Her heart was racing, pounding louder and harder than it ever has in years. Auburn snapped her finger over her wrist, summoning a passthrough golden watch on her wrist. The bright blue sigils read seven-thirty, five minutes past her clock in time. With a flick the watch vanished as she looked up at the looming business center she worked in.

Roaring steam pipes billowed up the sides of the structure, imposing smokestacks tumbling out of the shiny metallic pipes that twisted from the top. Marred wood branched outwards from the sides of the building, screaming across the front face with bright blues and swirling whites. Faeye magic sparkled through the wood, jumping out in white streaks. Auburn scoffed as she looked up at the windowless building, the large oak wood doors standing tall in front of her. 

Taking a step forward, her chest grew tight, every breath like rope wrapped around her throat. The sounds of people talking grew closer as she stood there. Crowds bursting from their homes, slowly swallowing the streets around her as the city sparked to life. She gulped, unable to move. Footsteps droning louder in the distance, faeye magic whisking by in a stabbing hiss as strangers traveled by air. She could feel them staring, hear their hatred prickle through the hairs on her neck. Smell the words that threatened to stab her heart.

‘You’re disgusting,’ 

She slowly moved forward, her body growing itchy with each drop of sweat. Every whisper a warning, every glance a threat. Auburn couldn’t help look over her shoulder, her head raging with static. Her shoulders rolled back as she stood upright, avoiding people's eyes. 

‘They’re all watching you,’  she looked down at her watch.

‘You smell horrible,’

‘They hate how you look,’  Auburn gulped hard as she bounded at the door, grabbing the door handle. An older police officer walked by with a nod and a smile while they walked down the street.

‘They know what you did,’  she lurched forward, tumbling through the door before slamming it quietly behind her. The world grew quiet as she brushed herself off, shifting her shoulders with a grunt. She remained there, motionless, nothing but her own breath reverberating through her ears. She was finally here and it was time to work
***

Every thought crackled with their voices, their hatred, it's all she could think about. 

‘I can’t believe you’re late!’ 

They really will hate her. How could she have let this happen, how could she be so stupid? ‘What is wrong with you,’ why couldn't she ever get anything right? Was this really what this was all for? All those years of torment? All that time wasted on this pathetic job? She stopped walking down the hall, standing at a water station to grab a drink. Her fists twitched anxiously as she fiddled a cup into her hand. 

‘I guess I was wrong to hire you,’ her boss, Thickle-thorn rumbled through her head, his disappointed face rattling her thought-cage. Auburn sighed through her nostrils, raising the cup to her lips. A co-worker passed by, raising a nonchalant hand in greeting as he walked away to a cubicle. Her heart began to race. These jobs are ruthless, faeye magic management is always hiring, always intensive. She has been here for years but does that really matter? 

‘Everyone hates you,’  her head began to sweat. “No,” she whispered to herself before quickly checking around for anyone who heard. Finishing off the cup, she stepped forward toward her cubicle. Walking past the grey-painted mahogony hell holes. 

Most were empty besides a few early arrivers. The room was quiet, only the oppressive hum of silence and the clicking of keyboards rippled through her ears. Every sigh an explosive gunshot, every step forward a booming echo, and every sniffle like glass breaking.
                      Removing her coat, Auburn sat down at her desk, draping her navy-blue trenchcoat over the back of her chair. A computer sat in front of her, bulky, dull and unadmirable; just a large tan box with a cloudy faeye display. Stretching her arms back against her sides, cracking her back, she flexed out her fingers as they flicked across the keyboard. 

The PC promptly powered on with a hum as clouds spun to life within the machine.  With a bright cheerful melody, a password prompt flashed on the screen. Auburn inputted her password with a clack of the keyboard-she always loved the sounds these keyboards made, but hated how loud they were. 

With a whirr the PC slowly booted to life, bright aqua-blue pipes glistening along the frame as systems began to boot. The screen stuck on the company's plain-white spinning helix logo; Auburn’s own face staring back at her through the reflection of the screen. Voices began to build from down the hall as she sat at her desk, arms crossed while she waited, fiddling with the edges of her shirt. The voices began to grow louder as she stared into her own reflection’s eyes with a slight frown, the buzz of the office lights becoming painfully loud. 

With a flicker, the PC booted into the desktop, startling Auburn out of her stare. She gulped as coworkers walked by, “thats why your fucking alone  Calix,” Basil the lead programmer of her office said with a hearty laugh. “Oh suck my dick Basil,” Calix said with a snark, patting Basil on the back. Auburn opened her mouth to speak as a joke flashed through her head only to close it as they walked by continuing to joke at one another's expense. 

With a sigh Auburn turned back to the PC, cracking her fingers before opening a spreadsheet full of faeye data. A few hours went by as she worked at her desk, letting the world grow silent as she worked, her mind growing more restless by the minute. All she could think about was getting back to that old rinky dink cottage, with her broken blinking lights, coffee stained mattress and those lived-in smelling sheets. She didn't have much, but it was home, it was her. Auburn’s fingers stopped as she stared through the computer screen-her eyes going numb. 

‘Thats all you’ll ever be and you fucking know it,’ her voice yelled in her head, stabbing every inch of her shattered mind. Is this really all she can be? Auburn’s eyes drifted off to the side as she frowned at a razorblade and a shredded paper with an attempt at art on it. ‘What has that ever gotten us anyways, Auburn.’ Most nights she thought she was right…but sometimes-sometimes a starry night passes by and she can finally be herself again. 

A sudden tap startled Auburn from her thoughts, papers falling from her desk and onto her lap as she looked up over her PC and atop her cubicle. A familiar face peered over with a smile and a small wave. A man with a soft precious face, big oak eyes, ruffled brown hair and a sweet autumn smile. 

“Hey there you snoozy berrybush,” Willow snarked with a clasp of his hands, flashing her a toothy grin. Auburn let out a soft laugh, “hey Willow.” She rolled her eyes, hands moving to grab the stack of papers off her keyboard. 

“You know,” she started with a pause as she hefted the pile to the floor. “You really should stop doing that, you almost messed up the entire page of transactional magic stubs I had sorted!

“Wah wah wah,” he mocked her with a wave of his hands, “it’ll be fiiine, you’ll forgive me soon anyways. Wont youuuu?” He giggled while leaning over the cubicle more, hands intertwined. She just looked up at him and stared, “Oh, haha,” she mocked with a monotone face as she continued staring. Silence hovered between them for a dreadful moment, weight building in her eyes as she let out a playful laugh. 

“Seriously though, what is bothering you Willow?” She questioned softly, her fingers clacking against the keyboard. 

“Whats wrong with me? I should be asking what's going on with you?” She stopped typing.

‘They are laughing at you,’

 “I uh…don’t follow?” Auburn raised a brow, cupping a hand.

‘What a joke,’ she clenched her jaw, static filling every inch of her brain. Willow scoffed, folding one arm on the cubicle. 

“For one I can’t believe you are late! You almost never are,” Willow chuckled with a smile as he draped an arm over the cubicle. She only stared at him in silence.

With a gulp Willow looked away nonchalantly. “Girl, when was the last time you actually got out there? I mean…I don’t think I’ve seen you anywhere but here or your home?” He lifted both arms up into a semi-shrug, “I can't even get you to come hang out with me anymore,” Auburn looked away, “I’ve been fine, just working on projects.” Willow gave her a guessing look, “Auburn…its been 7 months since you’ve done something else besides work.” All she could do was stare at the cubicle wall as Willow spoke.

‘What a disappointment,’ Auburn dug her nails into her hand below her desk, warmth traveling down a finger. “Am I not allowed to spend time by myself? Do my hobbies? Besides,” she looked away, “we talk plenty.” 

‘Piece of shit,’

“Auburn…” Willow started, “I know what's going on.” He said firmly, his lips parted, eyebrows calm and eyes attentive. Her heart was racing again, her face motionless. She flexed her feet roughly as she lifted her head to look into Willows forest eyes. ‘He knows how pathetic you are,’

“And what would that be?” She questioned, raising a brow.

“You…” he raised a brow in response, making her tilt her head at the silence.

“Yeah? Youuuu what?”

He smiled at her, “you my friend are terrified of falling in love again.” 

“Oh!” The tension in her body melted away as she slumped back in her chair before a pit formed in her stomach. Sweat formed on her brow as she slowly readjusted herself in the seat with a gulp. “Wait…what?

“What makes you think that?”

“Oh, you know exactly why I think that!” Willow snickered, pointing a finger at her. She glared at him, “please kill me the suspense and just tell me. I have a lot of illegal magic usage I need to document,” she gestured to the PC with her head. Flashes of past relationships lurched through her mind, their smiles flashing brighter than embers. He was there again, standing behind Willow, so was everyone else. All of them, every person she has ever hurt, every person she has ever loved, every person who has ever hurt her. They surrounded Willow, their faces a blur, their mingling smells thick in the air. 

Willow smiled, “and I have just the thing!”