The Break Room

Hitting the print button on the last of the reports, Sharon sat back and squinted her tired, old eyes, deciding she needed a break.

           Tidying up her work area, she grabbed her favorite mug and headed for the break room, throwing her long, silver hair into a scrunchie.

           She was glad to see the room was empty. As she microwaved water for tea, she thought about the work still ahead of her. The end of month meeting tomorrow morning would eat into her work time. The current administration was responsible for most of the contracts coming in, so work was busy and that was good.

           The microwave dinged and Sharon retrieved her mug, setting the tea bag to steep.

           “Are you Sharon?” a voice interrupted her from behind. 

           So much for a quiet break.

           “Sure am, “she said, slowly turning toward the man’s voice.

           “I’ve seen you walking at lunch,” he mentioned. “Are there good trails around here?”

           The man was tall and lanky with a bit of a beard growth. With the silver streaks in his hair, she put him about late 50’s. He reminded her of the actor, Sam Elliott.

           “Yes, especially down by the lake. You can almost pretend you’re not in a cement city.”

           “Wonderful,” he said, smiling and showing slightly crooked teeth. Just crooked enough to make him interesting.

           “You must be new,” she said, sizing up his jeans. “You’re not the usual shirt and tie type.”

           “I’m a consultant. And I’d much rather be outdoors. I’m Danny, by the way.”

           She nodded testing her tea.

           “It’s a huge campus, maybe you could show me the best trails tomorrow?”

           “Oh, I prefer to walk alone,” she said, taking a sip of tea. “But East campus toward the lake is about 2 miles long. It’s the prettiest path. A lot of redbuds blooming right now.”

           “Great! I’ll try not to get lost then,” he joked.

           “There’s a map on the website. I’d show you but I'm sure we’d walk at different paces.” Sharon hated to have to adjust her pace when walking with other people. 

           “Thanks. I’ll see you around,” he told her, as he wandered out.

           Had she been rude, she pondered for a minute? It wouldn’t have killed her to show him around. Oh well, she didn’t want him to get any ideas about a regular thing. Sharon enjoyed her solitary walks. Another person would disturb her break with a lot of talk.

           Later that evening, Sharon was still thinking about her conversation with the new guy.

           Had it been so long since a man had paid attention to her that she was so easily flattered? Probably, but who cares, she shrugged. She was perfectly happy with her life.

           Taking advantage of the nice spring weather, Sharon puttered in her garden that evening. It was such a relief the warmer weather was here, so life could extend outside.  The daffodils and forsythia brought such vibrant color. Perhaps she’d go for a hike along the C & O Canal this weekend. The canopy of green trees would inspire her nature lover’s heart.

           The meeting the next day took way longer than necessary, so it put Sharon behind on her regular duties.

           By noon she was feeling down right grumpy and considered working through lunch to try and catch up, but nixed that idea. It was gorgeous out again and she needed a walk.

           The cool day was perfect for walking and her brisk pace soon warmed her up. Everything was lush and blooming. When you walked the west side of the lake, the trees blocked the buildings and it was like you were somewhere else entirely.

           Sharon was determined to get a great photo of the redbud trees this year. The branches draped over the lake like an old woman reaching down to see her reflection. Hoping to capture the sun just right, she was taking her shot when she heard her name.

           “Sharon! Hello again,” Danny said, coming from the opposite direction.

           Her first thought was thank God he was walking from the other side, otherwise she would have to walk with him and try to make conversation. This was why she didn’t date. It was too much effort.

           “Hello,” she answered aloof. The sun was not cooperating.

           “You were right about the trees. They are beautiful,” he said, stopping next to her. “It’s hard to believe we’re in the middle of the city.”

           “A little oasis,” Sharon agreed. “I see you found the trail.”

           “Right where you said it would be. I’m not lost yet,” he laughed. “Although I think I wish I was. I’d much rather be out here. I’m used to working in the field and not an office,” he admitted.

           “Do you live nearby or did they lure you here?” Sharon genuinely wanted to know. He didn’t appear to be a city dweller.

           “Not too far. I live north of Frederick,” he volunteered.

           “Still, that’s a commute,” she pointed out.

           “Well, I’ll be back to my loner job soon enough, but consulting gives me a good balance. How long have you worked here?”

           “About 30 years,” Sharon told him. “Since my 20’s. I thought I’d be out in the field too, but it turns out there’s a lot of pencil pushing in environmental studies. I seem to do well at it. But I can see how you love working in the field, being in nature. Well, it was nice talking to you,” she said, anxious to get back to her walk.

           “You too. Have a great afternoon,” Danny said, as he loped off.

           Later that afternoon, Sharon buzzed her friend Sue in HR. “Hey, do you want to come over for drinks Friday night? It’s going to be nice weather.”

           “Sure. Sounds great. Alan has some meeting anyway. Hey, what do you think of the new consultant,” Sue asked? “Hot, right?”

           “I hadn’t thought about it,” Sharon answered, sheepishly.

           “I don’t believe you,” Sue doubted her friend. "He's such a breath of fresh air."

           When Sharon didn't respond, Sue continued. "He's unapologetically out of his element, but very knowledgeable all the same."

           "I'm glad the new guy has a cheer squad," Sharon teased.

           "I'm not the only one. You should hear the gossip at the water cooler."

           Sharon avoided the office gossip. That only led to drama in her opinion, so she was the last to know the office opinions, except when Sue filled her in.

           That evening she felt restless and she couldn't pinpoint why, so she got out her trail maps and occupied herself plotting a hiking trip. When she was young, she thought she'd have all the time in the world to travel and explore, but in reality, she'd done very little.  Sharon didn't enjoy traveling by herself, especially on hiking and camping trips where it wasn’t safe to be alone, so the years went by without trips.

           Danny looked like the hiking and camping kind, she suddenly thought. He was rugged and outdoorsy. But that didn't matter because he wasn't her type.

           Well, if she wanted to date, he might be her type, but she didn't date. Hadn't for years, so why did his name keep cropping up?

           By mid-morning on Thursday, Sharon logged out of her email in frustration. Why did people email her about things they should already know? They were lazy, she decided. Instead of finding the answers themselves they burdened her because she’d been here so long and knew the ropes.

           The break room was calling. Maybe the candy drawer had chocolate, she hoped.

           “I caught you,” Danny teased, coming into the break room while Sharon was scrounging in the candy drawer.

           “Oh, you know about the drawer already?” she muttered, selecting a Snickers.

           “Of course,” he assured her. “I’ve been privy to the important things.”

           “Well, I took the last Snickers, so you’ll have to fight me for it,” she tried to joke.

           Danny raised an eyebrow like he was intrigued and she felt herself flush from head to toe.

           “What’s there to do around here after work?” he casually asked, while he grabbed a drink from the fridge. “Any good restaurants?”

           “In this area, yeah,” Sharon told him. “But I’m not the one to ask. I don’t live here. I live in Boyds. The part of Boyds that is still considered country,” she modified.

           “I know the area. I’ve done some sampling along Ten Mile Creek.”

           Of course, you have, she thought, and she could suddenly visualize him in waders collecting samples, and looking sexy as hell.

           “Would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow night? We could check out one of the restaurants in town?”

           Sharon was so shocked at his invitation that she let the conversation lull. “I have plans,” she added, abruptly. Too quickly. She sounded insincere.

           “Another time then,” he said, nodding to her and leaving the room.

           At lunch she hoped to see him and elaborate. She did have plans. And Sue would kill her if she knew she’d turned down a date for her.

           Feeling unsettled the rest of the week, Sharon bereted herself for how she’d handled things with Danny. He seemed like a really nice guy.  How had he managed to insinuate himself into her life so quickly? What was she so afraid of anyway?

           “So, I have something to tell you,” Sharon said, over drinks with Sue Friday night. 

           It had been another stellar day and they were sitting out in the garden enjoying the breezy air

           “What?” Sue’s radar suddenly perked up.

           “I turned down a date with Danny tonight,” Sharon confessed, taking a large gulp of her Moscato.

           “What?! Sharon! Why? He’s perfect for you. I hear he loves to hike and camp.”

           “I don’t know,” she admitted. “It’s been so long, and my track record isn’t so great.”

           “Oh, Sharon,” Sue sighed, disappointed, which made Sharon feel like a loser.

           “I guess I’m afraid of the letdown. You know that moment when the excitement wears off and you take each other for granted? That’s when I usually get dumped.”

           “But it’s worth the risk if it works,” Sue told her. “And you’ll never know if you don’t take the chance. You should go out with him.”

           “Well, I probably don’t have to worry about him asking me again. He passed me when I was walking today and he just gave me a weak wave. I think I burned that bridge.”

           “Then you have to ask him out,” Sue challenged. 

           “Oh, no,” Sharon said, shutting that down quick. 

           “You know he’s interested because he already asked you,” Sue pointed out. “So, it’s really not that risky to ask him.”

           “I don’t date, Sue!” Sharon tried to tell her.

           “That’s just because you’re afraid. But everyone is afraid, Sharon.”

           Sharon made a face, not wanting to admit Sue was right. She liked Danny and if she let him into her life, it could be exciting and wonderful. Until it wasn’t. Would she take a leap of faith like that again?

           To get her mind off such things, Sharon went for a long hike on Saturday. It was a trail she hadn't hiked before. Getting turned around a couple of times, she had to ask some bikers for directions. Her trail app was without a signal that deep into the woods.

           When she finally got back to her car, she felt tired but energized. The hike had done her good.

           By Monday she still didn't know what she'd do about Danny, having never asked a man out before.

           At 11:00 she went for her tea break and a chocolate boost. As her water was heating, Danny sauntered into the room.

           "Hi," she told him, trying to be casual and friendly.

           "Morning," he grinned, a lazy smile. 

           Sharon took that as a good sign and continued. "I found a good hiking trail this weekend. Not too many hikers, so it was pretty quiet."

           "It was a great weekend for it," he nodded toward her, as he fished in the cupboards for a mug.

           He still seemed aloof and not as chatty as before. Sharon was surprised by how disappointed she felt.

           "I really did have plans Friday night," she blurted out. God could she be any more obvious? She was so awkward at this.

           He smiled and leaned back against the counter perfectly relaxed and chill. Sharon's heart was racing, already more invested than she wanted to admit.

          "It was last minute, I know,” he conceded. “A hike might be nice?" He told her. "If the weather holds out, I know some great trails near me?"

         This time Sharon smiled and didn't hesitate. "Let me give you my number."