Page 57 of All of Him
“Is she bringing you out of your shell?” he asked, dropping his pen and leaning back.
“More like dramatically dragging, but sure.”
Claude laughed and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Sounds like Amanda,” he joked. “Any issues with anyone around here? Complaints? Suggestions?”
I shrugged, looking around his office, as if an answer lay somewhere. I didn’t care for Brayden, but there really wasn’t much that could be done about him.
“Good,” Claude finished. “I’m sorry about everything that happened to you, by the way. If you ever need anything from me, just let me know. I can be more than a boss; I’ve been told I’m a good listener.”
“I’m okay, but thanks,” I said back, standing to go. “I wasn’t close with my parents, so I’m recovering from that.”
Claude’s brow furrowed, as if he didn’t know why I was mentioning them.
“Yeah,” he responded, “I knew you were doing okay with that. I was referring to your accident.”
My face must have gone white because Claude kept staring, then prodded me further.
“What I meant to say is…I’m sorry about your brother.”
I quickly walked over to Amanda’s cube, ignoring something Penny said to me along the way. I wanted to scream, to slam something on her desk to show how angry I was. I’d trusted her with so much, yet she had gone and told my fucking boss about it.
I walked right into her cube without saying anything and leaned in close to her, making sure she got the hint that I meant business. She sat back quickly, startled.
“Noah, what?” she hissed, taken aback by my approach.
“You told Claude about Garrett?” I asked through gritted teeth.
Amanda looked confused and shook her head.
“Noah, I would never—”
“Then, how does he know!?”
I thought I was being quiet enough, but Claude spoke from behind me, standing in the doorway of the cubicle. I should have assumed he’d follow me after I stormed out of his office. Suddenly, I wondered if I was in trouble. But he didn’t look angry. He looked concerned.
“Word got out, and I heard last week,” he said quietly.
I looked to Amanda, who was still baffled, then back at Claude.
“I’m sorry, Noah. I didn’t know it was a secret.”
I sat down in Amanda’s extra chair, starting to feel the familiar flutter in my chest. Amanda must have noticed because she spoke up quickly, her voice shaking with worry for my well-being.
“Claude, can you give us a minute?”
I sank my head into my hands, trying to catch my breath as soon as Claude nodded and walked away. He’d looked remorseful that he’d brought it up. I wanted to be angry with him, but I couldn’t. He’d only been checking up on me, being a better boss than most. Still, that didn’t stop the oncoming panic attack.
Amanda left the cube for a second, returning with my backpack.
“Inner pocket,” I whispered, my breathing becoming quicker. “Two, please.” I closed my eyes tightly but listened for the familiar rattle of a medicine bottle. They didn’t work instantaneously, but just knowing that they were in my system kicked my body into recovery mode.
It must have only been four seconds, but it felt like forever before Amanda opened my hand and placed the pills in my palm. I took them without water, hoping I’d be able to stop it.
“Breathe,” she whispered, standing on the side of me to block the cubicle opening.
She was trying to protect my secret, but I wasn’t sure how private it would stay if I started hyperventilating.
