Reagan: I love you too, Chase. Thank you for saying that and thank you for giving me some space last night. I missed you. See you tonight.
Chase: Missed you too, Red. Have a good day, babe.
Reagan breathed deeply, smoothed the front of her blouse, and got to work on her first tasks for the day.
An hour or so later, Lucy walked up.
“Are you ready?” she asked softly.
Reagan looked up and nodded. She stood, and together the two women walked toward the large office of the head of human resources, an older man named Steven Parker. When Reagan had been hired into her current position, Steven had been on her interview panel. He had been respectful at the time, but still, Reagan worried how an older man would take to two young women accusing their supervisor of harassment. Yet again, she was filled with relief that Lucy had been able to catch his actions on tape. Surely they couldn’t ignore proof like that.
Lucy knocked on Mr. Parker’s office door, which was slightly ajar, and when they heard him respond, they walked in.
Lucy jumped right in, not wasting any time. “Mr. Parker, thank you for meeting with Reagan and I. We have both been harassed multiple times by Harris Turner. I have video evidence of him verbally harassing me, and video evidence of him touching Reagan inappropriately.”
Reagan was disappointed to note that Mr. Parker didn’t look very shocked at their accusation. When he replied, his voice was calm and even.
“I trust you have these recordings with you now?”
“Yes, I do.” Lucy pressed a button on her phone. “I have just emailed them to you.”
The next few minutes were quiet, as Mr. Parker reviewed the footage with a deep frown on his face. When he had finished, Mr. Parker came around to the front of his desk and steepled his fingers together.
“First of all, ladies, I want to extend my apologies for what you have experienced. Mr. Turner’s actions are unacceptable, and with evidence as clear as this he will most certainly be let go immediately.” He turned his gaze to each of them in turn. “Do either of you plan on pressing charges?”
Reagan decided it was now or never. The time had come for her to start living the life she had always wanted. “No, sir, I personally do not plan on filing charges, however if Lucy decides to, I will stand by her.” She paused and looked down at her hands before taking a deep breath. “However, I must also take this opportunity to submit my resignation. I will write a formal letter this afternoon. What Harris Turner did to me was horrible and went on for too long. I take responsibility for not coming to you sooner to report him. I can only hope that my silence didn’t pave the way for him to treat anyone else this way. Even knowing that he will no longer be in the office, I can’t continue to work here. Thank you for taking our report seriously, but it’s time for me to move on.”
She heard Lucy’s gasp of surprise, but Reagan remained focused on Mr. Parker who simply nodded.
“Understood. I will have my secretary draw up a letter that outlines how you will be paid out for unused benefits. And you, Miss Proctor?” he said, turning to Lucy.
Lucy glanced at Reagan, and then, seemingly emboldened by Reagan’s choice she replied, “I will also be resigning immediately. Sorry, Mr. Parker, I do appreciate that you’re taking us seriously and dealing with Harris, but I just can’t be here any longer.”
Mr. Parker stood up straight and extended his hand out to each of them. “Very well, ladies. I am sorry that your career here has ended this way, but I understand your decision. Rest assured, Harris Turner will be dealt with immediately.”
They shook hands, and Lucy and Reagan left the office.
“Do you want to go and get a coffee?” Lucy asked Reagan hesitantly.
“God, yes,” was Reagan’s enthusiastic reply. It felt as if a hundred-pound weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Even the sight of Harris down another hallway didn’t dampen her spirit as Reagan realized that she was free.
Down in the lobby, the two women ordered their coffee and found a bench to sit on. After a few moments of silence, Reagan spoke. “So, what’s your plan now?” she asked Lucy.
“Honestly? I have no idea. This job was only ever meant to be temporary, but I never did figure out what I really want to do. My degree is in marketing, but I couldn’t find the right job. I don’t want to work for some big firm, I want to help the little guys, the community businesses, you know?” Lucy’s voice was earnest and genuine.
Reagan suddenly had an idea. A crazy, potentially wonderful idea.
“Lucy… Do you like brownies?”
Lucy smiled. “If you mean your brownies, the ones that you sometimes bring in to the break room, then of course I do. Why?”
Reagan tucked Lucy’s arm in her own as they stood to go back to the office. “Because, I’m going to open a bakery and I could use a partner. I know brownies; I don’t know business.”
She saw the other woman’s eyes shine with excitement and knew she had made the right decision.
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing I know business.”
Reagan laughed. “I think this is the start of a wonderful friendship, Lucy.”
