Collection Blonde – The Office Intern – Conclusion by NightWish1910

Dear Reader, this is the conclusion to my original text ‘The Office Intern’. This is not a happy story and while sexual activities are described, they are not the main focus. If this is not your preference, then it would be best for you to choose another story from the limitless choices on this site.When I first decided to tell the story of ‘The Office Intern’, I had hoped the truth would have provided some freedom from the misery which ensued after Lisa started her senior year of high school. Admittedly, recalling that summer, with all the hope and possibilities we believed existed, was a sort of panacea. Reminding me of a magical time when two people existed just to love each other. But it also reopened doors I’d believed had been sealed for decades. Ultimately, I realized that the poison they secured had been slowly leaking into the lives of all who were involved.

It was still nineteen seventy-three and Lisa had only been away from me for a week. She had gone back to school while I tried to survive with the gaping hole left by her departure. Suddenly, my job was no longer exciting, and the entire office only reminded me of what had been. Since I was single, with no close family, I made what turned out to be the biggest mistake of my life when it came to my darling Lisa.

Impulsively, I quit my job, giving the man who had hired me no notice at all. He was pissed, of course, but when he heard why, he respected me well enough to be sympathetic.

“Lisa really did a number on your head,” he said to me, not unkindly. “We all could see how close you two were, and I wondered how you’d take it when she left.” He stepped around his desk and sat on the edge, facing me directly. “Look, you’ve done good work here and while I would have appreciated some notice, I can understand. Hell, I’m even a bit jealous of your youth and the flexibility your inheritance gives you.”

“I appreciate that Jim, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working here, but everywhere I look, all I can see is Lisa. And knowing her parents would never allow us to be together, just rubs salt in my wounds.”

“Yeah, I get that,” he replied. “But why the West Coast? Why not hang around here and plead your case to her parents?”

“Mainly because Lisa asked me to stay away until after she graduates. So that’s what I plan to do. She and I have a date for nine months from now for me to meet her at the bus stop the day after she finishes school. So putting some distance between us is the only way I can survive until then.”

“Love sucks, doesn’t it?” he said as he got up and shook my hand. “Well, best of luck and if you need any kind of reference or recommendation in the future, please let me know.”

And that was how I left my job and began driving the final nail in our coffin. Within a week, I was on the West Coast, in my new apartment, looking for a job. I didn’t necessarily need a job, but without one, I’d probably go even crazier. Luckily, my year of experience and low salary requirements allowed me to find a new gig almost immediately.

Regarding my story, there isn’t much to say about the nine months that followed my move. My new job and new life were fine and provided me with the distractions I needed. My calendar was marked with a giant red circle on May 30th denoting the date of Lisa’s high school graduation. That meant that I had a date with her for ten o’clock on Friday, May 31st and my flight reservation and vacation time were already set. To say I was counting the hours would be an understatement.

During our time apart, I sent Lisa a few cards for her birthday and Christmas and a few neutral letters letting her know what I was up to. She never answered, but I just assumed that her parents were intercepting them so that Lisa wasn’t aware. Funny how one can be so wrong about such a simple thing.

_______________________________

I had flown at night before the big day, hoping to at least see the conclusion of Lisa’s school’s graduation. But my asshole airline served up a plane with mechanical issues, and it was nearly midnight by the time I reached my hotel. Sleep was tough to achieve, but I found myself on time, parked in my rental car at Lisa’s old bus stop at the appointed ten o’clock. My nerves were a mess, wondering what she would say about our relationship.

The street was quiet with the usual car and foot traffic, and as ten o’clock came and went, I still knew she would show up. By eleven o’clock, a dark dread had seeped into my brain, and it felt like icicles were filling my gut. By noon, I had to force myself to admit that she wasn’t coming. Regardless of what she’d said when we parted, she’d decided that a relationship with me was no longer her desire, and she couldn’t face me to say that. But still my mind refused to believe, holding on to a hope made of vapors. It was two o’clock when my bladder forced me to accept reality, and I slowly drove away, searching for a bathroom.

Bladder relieved, I sat in my car wondering what to do. I had two obvious options, one easy and one difficult. The easy option was to visit my old company to see if they had heard anything about Lisa. But I doubted they would be much help. The harder option was to knock on Lisa’s front door and confront her. That would be an emotional nightmare, but it would give me the best chance to find out why she didn’t show. As it turned out, I was wrong on both counts.

Not yet ready for a confrontation, I decided to make my old job office the first stop. Pulling into a parking space, I could immediately see something was different. I entered the lobby and saw that almost everything had changed, from the decor to the color scheme to the company name on the wall. Where it used to say ‘Logic Data, Inc.’, it now read “Spectrum Systems – Logic Data Division’. Confused, I walked up to the large reception desk.

“Hi, Miss,” I said. “Is this still Logic Data Inc?”

“Good afternoon, sir,” she replied. “Yes, sort of. Spectrum acquired Logic Data last December, and most of the people who worked at this facility relocated to the large corporate spaces in Florida. Most of the people here now are sales and marketing. Is there someone, in particular, you wanted to speak with?”

“I used to work here but I left last September. It’s hard to believe it all changed so quickly. Does Mary Rogers still work here? She was one of the secretaries.”

“Sorry, I don’t know that name. Perhaps someone else?”

I began rattling off names, getting a head shake for each. Finally, I hit one person she knew.

“Yes, Ron Adams is still here. He handles the office IT support. Let me page him.”

Five minutes later, Ron and I were shaking hands, walking out to the parking lot to catch up.

“Wow, it’s been ages Bill, how the fuck are you?

“I’m okay Ron, I think,” I said. “Listen, I’d love to shoot the shit but I’m kind of in a world of hurt. Do you remember Lisa, the intern from last summer?”

Ron smiled and said, “Of course I do. She was a hottie and if I recall, you two were an item?”

“We were sort of an item, but nothing serious because of her parents. I was supposed to meet her today but she was a no-show. I was wondering if you heard anything about her over the past year?”

“No, I haven’t. But then in IT I rarely get to meet any visitors. Give me a minute to call Sally down at the Florida office.”

I cooled my heels while Ron went to make his call. He was back in ten minutes, looking uncomfortable.

“Any luck?” I asked.

“Yea, man. But it isn’t great news.” He shifted on his feet, looking like he wanted to be anywhere but standing in front of me. He pulled out a cigarette and lit it, blowing the smoke away from me.

“According to Sally, about five weeks or so after you split, Lisa stopped by looking for you. She said Lisa looked terrified and when she found out you’d left the state she broke down and cried like a baby. Sally says it took at least a half-hour for Lisa to calm down enough to leave. She wanted to know where you’d gone, but of course, none of us knew where except that you were somewhere on the West Coast.”

“What the fuck?” I said. “What could have happened to make her so upset? I mean, that would have been around mid-October, and she should have been well into her senior year of high school.”

“No clue, man,” Ron replied. “According to Sally, she never saw Lisa again after that.”

My head was spinning as I shook Ron’s hand, thanking him for the information. I got back in my car and decided that, no matter how hard, I had to go to Lisa’s home and find out what happened. I hit the road, wondering why my sweet girl had been so upset.

Finding Lisa’s house was easy. We had passed it a few times during our secret date nights. It was a modest two-story colonial on a street of similar houses. I parked at the curb and spent a minute steeling my courage. I had no idea what was about to happen, but even if Lisa gave me bad news, it was better than not knowing. Unfortunately, my words would soon come back to haunt me.

I knocked on the door and rang the bell for good measure. I heard a dog barking, which was odd because I didn’t recall Lisa saying they had any pets. The door opened and an elderly woman greeted me.

“Can I help you, young man?”

“Yes, ma’am, my name is Bill, and I was hoping to speak with Lisa. Is she available?”

She looked at me, slightly confused, and said, “I’m sorry, but no one by that name lives here.”

Now I was confused. “Perhaps I have the wrong address,” I said. “Lisa Gibson is the daughter of Mark and Linda Gibson. Lisa and I worked together last summer.”

I saw her eyes light up at the name. “Oh, the Gibson’s. Yes, they’re the people who sold me this wonderful house last December. But I don’t recall seeing a daughter. The home has three bedrooms and only one was occupied when I toured the house. In fact, the Gibson’s said they were selling because the house was too big for them and they wanted something smaller. Last I heard, they moved upstate somewhere.”