Element, Part 1 (14 page)

Natalie waited while the lady searched through a stack of ID
badges. “Here is your badge. You will need to wear it at all times.”

“Yes ma’am.” Natalie took the badge. She studied the photo
on the front of it. It was only two weeks ago that she took the picture but she
sure did look different with her straight hair and eye glasses. She clipped the
badge to her shirt.

“Please have a seat over there.” The lady pointed to an area
filled with several young people who appeared to be interns too. “Someone will
come and get you.”

“Okay. Thank you.” Natalie walked across the gray slate
floor to a sitting area of sleek leather chairs and sofas.  The modern décor
and color pallet of white, gray, and silver gave the building a futuristic feeling.
She recognized many of the faces from orientation, even though she didn’t know
them personally. Before she sat down, she heard someone call her name.

“Natalie. Ready to go?” Sean waved and smiled, walking in
her direction. He wore a long white lab coat that made him look pencil thin.

“Hi, Sean. Am I the only one?”  She glanced back at the
group of students behind her.

“Yes. The other two interns started yesterday.”

“There are only three interns working in the lab?”

“No. There’s a total of five. Two stayed on from last
semester. Come on, I’ll show you how to get into this place.”  He motioned for
her to follow him.

They walked up to a large turnstile, located next to the
side of the front desk. “You scan your badge and then press your thumb up to
the scanner.”  Sean showed her by doing his first.

She followed his instructions. A green light illuminated on
the display. “You can walk through now.” A guard standing to the side informed
her.

“Thanks.” She gave the guard a friendly smile and walked
through. He didn’t smile back. She hoped her coworkers would be friendlier
.
Everyone
seemed so tightlipped and serious. “That was easy,” she said to Sean, while straightening
out her badge on the lapel of her shirt.

“Yeah, nothing to it.” He led her through the main common
area. “Did you get a tour of the facility?”

“Yes, during orientation. This place is amazing. It feels
like I’m walking through a scene from Star Wars or something.” She gawked at all
the transparent computer screens displaying information and videos along the
walls.

“Yeah, it kind of feels like that or a scene from Iron Man.”
Sean led her down a long corridor and then made a right turn. A set of clear
glass double doors marked with the words ‘Clearance Required’ greeted them. She
watched Sean scan his badge and the glass doors slide open.

“All you need is to dress the guards like Imperial Stormtroopers.”

Sean broke out in laughter. “Now that would be cool. Speaking
of dressing up, next Friday is Kronberg’s big annual masquerade party.
Everyone’s invited. You don’t want to miss it.”

She followed him down another hallway to the main laboratory
area. “My roommate, Lise, is working in Marketing. She told me all about it
last night. Sounds like it will be epic.”

“Man, you have no idea. They go all out. It’s like a Vegas
show on steroids. I’m sure Lise’s head is spinning trying to get everything
prepared for next week.”

“That’s an understatement. She’s already stressed out,
worrying how they will get everything done in time.”

“Sounds like you have the scoop on it. So are you going?”
Sean scanned his badge again which opened a set of opaque glass doors. They
slid open diagonally, disappearing into the wall.

Natalie followed Sean in to the lab. Her jaw dropped. “Wow,
this is impressive.” She stumbled around in a circle. High tech gadgets
surrounded her, lighting up in neon colors. Transparent computer screens hung
along the walls, scrolling data and showing different video clips.

“You’ll get used to it. Come on, I’ll take you to your
workstation. Franz left early and asked me to show you around.”

“Okay.” She followed him slowly, trying to assimilate
everything around her.

“Let me introduce you to Dr. Kronberg.” Sean ushered Natalie
over to a short older man standing in front of a computer screen.

“Excuse me, Dr. Kronberg.”

The white headed man turned around. “Yes, Sean.” He spoke
with a heavy Swedish accent and it was exactly how she imagined him sounding.

“I’d like for you to meet Natalie Vega, one of the new
interns.”

Dr. Kronberg’s thin lips parted into a flat smile. He stuck
out his hand. “Hello, Natalie. It’s nice to meet you.”

She shook the ingenious scientist’s age worn hand. “Hello,
Dr. Kronberg. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“Thank you. We are glad you are here. This will be a great
learning opportunity for you. If you need anything at all, I’m here. Please
don’t hesitate to ask me any questions. Remember, there is no such thing as a
dumb question, only those not asked remain unknown and a mystery to all.”

Natalie smiled. Not only was he intelligent, but kind too.
“Thank you. I’m looking forward to learning everything I can while I’m here.
This is a dream come true.” The doctor pulled his hand back and she realized she
hadn’t stopped shaking it. She retrieved her hand, feeling like a complete
rambling fool.

The doctor adjusted his thin metal frame glasses. “I’m glad
to hear that. We’ll talk later.” He gave a slight nod to both of them and
turned back to his work.

She followed Sean to the back of the lab. “He is so cool.”

“I told you. Over here is your locker to store your things.
You’ll need to make sure you put on your lab coat before going to your
workstation. There are some areas that are designated as clean room only. I’ll
show them to you later. What you do is swipe your badge in the slot right in
front of the lock and it will open.”

“Thanks, Sean. I appreciate everything. Really, I do.” She
scanned her badge and waited for the locker to open.

“No problem. You’re going to do great here. I know it. By
the way, you didn’t answer my question.”

“I’m sorry, what question?” She put her purse in the locker
and took the white lab coat off the hook. She struggled to get her arm through
the sleeve.

Sean helped her. “The masquerade party, do you think you
will go?”

“Thanks.” She fixed her collar and stopped when a weird vibe
struck her, making her feel uncomfortable. Why was Sean always helping her out?
Oh no. Did she give him the wrong impression and now he liked her? She closed
the locker door. More than anything, she wanted to crawl inside and tell him to
go away. She couldn’t coward down. She turned and faced him. “Probably. Lise
won’t let me back out of this one. That’s for sure.”

“If she doesn’t go or she’s too busy you can go with me and
some friends.”

She smiled, not wanting to be rude. “Thanks, but I’m sure
I’ll go with Lise and …” What was Ryan? Her boyfriend? They were going out so
he must be her boyfriend, right? “My friend Ryan, who’s also interning in marketing.”

“That’s cool. We can get a table so we can all sit
together.”  He shoved his hands in the pockets of his lab coat and rocked on
the back of his heels.

“Okay. That sounds like a good idea,” she agreed, unsure of
his motives and slightly confused.  But she’d worry about it later.

“Ready to get started?”

Natalie nodded. “I sure am.”

***

Natalie motioned for Lise to stop. “That’s good. It looks
great.” She pulled away, not allowing Lise to curl any more of her hair.

“I know. I just want Ryan’s mouth to drop when he sees you. By
the way, I noticed you haven’t been wearing your glasses.”  She twirled a few
more strands of Natalie’s hair around her finger, spraying it with more hair
spray.

“Yeah, I’ve been wearing my contacts. By the way, thanks for
helping me. I know you’re tired from working all week.” Natalie got up and
stepped into the bathroom to change her clothes.

“No problem. I think it’s sweet that you’re inviting him
over for dinner. Besides, I didn’t mind cooking in your aunt’s gourmet kitchen.”

“It’s awesome, isn’t?”

“It’s a chef’s dream come true.” She yawned. “I think I’ll
sleep in tomorrow. Wow, this bed feels great.”

Natalie peeked out the door to see Lise lying back on the
big overstuffed bed. “You’re not going out with Sal tonight?”

Lise let out a long drawn out sigh. “Tomorrow. I’m way too
tired tonight. Don’t get me wrong, I love my new internship but this event
planning is so much work. I can’t believe I put in thirty hours this week. I’m
not supposed to work more than twenty hours. Besides, I have homework and
reading to catch up on, that’s if I can stay awake to do it.”

Natalie checked herself in the mirror, making sure the underlining
of her dress was not stuck in the back of her panties. She didn’t need that
embarrassment. “Ryan told me he worked about thirty hours too. I hope they
don’t expect you all to continue working that much.”

“I hope not either. After all, school comes first. All I can
say is this is going to be one epic party. Kronberg is going all out for this
event. We should go shopping Sunday for our costumes.”

“That works for me.” Natalie’s cell phone chimed. She
stepped out of the bathroom to get her phone.  Lise was still lying on the bed
with her eyes closed. She checked the message. “That’s Ryan, he’s on his way.”

Lise opened her eyes and sat up. “Wow! That strapless dress
looks great on you. The fire orange color makes you look hotter than hell.” She
motioned for Natalie to turn around. “Let me fix your sash.”

“Thanks. Aunt Sharon bought this for me, along with a few
other outfits. I guess her way of saying thanks for keeping an eye on her
place.”

“What? You didn’t show me what she bought you.”

Natalie shrugged her shoulders. “Sorry, I forgot. They’re in
the closet.”

Lise got up to take a peek. “Nat, you are so lucky. You know
that?” She stepped out holding a denim romper up to her. “I may have to borrow
this.”

“Sure.” Natalie put on her matching earrings and bracelet,
also from her aunt. “Hey Lise, Ryan’s on his way.”

“Okay, I’m leaving.” Lise grabbed her purse. “Have fun and
don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” Lise winked and let out a huge smile.

“Lise, you know me better than that.” Natalie shook her head
and walked her to the door.

“See you tomorrow.” Lise waved bye as she walked out the door.

Natalie shut the door behind her and dashed into the
kitchen. She checked the food, making sure it was still warm. She lit a few
candles and turned on some music from her MP3 player. It sounded awesome on her
aunt’s state of the art sound system. She did a quick scan, making sure
everything looked just right. It didn’t take much in Sharon’s lush condo; from
the sleek leather couch to the chic platinum upholstered arm chairs and the
glass accent tables decorated to match the Pottery Barn catalog. She rearranged
a few of the cushions on the couch and stopped when she heard the doorbell ring.

Her heart raced and she had to slow her steps as she walked
to the door. It had been almost a week since she saw him, thanks to the demands
of his new internship and summer school. She literally couldn’t wait any
longer. She did one last check in the mirror and fixed a stray strand of hair.
Lise had her more self-conscious now and she caught herself paying more
attention to how she looked. Before opening the door, she checked the small
surveillance screen. Leave it to her aunt to have high tech gadgets. Ryan
waited outside the door with his hands behind his back, wearing a pressed
button down shirt, faded jeans and cowboy boots.
So he did remember to wear
his jeans and boots.

She opened the door and leaned against it. “Hi handsome.”

“Hi there beautiful.”  He pulled out a dozen red roses
wrapped in soft pink tissue from behind his back.

“Thank you, they are gorgeous.” She took the bouquet from
his hands and raised them to her nose. “They smell wonderful too.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, stepping inside.

She bit down on her lower lip, trying to keep herself under
control. It was pointless. She threw her arms around his neck. He embraced her,
picking her up off the floor and swinging her around.  She clung to him as the
room spun around them. Her forehead touched his and their eyes locked. Like
magnets, their lips drew together. They shared a deep long kiss that made her
heart soar and her body swirl with butterflies.  

He stopped spinning her around. Slowly his lips pulled away
from hers. “I’ve missed seein’ you.”

She kept her fingers buried in the back of his hair. “You
have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”

He lowered her to the ground. The second her feet touched
the floor a wave of dizziness hit. She buried her head against his chest and
closed her eyes. This habitual nuisance would not ruin her evening with him.
She took a silent deep breath and shook it off.

He glided his hands down her bare shoulders, sending chills
all over her body. “Are you okay?” He eased back, trying to see her face.

She hugged him tighter. “Yes. I missed being in your arms,
that’s all.” She looked up at him, hoping she sounded believable this time.

Ryan’s eyes narrowed and he forced a smile. “Alright, if you
say so.”

She shut the door and he followed her into the condo. “Gee,
you did all this yourself?”  He checked out the place and stopped in front of
the table set for two. “I’ve never had anyone do this for me.”

“I did have a little help from Lise.”

“That was nice of her to help you. Thank you.” 

“You’re welcome. I’ll just put these in some water.” She
walked into the kitchen and pulled out a tall chrome vase. She filled it up and
arranged the roses.

She placed them on the dark walnut canaletto dining room
table.  The silver accents along the top drew her eyes to the center of the
shiny vase. “Now the table’s perfect.”