Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Day 2 (in two moments)

"Hey," I offered in greeting after flipping open my phone when it vibrated on the nightstand. I paused for a moment, waiting for him to tell me why he called and finally asked what was up.


"I'm fine," I replied slowly, a bit confused, when he asked how I was. "How are you?"


"I saw you earlier," he finally stated and I raised an eyebrow.


"Are you drunk?" I guessed. "I know you saw me earlier - we talked."
"Not then," he replied and though I could hear his amusement, I was unable to discern its cause. Moments later, I found myself at the window per his request. Standing before the sliding doors, I peeked around the edge of the sheer drapes, letting the fabric pool on my wrist as I pushed it aside.


"Look down," he ordered and my gaze darted toward the lower floors of the building opposing my own. "Left," he suggested and I finally located him, his curtains shoved aside as he stood in an open doorway.


"Hi," I smiled, feeling my stomach flip pleasantly as I lifted a hand to wave. "I didn't realize we were balcony buddies," I commented when he didn't reply, seeking to put the conversation on more familiar levels.


"You weren't wearing anything," he said, looking up at me as he said it. I blinked, forgetting to breathe and felt myself blush as I frantically tried to think of what to say in response.


*****

"Breathe," I reminded myself, inhaling deeply and pausing before slowly exhaling. The speaker with the time immediately before mine was finishing up and I braced myself against the nervous quivers. It's just 10 minutes, I told myself. You'll get up, climb the stairs to the podium and tell people what's on the slides. Your voice won't shake; you will look confident and intelligent. And even if you don't, it will be over soon.
I remember few details of the actual presentation, mind focused exclusively on the task at hand and not on remembering how often I looked at the audience and how much I moved my hands. (The answer to both of those is likely 'a lot.') I took compliments afterward with modest smiles and hurried to my next meeting after escaping the meeting room.

2 comments:

Lucy said...

1. Creepy! Ick.
2. I'm glad your talk went well.

I've also been meaning to comment to say I'm glad you're starting to feel better. I hope things continue to improve.

Psych Post Doc said...

um.. I'm creeped out by the guy. Is it someone you know.

Glad the talk went well. I'm sure you were great!

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