Taking a Break

Taking a Break

Taking my break in the ladies’ room stall. The lengths one has to go for some quiet sometimes. We have a busy, chatty office, you can’t tune it out. Normally I go outside for some quiet, but it was raining.

I was checking my hair, but everyone who came in felt the need to chat so in desperation I went into a stall. Propriety dictates you don’t talk to someone in a stall unless you’re a very, very good friend.

Two women came in; they didn’t know I was there.

“Did you hear the rumor about Beth?”

“No! What?”

“She may be pregnant!”

I was taken aback, being the only Beth in the building… and certainly not pregnant! I went to protest but one of the woman had to rush off. Before the second left, another came in.

“Did you hear Beth’s pregnant?”
“No, really? Is it… that Brad’s?”

What?? I hadn’t dated Brad for over a year. They both left. As I prepared to go face the rumor mill, another two came in, “They say she dumped that Brad, good for her!” then the other one, “Yeah and she wasn’t pregnant after all, just a little fat.”

Fat!! I didn’t know if I was relieved or insulted! I gathered my things, this had gone too far! Someone else came in, I froze.

“I heard it was a tumor,” she said, “she thought she was getting fat, fortunately they found it in time!”

“I thought she was looking a bit pale, but so slender now. Lucky Beth!”

I sat back down. During this break I had gone full circle, from fat to pregnant, to Brad to fat again, to a tumor caught in time, no Brad, and now healthy and slender. I was exhausted!

I needed another break.