(Sorry in advance if you feel this first chapter, which works as an introduction, is too long. I promise we'll get to the ropes tape soon enough
)Part 1 - Megan
This was supposed to be a long and boring day at the office. As I finished brushing my teeth, I thought about the work ahead of me. My name is Megan Wilson, 23 years old, 5’ 5’’, and I work as one of the Logistics Managers at Amaze Tape Manufacturing. That’s right, you read it right: we make tape. Our own tape.
As excited as it may sound, in real life, not so much. My main job was, to say the least, a little boring and exhausting. I was in charge of supervising the goods distribution to our customers and to receive any possible returns. That includes the pick and packing the day before, preparing the truck routes for the day, etc, etc and a long boring etc. Today was going to be extra special. It was the last day for the inventory close process. For those of you not familiar with the business process, here it’s in simple words: we had to send to accounting all our transactions, checked and double checked, even if it meant staying late hours. It had to be done today.
I took my purse, got out of my place and into my car. I started driving to my office. Yes, I didn’t work in the same warehouse because some old executive man decides the warehouse is no place for women. Still, I couldn’t complain. Accounting offices were on another floor but Sales and Quality Control were right on mine. And that meant getting to work with two of the most handsome guys I’ve ever known.
First, there was Mark Taylor. He worked in sales, he was about 5’ 11’’, with short black hair. He really knew how to dress well. And he liked to go to the gym. He had this really good body. And he was such a nice guy. To everybody, not just me. As a matter of fact, I would really love to work more with him, but the big problem is usually salespersons go out because of meetings with customers, possible leads and other sales stuff. At least when he was at the office, I always tried to talk to him. He was always the best.
And the other guy is Luke Roberts, he was one of our quality managers. He was also taller than me, actually shorter than Mark, maybe 5’ 10’’. Oh, and he was blonde. He dressed even better than Mark, probably the best dressed in the office. Luke also went to the gym and, although he wasn’t as muscular as Mark, you could tell he also had a nice body. His personality? I would say he is also a nice guy, but likes to get cocky sometimes. And I had to “suffer” most of his jokes. He is at the office most of the time, and because my job is to ensure our customers don’t return the goods (I hated doing returns), he usually went around my office bragging about how the quality control process was the best and we had really few complaints about it. But other than that, he is a nice guy.
You would say, why didn't I date or ask out any of them? There was a bit of a problem for me.
They were pretty much into each other.
I know, ugh, story of my life! Handsome and nice guys, and I was on the wrong side of the equation. It didn’t bother me that much, or it wouldn’t have if not by a big fact. They weren’t doing something about each other. And, oh my god, it was so freakin obvious. The smiles, the looks, the laughs. You know when you flirt with a guy, and you laugh and “casually” feel his arm? They did that to each other all the time. And I had to watch it, hopelessly, not able to do a single thing. I had a huge crush on both of them, they didn’t acknowledge that… but they had crushes on each other and weren’t doing anything there! Ugh…
Anyway, back to my office day. As I entered, the first person I saw was Luke. He looked stunning as always. He smiled at me. “Good morning, Wilson. Ready to stay overnight?”
I smiled back at him. “Not if you have done your job, Roberts. I would hate to make you stay with me until midnight. With Mark of course.”
He laughed and I could have sworn he blushed. “Yeah, not gonna happen, baby. You know I don’t let a single roll out of your little warehouse if it isn’t the perfect quality.” He kissed the tip of his fingertips. “You’ll never find better tape rolls.”
I smiled as he went to his desk. That day wasn’t that hard. After my morning coffee, I entered the warehouse system on my computer and checked the monthly reports. Everything seemed ok. I then went to the warehouse just to fill some blanks. Then back at the office. Then back at the warehouse. Problems with not having my office there. Luckily by noon, pretty much everything was ready. Just a few employees had to fix a couple of documents. But no returns from any customers. Phew, I was going to be able to have lunch all relaxed and then to go home after 6 PM. I wouldn’t have to stay after office hours for that stupid accounting.
So I went for lunch with a coworker, Emily. She was from payments and she had the day kind of free, having closed their reports the day before. We went to a nearby restaurant and once there, we started talking about different things. I complained about having to be in the office while most of my work was warehouse related, like I did all the time. She just laughed.
“Why are you laughing?” I asked.
“Come on. You get to work with the two love birds.” Emily said, finishing her lunch. “Aren’t those like the hottest guys we have had in the office? Like… ever?”
“Luke and Mark?” I asked back. “I guess…”
“Aha! You blushed! I knew it. You have a thing for one of them.” Emily said. I didn’t respond but I blushed even more. Emily noticed it again. “Or… for both of them? Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!”
“Shut up” I hissed, looking around us. Nobody from our office was there, for my luck. “It’s not that I can do anything about it, right? I mean…”
“You mean they clearly like each other and won’t notice you because you are a girl and not a guy.” Emily said, before calling the check.
“Well, yeah!” I said, taking my wallet. Emily stopped and said she would pay for it. I thanked her and continued. “But it’s really hard. I mean, I can’t do anything about it, but they are not doing anything about each other! They don’t ask each other out, they don’t spend much time together, outside the office.”
“I know, and they really like each other. Everybody at the office has noticed that.” Emily said. “I’ll tell you a little rumor: Human Resources was even going to do something about it, but since it’s clear that neither of them are trying to get… more than a friendship, well, it was dismissed. Funny, huh?”
I put my head in my hands. “Girl, what can I do?”
Emily held my hand. “About dating them? Nothing, because they are not into girls. And about them not dating each other? Nothing as well. If we were in high school, we could have locked them in a closet for the whole night until they admitted their feelings for each other. That’s how I got the sweet man that it’s now my husband. I regret nothing.”
I blinked twice and looked at her confused. “Really? Locked up in a closet?”
“Oh relax” She replied, standing up. “It was harmless fun. Just our friends decided to, kind of force us to admit we have feelings for the other one. We did it every time we knew two people were into each other. And it worked every time.”
We went back to the office. I went to my desk and found an email. The last documents were fixed and I had to pick them up at the warehouse. Perfect, more trips for me. On my way there, I couldn’t help to remember Emily’s last words. Locking up inside a closet with your crush, that would be funny. I wouldn’t mind being locked with either Mark or Luke, but that would be uncomfortable for any of them, as I thought neither liked me that way.
I got to the warehouse and went for each of the employees I needed. As I was checking and signing the documents, I remembered Emily’s words again. If not me, maybe Luke and Mark should be locked up in a closet together, until they admitted their crush on each other. Nah, crazy idea. We weren’t in high school anymore.
I signed another document. But what if that happened? How could I convince them? I was shorter than them, I couldn’t just subdue each separated, less together. And I couldn’t just invite them to my house since neither of us spent much time together outside the office. It was just a crazy fantasy.
I picked up all the documents I needed. Maybe… if I could restrain them in any way. They wouldn’t be able to escape. And, if restrained, I could keep them in a closet for as long as I wanted. That would be, until Mark admitted he liked Luke and Luke admitted he liked Mark. Maybe until one of them asked the other guy out. Maybe.
Stop it, Megan, that’s craziness. But, hypothetically, just hypothetically, if I could have both of them together, with me, nobody else, how could I restrain them? I don’t even know how to tie a proper knot. I could go to a shop to buy cuffs, but… that would be a bit of an excess, right?
“Boss!” A voice called behind me. “There is one last shipment you need to sign.”
I turned back and sighed. Shipment of tapes. Then it came to me. The answer was just in front of me. It had been the whole time. Tape. And we had tons of tape. That was my weapon. All I needed now was to set up the right scenario for me. For us.
Oh boy, this was going to be fun.
