned out by the questions shouting in my head. "Flora?" he said even louder, snapping me out of my trance. I glanced at him and could tell he was worried. I gave him a small nod, but inside I felt a heavy weight closing up around me.

Geo did not look too convinced, but he started the car and headed back towards the lab. I could feel him glancing at me every now and again, but I kept my eyes straight ahead even thought I wasn't really looking at anything. I was too busy thinking about what I needed to do once we got back. I had to turnaround something before they kicked me out.

I immediately got out of the car the moment it stopped and headed straight for the lab door. I realized I didn't know the entry code, so I just stood there waiting for Geo to catch up. The nervous energy in me started to build up, and I found myself tapping my thumb against my leg at a rapid pace. It felt like forever before Geo walked up to the panel, but instead of typing in the code he turned and looked at me. I didn't want to turn and see the worry in his eyes. I was too focused on what I felt I had to do.

After a moment Geo sighed and typed in the code. Once the door lock released I rushed inside and into my lab to begin my work. I ripped off my mask, booted up the system and began to fish around in my pocket for the small camera Geo had used earlier today to scan the documents. I pulled it out, along with the small drive Geo had given me, with a sigh of relief, but I quickly realized I didn't have any way to transfer the images.

Frustrated by all of these small things getting in my way, I huffed as I looked around the system hoping that some sort of cable or slot was available so I could make the transfer. Of course, I had no such luck.

"Geo!" I shouted as I continued to look around the system. In the corner of my eye I saw the bin the system had arrived in and began to riffle through it. Nothing looked remotely like an adapter or reader, but I started to look through it a second time just in case.

"Geo!" I shouted again. I let out a frustrated sigh and looked towards the door to see what was taking him so long. A startled gasp escaped my lips when I realized he was already at the door watching me.

"How long have you been there?" I asked accusingly.

"Long enough," he said cooly. My eyes narrowed as I wondered what he meant. I shook my head and tried to stay focused on my task.

"I need a reader or something to transfer the pictures onto the drive. Do you have that?" I asked quickly as I began digging through the bin again.

After a moment Geo replied, "yes, I have something."

My head snapped up, and I sighed in relief. "Great! Can you go and get it for me?" I asked with a wide smile. I expected him to turn around and get it from his office or someplace, but he didn't move. Instead he looked at me with concern and pity. In that moment I hated that look, especially after I heard his response.

"No." A flat out, firm no.

I blinked in surprise, but the rest of my body was frozen in shock by his blunt response. "Excuse me?" I asked angrily.

"I said no," Geo calmly said. His placid demeanor enraged me even more.

"Then why give me the drive in the first place? Why give me this camera?" I shout, exasperated. "What was the whole point?"

Geo waited for me to finish my rant, and although his expression remained calm, I could see his jaw tighten. "I will give it to you after you have something to eat," he finally said.

My eyes narrowed in disbelief. "I don't have time to eat!" I shout. "I have to work! I have to give results, a report, or something! So give me the reader now!" I barked. Geo didn't flinch away from my yelling, his expression still calm. I closed my eyes to avoid seeing it because it made me acknowledge somewhere deep down that I was being irrational. The stress that I felt, however, would not let me give in that easily. I took in a deep sigh to try and calm myself before opening my eyes again.

"Please," I begged. "I need to give Thana something tonight. Anything."

"You do not need to report anything tonight. Thana is not unreasonable. She knows you will need time to go through the texts and report back," Geo reasoned, his eyes sad.

A small, crazed laugh came out of my mouth. "Thana, reasonable? Does any of this seem reasonable to you? All the lies and deals and secrets. With one wrong move I could be sent away, most likely to my death!" Geo took a step towards me, but I put my hand out to stop him. "No, I need to keep working! I need to prove I am valuable enough to stay here."

Geo kept walking towards me until he was right in front of me. I craned my neck up to look into his eyes through my glassy ones. "Please," I begged again, my voice barely above a whisper.

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me tightly to his chest. He rubbed small, soothing circles on my back, and his warmth began to calm me. I let out a deep breath and listened to his heart beat. Hearing it helped ground me to the present moment as I leaned further into the hug that I desperately needed.

"You do not need to work tonight," Geo said softly. "No one expects you to. Not me, and not Thana. But if you insist, I will give you the reader after you have something to eat. You are still recovering," he said with a soothing voice.

I wanted to fight it but I was too tired. Deep down I knew he was right. I nodded against his chest, and after another moment, I reluctantly pulled away.

"I'm sorry," I said sheepishly, embarrassed by how I acted. "I shouldn't have yelled."

"I understand," Geo said with a reassuring smile. "Now let us go eat. I am sure you will enjoy having something other than stew for once."

I let out a small laugh and nodded, following him to the main lab where a makeshift table had been set up by Geo and Marea when I first arrived. I looked around expecting to see both ladies inside, but the place was quiet.

"Where are Marea and Thana?" I asked.

"Marea had a dinner to attend, and Thana is working late. It is just you and me tonight," he said as he laid out the food.

Despite everything I knew in my head, my heart couldn't help but skip a beat.