Adele
Alexis was so right. Frank is much nicer than Alex. He made me feel so wanted and appreciated and I hadn’t even gotten started. He swore to me that I wasn’t the charity case that Alex made me sound like and advised that I was to talk to him if Alex gave me any problems. He reassured me that I work for him and not Alex. I feel so much better now that I have talked to Frank. He even asked me if my car would be fixed before tomorrow and if it wouldn’t be, he asked if I would need a ride. I really didn’t know what I would be doing about my car. I don’t have the money to get it fixed and won’t until my first paycheck. Frank and Alexis look at each other and I can tell they noticed my hesitation to answer his questions.
“How about we start with this paperwork and we’ll figure out the transportation later?” Frank pushes a few papers across his desk along with pen and I start to get nervous.
I am okay with the name portion, but I freeze when I get to the address. I am fucked and my eyes tear up as I look at the blank form. I don’t know what I should do. I should have known that any employer would ask for my home address, but I didn’t prepare myself for the answer. I just need money so I can get a place. I am going to lose this job before I even start it. I look up and notice that both Frank and Alexis are staring at me.
“Would you mind if I use the restroom?” I ask and Frank nods his head. Alexis jumps up from her seat indicating that she’ll show me where it is. I only hope it’s still on this floor and that I don’t have to go back downstairs to a hostile Alex. He’ll probably get offended that I would ask to use the bathroom since I haven’t even started to work.
The restroom is two doors down from Frank’s office, so I am not sure why Alexis couldn’t have just said where it was. As I push open the door, Alexis grabs the door handle and keeps it shut. I look over at her and tilt my head.
“What are you doing, Alexis?” I ask.
“You don’t have to go to the bathroom, Adele. This is a stall tactic. Why did you get pale when you were filling out the employee records form?” she asks and I have to wonder if I went pale again.
“I do need to go and I am not stalling. Can I go in now before I have an accident that Alex will fire me for? God knows the first thing out of his mouth will be Frank hires a grown woman who wets herself.”
Once Alexis releases the door handle, I walk in and lock the door. She was right. I don’t need to go, but I need a few minutes to think. I don’t have a fucking address, but I need this job. I can’t use my old address because if I do and they send anything, Garth will know where to find me. I think back to my mother always telling me that honesty is the best policy, but I don’t know if this situation is one of those cases. What if they won’t hire me because I live in my car? I walk over to the sink and splash water on my face and realize what I should do. Alexis has been very kind to me and I don’t think she would harbor hard feelings towards me. Frank has been nice so far, so I think I can trust him enough to share my secret. I just should bite the bullet and let these two people in. I’ll make them promise not to tell anyone else, especially that Alex. I can only imagine what he would say. “You hired some loser that doesn’t even have a home.”
I dry off my face and walk out of the bathroom. Thankfully, once I open the door Alexis isn’t waiting to pounce on me. I walk back to Frank’s office and they are both sitting at his desk. They hear me at the doorway and they look up at me, both with small smiles.
“Are you ready to finish the paperwork, Adele?” Frank asks as he picks up the pen to hand it to me.
“There is something I think I should tell you both before we go any further,” I say and I can hear the tremor and uncertainty in my own voice.
Frank nods his head and looks at Alexis and then back to me.
I sigh and close my eyes and tell them everything. When I finish telling my story, both Alexis and I are in tears. Frank has moved to my side of the desk and is sitting on top of it. When I have settled down and my final tears have fallen, he stands to walk back around to his chair. He pulls out a book and starts to write something. I look over at Alexis and she shakes her head.
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” She asks as she wipes a tear away.
“I didn’t want your pity, Alexis. I wanted you to like me for me. Not because you felt sorry for me.”
“I could have helped you, Adele,” Alexis says softly and I believe that she would have tried to help.
“You did help me,” I tell her as I reach over and grab her hand.
Frank closes his book and both Alexis and I look over at him. He looks me in the eye as he slides something across his desk. I have a feeling I am being given a termination letter before I even start. I reach for whatever he slid to me and I notice it’s a check. I look back at Frank and he nods at it indicating I should take it.
I lift the check and shake my head as I look at it. He wrote me a check for five thousand dollars. I shake my head and look back at him.
“I don’t understand?” I tilt my head as I look at him and back at the check.
“I want you to take this money and hopefully get your car fixed. It should also be enough for a hotel, clothes, and food,” he advises as he pulls the paperwork away from me and places it back in his desk.
“I can’t take this,” I say quietly.
“You will take it. I won’t let any of my employees sleep in their car. Especially when they are looking over their shoulder,” he says and leans back in his chair.
“Frank, I really can’t take this.” I can’t believe I am protesting this. I need this and it’s being handed to me. I’m not sure that it will do me any good. Who is going to cash a five thousand dollar check for me? I don’t have a bank account and I can’t even open one without an address.
“Adele,” Frank says my name in an authoritative tone. “You will take the damn check. I will arrange for someone to take you to a hotel after your shift. That person will pick you up tomorrow morning and take you to a bank that will open an account for you and deposit that money. Your address will be Deluca’s. Once your account is open, you will take him to your car and he will make sure it’s fixed so you can drive to whatever hotel you want to stay in.”
I stare at Frank and look back at Alexis and feel tears as they start to fall.
“What will I owe you?” I ask.
“Not every man only takes, Adele. You are my sister's friend and that makes you a friend of mine. I can help you and I will.”
I sit back in my chair and cry harder than I have in months. Alexis takes my hand and cries with me and Frank stands to leave the room.
“Wait.” I grab his arm as he walks past me. He is headed downstairs and will probably announce to everyone that I am a charity case. I can’t work here if my new coworkers think that about me. I realize it may be true, but I want to be able to look these people in the eye.
“Can this stay between the three of us? I don’t want anyone to look down on me or give me a hard time?” I ask as I wipe away a tear.
“It will stay in this room and never be mentioned again, Adele.” He nods his head and leaves us alone in his office. Alexis grabs my hand giving it a squeeze and when I look in her eyes I notice that she isn’t giving me pity.