I was away from my desk maybe ten minutes. Someone on site had a question. When I came back to my office my chair was occupied.
Young guy, handsome, on his phone. It took me a second.
He'd been in once before, maybe three years ago. Fresh out of university myself back then, still figuring out what I was doing here. His father - my boss - had brought him in briefly.
"Connor. Didn't know you were expected."
He glanced up, eyes back on the screen before I'd finished.
I picked up a few papers and moved to the small spare desk.
He stayed on his phone. I got back to work.
At some point I looked up and his feet were on the desk, right over the site plans. Still on his phone. He worked one trainer off with the heel of the other and it dropped onto the desk, knocked a pen holder over. He didn't look up. Second one came off slower and landed on top of the paperwork.
The smell from his socks started to fill the room.
Then he took his socks off. Toes peeling them down one at a time and dropping them on my desk.
His soles were pale, the heels a bit rougher than the rest. He spread his toes and went back to scrolling.
I went back to my papers.
The desk phone rang. I crossed back to answer it. Connor didn't move his feet. I reached around them.
"Good. Show him round. Let him see how things are running. He'll be coming in more."
He hung up before I could answer.
I put the phone down. Connor was looking at me now. Still relaxed, still in my chair, feet still up.
"He wants me to show you around the site."
He looked out the window. Looked back at me.
"My feet are killing me. Long drive."
All I thought about at that moment was that he was the boss's son and the boss had just told me to take care of him.
I put my hands around his left foot. He didn't react. Didn't look up, didn't say anything. Just let it happen. I worked my thumb along the arch and he exhaled once through his nose.
I kept going. Rubbing his soft sole and toes.
He then looked at me for the first time since he arrived, smirking.
He pointed at his right foot.
"Still got the other one. Makes sense why my dad calls you that."
He got back to looking at his phone.
I didn't say anything. I put my hands back and worked his right foot while he scrolled. He didn't say anything else. Neither did I.
After a while he pushed my hands away with his foot.
"Enough. Put them back on."
I picked the socks up off the desk. Pulled the first one over his toes, pulled it up his ankles. Then the second. He watched me do it without expression.
I took his trainers and moved behind the desk and got on my knees. I set his first trainer on the floor in front of him and he pushed his foot in. I pressed the heel down and laced it. Then the other.
He stood up. Picked his phone off my desk.
Walked out without looking back.
amandla
theartofmadeline
germansingergirl
