Hallison was a mess, from her hair to her clothes, but her heart had taken the biggest hit. The truth was Hallison had a tiny seed of hope that it was God’s will that she and Malcolm would find their way back to each other. After seeing Malcolm and Lisa, there was no hope to keep alive.
She had exactly three blocks to get her mind together before returning to work. That gave her less than a quarter of a mile for her tears to mingle with the downpour that had already drenched her. Hallison gave herself a pep talk. “This too shall pass.” She forced a smile to curious onlookers who also had been targets from the rain. “That’s it. I need someone, too, Lord.” Her only consolation was at least Alexis had dolled her up for the competition.
All she wanted to do was go home and climb in the bed, then pig out on ramen noodles and Oreos followed by a half of bottle of Pepto-Bismol. It dawned on her that she probably resembled Chaka Khan’s sister. Hallison reached up to finger-comb the damage, but her hair wouldn’t budge. Agitated, she gritted her teeth. Hallison wished a hefty bonus could entice Alexis to skip an out-of-town wedding to redo her hair. Alexis would laugh at the offer.
“What about tonight? Oh, God, I can’t miss the final night of the sermons,” Hallison mumbled, groaning. She stood frozen at the entrance to the Metropolitan Circle building. No doubt her linen suit had absorbed water like a Bounty paper towel and shrunk. Straightening her shoulders, Hallison shrugged as she opened the door and entered the lobby.
Ignoring the stares, Hallison walked with her head held high like a runway model as her shoes squeaked across the floor. She had to steady herself as she slipped and glided across the marble floor before grabbing a doorknob to keep her from skating past her department. She nodded to her assistant as if she was dressed for an evening ball and headed to her office.
An explosion of laughter echoed from behind her as she shook her hair like a shaggy dog. Putting on her game face, Hallison slowly turned around to face her opponent, squinting. As her nostrils contracted, she snarled, “If you don’t have a hair pik, Sammie, don’t bother coming near me.”
She had exactly three blocks to get her mind together before returning to work. That gave her less than a quarter of a mile for her tears to mingle with the downpour that had already drenched her. Hallison gave herself a pep talk. “This too shall pass.” She forced a smile to curious onlookers who also had been targets from the rain. “That’s it. I need someone, too, Lord.” Her only consolation was at least Alexis had dolled her up for the competition.
All she wanted to do was go home and climb in the bed, then pig out on ramen noodles and Oreos followed by a half of bottle of Pepto-Bismol. It dawned on her that she probably resembled Chaka Khan’s sister. Hallison reached up to finger-comb the damage, but her hair wouldn’t budge. Agitated, she gritted her teeth. Hallison wished a hefty bonus could entice Alexis to skip an out-of-town wedding to redo her hair. Alexis would laugh at the offer.
“What about tonight? Oh, God, I can’t miss the final night of the sermons,” Hallison mumbled, groaning. She stood frozen at the entrance to the Metropolitan Circle building. No doubt her linen suit had absorbed water like a Bounty paper towel and shrunk. Straightening her shoulders, Hallison shrugged as she opened the door and entered the lobby.
Ignoring the stares, Hallison walked with her head held high like a runway model as her shoes squeaked across the floor. She had to steady herself as she slipped and glided across the marble floor before grabbing a doorknob to keep her from skating past her department. She nodded to her assistant as if she was dressed for an evening ball and headed to her office.
An explosion of laughter echoed from behind her as she shook her hair like a shaggy dog. Putting on her game face, Hallison slowly turned around to face her opponent, squinting. As her nostrils contracted, she snarled, “If you don’t have a hair pik, Sammie, don’t bother coming near me.”
