For the Remainder challenge
I started this for the "You're Fired" challenge at thursday100, but it ended up being *way* over the word limit.
L&O classique (as always), 515 words.
“Miss Kincaid, my immediate concern is something altogether different from that,” Ben said. “Specifically, being able to trust the people that I work with.”
Liar, a voice echoed in his brain. He was indeed very angry that Claire had jeopardized the case, and such a mistake called for an immediate dismissal. But a lack of trust was far from being his immediate concern, and he knew it.
What else are you going to say, Stone? ‘I’m sorry, Miss Kincaid, but I have to let you go because I want you’?
Within days of Claire Kincaid being assigned to him, he knew that it wasn’t going to work out. Sure, she was beautiful - but he’d been at Hogan Place a long time, and had seen plenty of ADAs with pretty faces and figures to match. But Claire was different from them - she was shy and sensitive, and she had managed to stir something in Ben that he had long ago left for dead.
And it scared the hell out of him.
He began looking forward to seeing her each day, anticipating her arrival at the office like a teenage boy with a secret crush. He instantly knew that it was bad news; there was no way he could work with someone he had feelings for. Oh, he could pretend - but that wouldn’t erase his fear of having such feelings reawakened in him, or the pain of a love that was all but certain to be one-sided.
So he had resolved to let her go when an appropriate opportunity presented itself. And he wasn’t going to get one more perfect than this - he could easily mask his true feelings behind justified anger.
“You have the right to be angry,” Claire replied nervously. “I made a mistake, and I’m willing to take the heat for it.”
He had seen it hundreds of times - an inexperienced assistant attempting to save face after a blunder. It had always failed to move him, because he strongly believed that the best lessons were the hardest-learned. Until now, that is. All he had to do was look into those big brown eyes, and he immediately wanted to reverse his position.
“But I resent the implication that I breached your trust,” she added.
The assertion took Ben by surprise, and he couldn’t help but agree. She hadn’t lied to him - she’d only made an extremely bad judgment call. But there was no time to think about that. He had to finish this, and as convincingly as possible.
“I’m not interested in what you resent, Miss Kincaid. I think it would be wise for you to request a change of assignment immediately after Mr. Carmichael is acquitted.”
A lost case. Not exactly what Ben wanted to face, but getting out of this situation came with a price.
“Fine,” Claire said, her voice quivering slightly.
Good, he thought. I pulled it off. She’ll never know a thing.
Then she turned away, walking down the hall towards the elevator. As he watched Claire disappear from sight, Ben couldn’t help but feel like he’d just sold his soul.
finis
L&O classique (as always), 515 words.
“Miss Kincaid, my immediate concern is something altogether different from that,” Ben said. “Specifically, being able to trust the people that I work with.”
Liar, a voice echoed in his brain. He was indeed very angry that Claire had jeopardized the case, and such a mistake called for an immediate dismissal. But a lack of trust was far from being his immediate concern, and he knew it.
What else are you going to say, Stone? ‘I’m sorry, Miss Kincaid, but I have to let you go because I want you’?
Within days of Claire Kincaid being assigned to him, he knew that it wasn’t going to work out. Sure, she was beautiful - but he’d been at Hogan Place a long time, and had seen plenty of ADAs with pretty faces and figures to match. But Claire was different from them - she was shy and sensitive, and she had managed to stir something in Ben that he had long ago left for dead.
And it scared the hell out of him.
He began looking forward to seeing her each day, anticipating her arrival at the office like a teenage boy with a secret crush. He instantly knew that it was bad news; there was no way he could work with someone he had feelings for. Oh, he could pretend - but that wouldn’t erase his fear of having such feelings reawakened in him, or the pain of a love that was all but certain to be one-sided.
So he had resolved to let her go when an appropriate opportunity presented itself. And he wasn’t going to get one more perfect than this - he could easily mask his true feelings behind justified anger.
“You have the right to be angry,” Claire replied nervously. “I made a mistake, and I’m willing to take the heat for it.”
He had seen it hundreds of times - an inexperienced assistant attempting to save face after a blunder. It had always failed to move him, because he strongly believed that the best lessons were the hardest-learned. Until now, that is. All he had to do was look into those big brown eyes, and he immediately wanted to reverse his position.
“But I resent the implication that I breached your trust,” she added.
The assertion took Ben by surprise, and he couldn’t help but agree. She hadn’t lied to him - she’d only made an extremely bad judgment call. But there was no time to think about that. He had to finish this, and as convincingly as possible.
“I’m not interested in what you resent, Miss Kincaid. I think it would be wise for you to request a change of assignment immediately after Mr. Carmichael is acquitted.”
A lost case. Not exactly what Ben wanted to face, but getting out of this situation came with a price.
“Fine,” Claire said, her voice quivering slightly.
Good, he thought. I pulled it off. She’ll never know a thing.
Then she turned away, walking down the hall towards the elevator. As he watched Claire disappear from sight, Ben couldn’t help but feel like he’d just sold his soul.
finis