The sky seemed like it was dead. It resembled for him the very purity of a recently made blank sheet. The wind felt icy and little drops of rain followed him anywhere he went. The weather was just like him: empty, cold-hearted and white. Luckily only when he had arrived, it started to rain. He came into the operations floor without a thought and began searching for an available spot. His boss was not there and therefore, her smile couldn’t cheer him up this afternoon.
He then sat at the end of the row, facing a window, wet and dry at the same time. He got ready in two minutes as everything was so mechanical for him he didn’t even feel the headphones. That’s when he started:
“Thank you so much for calling. My name is Samuel. How can I help you?” He was not truly paying much attention.
“Hello? Can you hear me? I need you to write this number down and call me back! Now! Sorry!” the male voice hesitated “PLEASE!” It was urgent and bossy yet the tone was scared.
“I do apologise but I would need to know who you are…” he muttered looking to the street through the window.
“NO! I can’t… I just don’t know what to do…” the sentences were broken by the man, who sobbed constantly.
“What can I do for you?” Samuel replied because he remembered he had been told to, whenever a customer was not clear or satisfied.
“Call me before they come. You must. I just cannot explain right now” someone else was crying on the customer’s end. Suddenly, a number was said and the voice disappeared.
“What?” emitted Samuel, clearly overwhelmed, after taking note of the number, “are you still there, sir?”
But no one was on the line. An empty sound, like that weather. The call was dropped instantly and another one came in.
Samuel repeated the greeting, rushed by the situation. It was just a customer wanting to change his plan. He assisted and finished, following the process with the next call and trying not to think about the urgent man and his unusual request.
When he was about to take his twentieth call, his boss appeared. Florence saw him, smiled and greeted with joy. He was unable to do the same: he was already helping someone else through the phone and felt the need to talk to her about the weird call. But she continued her pace until she reached her desk and sat, hiding herself behind the cubicle. He knew where she was and tried to see her over the fake walls dividing the workplaces. Therefore he barely heard when the customer called his name.
“I’m sorry” he muttered and continued “Yes, that’s right. You can call whoever you want without any extra charge”.
“Thanks then. That’s what I wanted, Samuel. Have a good afternoon”
“Alright. Thanks for calling. You too…” he ended. It was time for him to rest and for this reason, he placed the headphones on the table after placing himself in break time. He reached his boss spot but she was not there.
He had thought about calling the man whenever he could but now even regretted writing the number he had provided. Not wanting to waste his free time, he went straight to the terrace and gazed the city. Everything looked now so calm and peaceful. What could be happening inside other buildings? He searched through the windows of the other buildings trying to discover someone, but he saw no one else staring back.
Maybe he just needed to call to find out.
Before he had noticed, he had come back to the fourth floor and was sitting again in front of the computer. Then, he lifted the headphones and before he was able to dial the number, his boss yelled: “Auto in”. He replied “I need to do a call back” just to get as an answer “Take just another call”.
He began once again his script as he had done for nearly a year now and he heard suddenly a weird voice.
“I needed to do it” she said. “I had no other choice” she stated without a doubt.
Samuel was nervous now and explored the floor, pretending to find help. It was the second time this day he had this type of call and he couldn’t help to think they were related. It seemed there was nothing else he could do but to hear.
“Tell me, sir. What else could I have done when my life was in danger?”
“I… I don’t know. You should have called the police” shouted Samuel, desperately. At that moment, he noticed what was happening in front of him. Inside one of the lofts, in the nearest building, he could see several men threatening a couple. It looked like they had broken into the apartment and the man had tried to fight but was reduced easily. The victims were tied and the woman faced the window, the one Samuel was looking through.
He was completely scared now and attempted to have his boss’ attention since he was unable to disconnect the call; Florence, nonetheless, was too busy and distracted with her phone to see him. On the other hand, the woman through the phone kept justifying herself and expected him to agree.
“Wasn’t that enough that they had stolen my dignity? I am guilty but they are even more. I will try to call 911 then because you’re not truly helping. What am I going to tell them? Something like… I just…” the voice faded out and the call was disconnected.
Samuel stood up instantly, dropping his work tools on the table and ran into Florence. She was clearly upset and started to complain about his behaviour before being interrupted.
“There’s something you need to see. There, on the window… and I have had these two calls. I think they have been kidnapped and she did something I don’t know! See it yourself!” he finished and dragged her by the arm. She shook him off and went directly to the spot Samuel had indicated. She couldn’t see anything different behind that building façade.
“Are you playing with me?” she asked, turning her back to the glass wall. The woman in the front room appeared again, tossed by a guy, who shouted at her. After him, came into the room the man that was also tied and was left on the floor.
“Why can’t you see now? Turn around, Florence. Check it out!” Samuel said and pushed her to the window. She was outraged now and instead of turning, she stated.
“It’s time for you to leave this company. I will get your resignation and you will have to sign it.”
“What the HELL?” talked back Samuel “Are you kidding me? Look the couple there and tell me I’m lying. He is trying to call someone now.”
The scene was exactly as he had said but now, Florence was looking. The couple was apparently free now and he was rushing the words to the headset he clutched in his palm.
“There’s nothing wrong about them. Go back to your place and finish your worktime today. We’ll discuss about your attitude after the shift has ended” she ordered.
He felt awkward being followed by her, while walking to the computer he had chosen. He let his body fall on the chair and placed the headphones in place before Florence had anything else to say. As soon as she left, he dialled the number the man had given him before. The call went through and rang two times. A female voice whispered an answer:
“Who’s this? The person you’re calling is no longer here” declared her.
“I am an agent. A customer service representative for your… phone company. I received a call from that number. It was a man, who said…” Samuel didn’t know how to explain without showing his lack of help.
“That was my husband. But he abandoned me about ten minutes ago. Now I am alone and they are not even here. You’re supposed to call and help before they came back, you know.”
“Who? Why?” that was the only answer Samuel managed to pronounce.
“Those men, they tied us up and made me… That’s why my husband is not here anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“His body is lying on the floor but he… He left with my love and the bullet a gun in my hand shot.”
“Are you saying you killed him? But… It was your husband… I should call the police. Why did you…?” Samuel had started to stutter and couldn’t continue.
“DO YOU THINK I WANTED TO DO IT? ALL WHAT I DID WAS TO SAVE HIM. They would have done it anyway. Again, you’re not helping. Mind your own business!” and the call was dropped.
He jumped from his chair without a thought in order to face completely the same window. Both of them, the victims were in the room but they were not alone. The other men were yelling at them and forced the woman to stand up. She did it and they just stared at her with anger. Her husband saw them and struggled in order to release himself from the ties punching one of the kidnappers in the face. They grabbed and hit him while his wife screamed and asked for mercy.
She was completely mad and disarmed rather easily one of the thugs. They nevertheless beat her once again and she fell without consciousness.
Samuel was surely out of his mind. He got Florence's attention quickly and encouraged her to gaze through the window. In that fourth floor, there was only the couple left. The man was tied again and she had passed out. This time, it was impossible for Florence to refuse something wrong had happened. She took her cellphone out and dialed the emergency call number. They waited, she and her agent, trying not to see each other. It was an uncomfortable scene and Samuel managed to confirm how beautiful she was. He had always liked but never had the chance to confess it to himself. It was the correct time.
He touched her hand and she turned to see him, leaving the awful situation of the couple at her back. Her emergency call had not been answered and she showed clearly awe and confusion. He stepped nearer and was distracted by the lady in the other building, who had just awakened. She searched the floor for a while and found it.
The gun was shaking in her hand meanwhile she attempted to aim at her husband. They were discussing and he begged. She had no mercy and was just earning time to be sure.
Samuel kicked Florence aside and shouted:
“She will kill him.”
Then the window was broken and the silence of the wind on his ears was the only thing he could hear.
Now, he could only think..
“Maybe I should have taken just another call”.
He then sat at the end of the row, facing a window, wet and dry at the same time. He got ready in two minutes as everything was so mechanical for him he didn’t even feel the headphones. That’s when he started:
“Thank you so much for calling. My name is Samuel. How can I help you?” He was not truly paying much attention.
“Hello? Can you hear me? I need you to write this number down and call me back! Now! Sorry!” the male voice hesitated “PLEASE!” It was urgent and bossy yet the tone was scared.
“I do apologise but I would need to know who you are…” he muttered looking to the street through the window.
“NO! I can’t… I just don’t know what to do…” the sentences were broken by the man, who sobbed constantly.
“What can I do for you?” Samuel replied because he remembered he had been told to, whenever a customer was not clear or satisfied.
“Call me before they come. You must. I just cannot explain right now” someone else was crying on the customer’s end. Suddenly, a number was said and the voice disappeared.
“What?” emitted Samuel, clearly overwhelmed, after taking note of the number, “are you still there, sir?”
But no one was on the line. An empty sound, like that weather. The call was dropped instantly and another one came in.
Samuel repeated the greeting, rushed by the situation. It was just a customer wanting to change his plan. He assisted and finished, following the process with the next call and trying not to think about the urgent man and his unusual request.
When he was about to take his twentieth call, his boss appeared. Florence saw him, smiled and greeted with joy. He was unable to do the same: he was already helping someone else through the phone and felt the need to talk to her about the weird call. But she continued her pace until she reached her desk and sat, hiding herself behind the cubicle. He knew where she was and tried to see her over the fake walls dividing the workplaces. Therefore he barely heard when the customer called his name.
“I’m sorry” he muttered and continued “Yes, that’s right. You can call whoever you want without any extra charge”.
“Thanks then. That’s what I wanted, Samuel. Have a good afternoon”
“Alright. Thanks for calling. You too…” he ended. It was time for him to rest and for this reason, he placed the headphones on the table after placing himself in break time. He reached his boss spot but she was not there.
He had thought about calling the man whenever he could but now even regretted writing the number he had provided. Not wanting to waste his free time, he went straight to the terrace and gazed the city. Everything looked now so calm and peaceful. What could be happening inside other buildings? He searched through the windows of the other buildings trying to discover someone, but he saw no one else staring back.
Maybe he just needed to call to find out.
Before he had noticed, he had come back to the fourth floor and was sitting again in front of the computer. Then, he lifted the headphones and before he was able to dial the number, his boss yelled: “Auto in”. He replied “I need to do a call back” just to get as an answer “Take just another call”.
He began once again his script as he had done for nearly a year now and he heard suddenly a weird voice.
“I needed to do it” she said. “I had no other choice” she stated without a doubt.
Samuel was nervous now and explored the floor, pretending to find help. It was the second time this day he had this type of call and he couldn’t help to think they were related. It seemed there was nothing else he could do but to hear.
“Tell me, sir. What else could I have done when my life was in danger?”
“I… I don’t know. You should have called the police” shouted Samuel, desperately. At that moment, he noticed what was happening in front of him. Inside one of the lofts, in the nearest building, he could see several men threatening a couple. It looked like they had broken into the apartment and the man had tried to fight but was reduced easily. The victims were tied and the woman faced the window, the one Samuel was looking through.
He was completely scared now and attempted to have his boss’ attention since he was unable to disconnect the call; Florence, nonetheless, was too busy and distracted with her phone to see him. On the other hand, the woman through the phone kept justifying herself and expected him to agree.
“Wasn’t that enough that they had stolen my dignity? I am guilty but they are even more. I will try to call 911 then because you’re not truly helping. What am I going to tell them? Something like… I just…” the voice faded out and the call was disconnected.
Samuel stood up instantly, dropping his work tools on the table and ran into Florence. She was clearly upset and started to complain about his behaviour before being interrupted.
“There’s something you need to see. There, on the window… and I have had these two calls. I think they have been kidnapped and she did something I don’t know! See it yourself!” he finished and dragged her by the arm. She shook him off and went directly to the spot Samuel had indicated. She couldn’t see anything different behind that building façade.
“Are you playing with me?” she asked, turning her back to the glass wall. The woman in the front room appeared again, tossed by a guy, who shouted at her. After him, came into the room the man that was also tied and was left on the floor.
“Why can’t you see now? Turn around, Florence. Check it out!” Samuel said and pushed her to the window. She was outraged now and instead of turning, she stated.
“It’s time for you to leave this company. I will get your resignation and you will have to sign it.”
“What the HELL?” talked back Samuel “Are you kidding me? Look the couple there and tell me I’m lying. He is trying to call someone now.”
The scene was exactly as he had said but now, Florence was looking. The couple was apparently free now and he was rushing the words to the headset he clutched in his palm.
“There’s nothing wrong about them. Go back to your place and finish your worktime today. We’ll discuss about your attitude after the shift has ended” she ordered.
He felt awkward being followed by her, while walking to the computer he had chosen. He let his body fall on the chair and placed the headphones in place before Florence had anything else to say. As soon as she left, he dialled the number the man had given him before. The call went through and rang two times. A female voice whispered an answer:
“Who’s this? The person you’re calling is no longer here” declared her.
“I am an agent. A customer service representative for your… phone company. I received a call from that number. It was a man, who said…” Samuel didn’t know how to explain without showing his lack of help.
“That was my husband. But he abandoned me about ten minutes ago. Now I am alone and they are not even here. You’re supposed to call and help before they came back, you know.”
“Who? Why?” that was the only answer Samuel managed to pronounce.
“Those men, they tied us up and made me… That’s why my husband is not here anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“His body is lying on the floor but he… He left with my love and the bullet a gun in my hand shot.”
“Are you saying you killed him? But… It was your husband… I should call the police. Why did you…?” Samuel had started to stutter and couldn’t continue.
“DO YOU THINK I WANTED TO DO IT? ALL WHAT I DID WAS TO SAVE HIM. They would have done it anyway. Again, you’re not helping. Mind your own business!” and the call was dropped.
He jumped from his chair without a thought in order to face completely the same window. Both of them, the victims were in the room but they were not alone. The other men were yelling at them and forced the woman to stand up. She did it and they just stared at her with anger. Her husband saw them and struggled in order to release himself from the ties punching one of the kidnappers in the face. They grabbed and hit him while his wife screamed and asked for mercy.
She was completely mad and disarmed rather easily one of the thugs. They nevertheless beat her once again and she fell without consciousness.
Samuel was surely out of his mind. He got Florence's attention quickly and encouraged her to gaze through the window. In that fourth floor, there was only the couple left. The man was tied again and she had passed out. This time, it was impossible for Florence to refuse something wrong had happened. She took her cellphone out and dialed the emergency call number. They waited, she and her agent, trying not to see each other. It was an uncomfortable scene and Samuel managed to confirm how beautiful she was. He had always liked but never had the chance to confess it to himself. It was the correct time.
He touched her hand and she turned to see him, leaving the awful situation of the couple at her back. Her emergency call had not been answered and she showed clearly awe and confusion. He stepped nearer and was distracted by the lady in the other building, who had just awakened. She searched the floor for a while and found it.
The gun was shaking in her hand meanwhile she attempted to aim at her husband. They were discussing and he begged. She had no mercy and was just earning time to be sure.
Samuel kicked Florence aside and shouted:
“She will kill him.”
Then the window was broken and the silence of the wind on his ears was the only thing he could hear.
Now, he could only think..
“Maybe I should have taken just another call”.
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