Lady & the Geek

One afternoon, I came home from class and went straight to bed with flu-like symptoms. The allergy season had crept upon me. My eyes and nose were running non-stop, and my head pounded. I could not have looked or felt worse. After taking some medicine to ease my discomfort I overslept.
At work, I maintained a fragile smile. However, my supervisor and co-workers continued to make comments about my appearance.
Because I was so unfocused, I forgot Orion had reservations. Usually, he’d stay at our Inn, then drive into the city for his meetings. A standing reservation was written off on his expense account. When I gave Orion his key, he pulled down his glasses and took a second glance. Distorting his clean-shaven face was a sincere look of concern. After widening my blurry eyes, I took in his unexpected acknowledgement. Regrettably, they were quickly squeezed together by a violent sneeze.
Under my ill-mannered spray Orion drew back, and then his face softened into pure compassion.
Orion whispered in a mellow voice that melted my heart. “Poor Velvet. You must feel awful, huh?” He shook his head sympathetically then pushed his glasses back on his nose.
For months, Orion had been silent. Then, the one day I could care less about my appearance, he notices me. Stunned by his behavior, I hardly knew what to say. “You have no idea how miserable I feel.” A wheezing sound erupted from my chest. “Thanks for your concern.” Grabbing a tissue, I sniffled, then blotted my sore nose.