Not Powerless

Hour 0

If Rebecca Hawkins had known what she was going to cause, just from the simple act of holding that door, she would have thrown away that moment of prideful politeness in a heartbeat.

“Becca, don't!” Rebecca’s friend, Jenny, cried out as Rebecca’s ex-boyfriend, Ron, dashed through the open doors, alongside one of Rebecca’s coworkers. 

“Thank you! You’re very kind,” the man said cheerfully, but slightly raggedly as he caught his breath from his sprint down the hallway. He began to rush to the corner, his vibrant red tie fluttering in the air behind him. He caught Rebecca’s eye once more and she smiled and nodded at him, a courteous but antisocial way of accepting a compliment. Then Rebecca felt a sharp pain in her ribs. She glanced down at Jenny, whose blonde hair was as mousey and knotted as ever, only accentuating the deep-seated lovable craziness that Rebecca knew so well.

“Becca!” Jenny scolded. “I get that he’s cute and all, but you can’t go around stuffing this many people into an elevator! It has a maximum capacity for a reason!”

“Jen, ease up. Are you taking those anti-anxiety meds? They’re making you act up lately. There’s more to life than avoiding risks, you know. Sometimes you gotta grab those risks by the neck, hold on tight and tell it you’re tagging along for the ride,” Rebecca said poetically. Jenny looked at her grumpily, eyes boring a hole into her soul.

“I’ll stop worrying when you get down off your high horse, Ms. English major. Oh! It appears we’re at a checkmate.”

“Well, it’d be a stalemate,” Rebecca corrected.

“Thanks for proving my point,” Jenny retorted.

“Ladies, ladies…” a frigid voice interrupted. Rebecca felt a slimy hand drape over her shoulder and a chill ran down her spine. “I’m sensing a lot of anger here,” the voice continued. “Maybe you should both just kiss and make up. I’d love to watch, whenever you do.” Rebecca shrugged the arm away violently and spun to confront the assailant of her comfort. 

“Go to Hell, Ron,” she stated firmly. 

“Oh, sweetie, while talking to you, I’m already there,” Ron grinned, flashing his yellow teeth, even more decayed and foul since the day Rebecca had dumped him.

“One more complaint to HR and I’ll have your ass fired. You’re on thin ice, Ron. Don’t tempt me.”

“You’re the one tempting me with that skimpy little outfit,” Ron sneered, his hand starting to slide its way up Rebecca’s pencil skirt. There was a loud clap and a silence that stung more than Ron’s burning cheek. He clutched it, limping away like an injured dog. 

“You hit me!” he whined.

“About damn time, too!” Rebecca yelled.

“I thought you wanted me!” he moaned pitifully.

“You’re the last thing I would ever ask for,” Rebecca told him.

“Yeah, get him, Becca!” Jenny cheered from beside her bestie. Jenny continued to woop and cheer until Rebecca was able to settle her down. Ron, still cowering, snagged his phone from its holster on his belt. He dialed a number and lifted it to his ear. He was muttering quietly, trying to hide the conversation from the rest of the passengers on the elevator ride to the top floor of the office building. Ron slid his phone back into his pocket, the call having ended. There was a comfortable stillness. No one was fighting, Jenny was stable(for now), and Ron was still tucked in his corner. Then, there was a harsh jolt. Everyone lurched, some people toppled to the ground, and a number of them squealed in surprise at the sudden stop of motion. The lights flicked out and the elevator group was washed over with a chilling darkness. Rebecca squatted down to aid an old woman in getting to her feet, but she locked eyes with Ron across the claustrophobic space. As dim as the light in the tight compartment was, nothing could compare to the black hatred in Rebecca’s eyes as she glowered at Ron. What was his end goal here? What does he gain from shutting down the elevator? Does he think we’ll get alone time? There are tons of people in here! Rebecca pondered these things as everyone tried to figure out what to do. 

Hour 1

The elevator was more or less divided into two groups. There were the realists, the ones who believed the building had undergone a power outage and help was on its way. Then there were the theorists, the ones who believed something else was at play, some outside force that had shut off the power intentionally.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot that power-outage causing tropical storms were on the forecast for this sunny summer afternoon!!” one member of the theorist group shouted. “Oh, that’s right, they weren’t!”

“Alright, let’s try not to be at each other’s throats, everyone. We just have to wait for a rescue team to come, that’s all. It’ll be over soon,” Rebecca said level-headedly.

“Ron, you sly, sneaky, cunning, son of a--” Jenny proclaimed less level-headedly, bursting into a fireball of manic energy and hate directed solely at Ron. Both she and Rebecca were under the impression that Ron’s phone call had someone at the other end who could tamper with the electrical systems of their office building. They had no solid evidence for their theory, of course… but that’s what made it so intriguing. 

“Why do you keep thinking I had some part in this?!” Ron cried defensively.

“Who was that phone call to, you snake?” Jenny hissed.

“I-- uh, er, no one! My mom, okay?” Ron stammered.

“It’s alright, Jenny,” Rebecca soothed, holding her friend back. Jenny glowered at the dark figure shaped like Ron that stood across the tight space of the elevator. 

Hour 2

Divided as ever, some people began desperate attempts to escape. Two guys, contrary to their buttoned-up suits and flashy professional ties, were animalistically clawing at the elevator doors to try and pry them open. Suzy, the shy intern Rebecca had hardly ever noticed, had been making panicked phone calls to anyone she could think of, but couldn’t reach anyone. Whomever Ron had called must have cut the phone lines as well, leaving everyone inside completely stranded.

“What’s your plan here, Ron?” Jenny howled. “You gonna starve us all to death?”

“Jenny, we seriously need to talk about your medication. We’re gonna get your prescription reevaluated,” Rebecca said concernedly. Jenny just scoffed and went back to pacing.

Amidst all the chaos, Ron found his way over to Rebecca. He loomed by Rebecca’s left, a more unassuming presence than he usually was. He slowly slid his back down the elevator wall and landed with a thud and an “oof” to sit on the floor next to her.

“Hey,” he said quietly.

“What do you want, Ron,” Rebecca said, more of a statement than a question.

“I just wanna know why.”

“Why what?”

“Why you’re so off and on. Hot and cold. Want me back one minute, hate me the next.”

“What’re you talking about? I haven’t wanted you for 4 years.”

“I- wait, but... we broke up 3 years ago?”

“I know,” Rebecca replied flatly. Ron faltered but he was not deterred.

“Listen, alright? Jenny told me all about it.”

“About what?”

“She said you have been talking about me all the time, how you miss me, you want me to-”

“Okay, stop right there. First of all, none of that is true. I don’t want you back, you’re a bad person. And second of all, when you find out an ex wants you back, your idea of winning her over is sexually assaulting her in an elevator? I said it before and I’ll say it again, go to Hell.”

Ron nodded solemnly and stood up, strode back to his side, and slumped down once more. Rebecca glanced over at Jenny who was much quieter than she had been for the past few hours. Rebecca waved her over and Jenny cautiously stepped over some legs until she made her way the short distance to her bestie.

“Is there anything you need to tell me?” Rebecca prodded. Jenny shook her head. “Would you like to think harder?” Jenny’s head continued to shake. “Well, my ex just came over here and told me that you told him that I’m still into him. Care to explain why he would say something like that?” Jenny’s head shook more violently, and tears began to drip from her eyes and spatter all over as she shook like a wet dog. Rebecca placed a hand on her shoulder and Jenny fled to the realists. Rebecca sighed deeply and rested her head against the wood panelling. She’d figure that one out later, she decided.

Hour 3

Rebecca watched curiously as Jenny made her puppy-dog eyes at Ron. He was shaking his head, denying Jenny’s begging. She was clutching his jacket sleeve, and Ron was looking sternly down at her. He mouthed one final ‘no’ and tugged free of Jenny’s grip, turning his back on her. Jenny, defeated, turned and walked away from Ron. Something was off about her, though. Rebecca watched as she swayed and stepped unevenly. She staggered around the elevator, clutching the metal railings on the walls, until she crumpled suddenly to the ground next to Rebecca. Rebecca rushed to tend to her friend, laying Jenny’s head in her lap.

“Jenny, Jenny, can you hear me?” she said firmly. Jenny nodded. A few bystanders gave sighs of relief. 

“Jenny, you’re going to tell me what’s been going on right now or you’re gonna have an even bigger problem; me.”

Jenny gulped and opened her eyes. They were brimming with tears once more, but Rebecca would not be conned out of an answer by sympathy this time. 

“I… haven't been taking the pills you think I’ve been taking,” Jenny said slowly and carefully.

“What? What does that mean?”

“It means… I’m not on anti-anxiety meds… I’m on… something else.”

“Something like?” Rebecca pushed.

“Well, I’m not exactly sure of the name. I don’t really look.”

“You’re taking drugs and you don't even know what they’re called?” Rebecca scolded. Jenny shushed her pleadingly and Rebecca lowered her voice again. “You know better than that, Jen!”

“Well, apparently not! Either way, I was getting them from someone trustworthy, so the name didn't matter to me. Even if it turned out they weren’t really anti-anxiety medication anyway...”

“Who was it?” Rebecca asked. Jenny was silent. “Who was it, Jenny?” Rebecca asked once more. Jenny squeezed her eyes shut and tears leaked from the sides. “I swear to God, is it Ron?” Rebecca half-screamed, half-whispered. Jenny nodded, still bawling silently. “Is that what the phone call was about? Buying you more of these pills?”

“Well, not really,” Jenny admitted. “It was him canceling an order for me.”

“Why?”

“Because… I ran out a couple nights ago, and I asked him for a resupply. He told me that he wasn't going to give me anymore unless I got you to agree to take him back or sleep with him…”

“What?” Rebecca screamed, unable to contain herself. Jenny shushed her desperately again, and Rebecca calmed herself down. She took a couple deep breaths and urged Jenny to continue the story.

“Well,” Jenny went on. “I panicked. I told him you already liked him back. He ordered me another delivery that same night. And then this morning, I was planning on telling you, on coming clean about the whole thing, but Ron had to come bursting into this elevator and ruin everything…!” 

Rebecca wasn't making eye contact with Jenny. She wasn’t angry at her. She was furious, however, with Ron. She gently placed Jenny’s head up against the elevator wall, then stood up, strutted casually over to Ron, and punched him in the nose as he looked up at her. There was a crunch and a screech as Ron bent over, clutching his damaged pride.

“I don't want you to go to Hell anymore. I want you somewhere worse. I just don't know of any such place,” she told him. There was a sudden bang on the other side of the elevator doors. 

“You folks alright in there?” a muffled voice asked through the walls. Everyone cheered. Their rescue team was here, and it appeared that the realists had been right. Ron wasn't some evil mastermind that cut off power to the elevator for revenge. He was just a lying, blackmailing asshole. And with her vision of Ron sullied further and her hatred for him cemented even more, she was ready for their escape from this tight prison. She was ready to set Jenny on the path of recovery, and she was ready to forget Ron was ever a part of her life.