An Online Soap Opera
Episode 709: Like A Wave"You wanted to see me?" Justine asked, having just knocked at her boss’s door. Michael had never given Justine reason to believe there was anything wrong with the job she’d done so far, still Justine had a horrible feeling about being summoned to Michael’s office at the end of the day. Everything seemed foreboding to her lately, even when it wasn’t.Justine’s nerves were kind of shot. Her fingers trembled as she clutched her hands. "Thanks for stopping in," her boss said. "I’m sure you’re anxious to get home. I just wanted to check in with you." Justine took a seat as Michael gestured for her to do. "Everything’s good. I’m good. The baby’s good. And don’t worry about maternity leave, I’ll push it off as far as I can and come back as soon as I can." Michael simply blinked in response. "Oh." Justine cringed. "That makes me sound like a bad mom doesn’t it? Like I don’t want to be a parent to my kid." Michael shook her head. "I’ve seen you with Tansy; it’s obvious how much you love her." "I do love this baby on the way, too, it’s not like I don’t want to focus on him or her, it’s just that when I do focus on the baby, my mind starts reeling, thinking of all the things that need to be done, and the person I need to be…" "And it freaks you out a whole lot less to focus on something you can control, like work. I’ve been there more than a few times since Hope came into my life. I get it." "So you don’t think I’m awful for trying to cut my leave really short?" "I don’t, but that is why I wanted to talk to you today. I wanted to make sure you understand that a lengthy leave is an option if you decide that’s what you want or need. When Quentin stopped by yesterday to take you to lunch, one look at him reminded me of what an anxious time it is for mom and dad, so I wanted to assure you that I’ve got you covered, you can take as much time as you need and your job will be here. And your baby is welcome here, too, I know that’s been a real comfort to me, so I won’t deny that to any of my employees. This is my company, we’re doing well, and I have the luxury of running it the way I want, and that way is parent friendly." "That’s good to hear, thanks," Justine said, though rather absently. Her mind was stuck on Quent on how obviously anxious her husband did seem these days. She wanted to fix that for him, to assure him she could handle everything, since he was trying so hard, and being so supportive, but the panic and the stress just kept rising up in her, until it was too much to take, and pulled her under.
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