"Rockin!" Season II/Episode VI
2006-02-09, 6:56 p.m.

Alone in her office, Zon was bored. There was so much work to be done with so many of her staff still off work that she didn’t know where to start, and couldn’t bring herself to be bothered even if she knew.

The phone rang. She sighed and picked it up. “Hello?”

“You sound tired. Are you okay?”

“Hi Damien, I’m fine. How are you?” Zon asked, a little stiffly.

“I’ve been awake all night. Worrying?”

“About…?”

“Us. I am really sorry about what happened, Zon. Please, will you meet me for dinner?”

“I don’t know…”

“Please. I just want to make it up to you. I still don’t know what came over me. I’ve never hit out at anyone before. Let me make everything alright again, that’s all I ask. You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Zon. I don’t want to lose you.” Damien sounded like he was about to cry.

“Oh, alright.” Zon sighed but felt excited at the same time.

Well, everyone is entitled to one mistake, aren’t they?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“Mystic. I was wondering when we were to discover the root of your problems.” Despite the revelation, Criminal sounded completely cheerful. “We can help you work through this, dear, don’t worry.”

“Why did it have to be me? Why?” Mystic gestured angrily to everyone. “He deserves to die for what he did to me!” She wept, as Katie looked on with a blank expression. “Didn’t you have any idea what was going on?” Mystic yelled at her.

“Of course I did,” said Katie, matter-of-factly. “He abused me too.”

For the first time in years, the two sisters stood up and held each other so tightly, the tears falling with total unselfconsciousness.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“Ah, Hubbyman. I was wondering when I was going to see you,” Zon sat up in her chair as Hubbyman entered, and gestured to a chair. He sat down with some difficulty. “Should you even be out of hospital yet?”

“I discharged myself. I have a… few things to attend to.” Hubbyman gave a watery grin.

“I see.”

“I want to come back to work.”

“I don’t think that’s going to be possible just yet.”

“But I feel fine!”

“Only you can be the judge of that. But it’s not your health which concerns me right now. I’ve heard a rumour that you may be using your position here to, shall we say, commit illegal acts.”

“What? ”

“Somebody has told me that you are selling drugs on these premises. Now, what you do in your own time is frankly none of my concern, but when you’re in this office you behave as befits your position. And that does not allow for this sort of carry-on.”

“Zon, look,” Hubbyman was confused, “I swear to you, I don’t know what you are talking about. I’m not selling drugs, I don’t even take drugs. I promise you, I give you my word, I have no idea what is going on. But I have not been pushing drugs. Here, or anywhere else.”

“Would you object to me searching your desk and locker?”

“Not at all.”

“Good.” Zon stood up. “Wait here.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Workcrush felt happy. It was her day off, and she sat in Dandy’s living room, idly flicking through the channels, thinking about Jim.

He was a very handsome man, and had behaved like the perfect gentleman when she invited him in for coffee.

And it was just coffee.

He had promised to call her to see if they could arrange something.

She sat by the phone and waited.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Hubbyman stood up as Zon entered the room. “I take it you didn’t find anything. Honestly Zon, I don’t know who told you this, but they are way off target. I’ve never done anything like that in my entire life.”

“Oh really? Then would you mind explaining how this came to be in your locker?” Zon banged down a package on the desk, which contained a rather considerable amount of white powder.

“I’ve never seen it before in my life!” Hubbyman protested. “My God, do you think if I was peddling drugs here that I’d be dumb enough to leave them in my locker?”

“I don’t know.” Zon’s tone was cold, “I don’t know how the world of drug dealing works. But as of now you are suspended until further notice. I will decide whether or not I want the police brought into this. Fortunately for you I might decide that the negative publicity would be too bad for YankBank. But rest assured I will be giving some very serious thought as to whether or not I still want you working here.”

“Zon! Please, I swear I know nothing about these drugs! I…”

“Hand me your pass and decide whether or not you are going to leave the office quietly. If not, I shall have security escort you out.”

Defeated, Hubbyman gently laid his security pass on the desk, and headed out.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“Please Tart, I don’t have long, I’m just on my lunch break from work. I only want to see you for a few minutes. Just let me say what I want to say, and then I’ll go, I promise,” Smed begged.

Hesitating for a moment, Tart eventually relented and opened the door for him. “You’ve got two minutes.”

“Thank you.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“I really don’t think we should see each other anymore.” Barista had tears in her eyes as she spoke on the phone to Candoor. “I’m just over at your place collecting my things and then I’m going back to my husband.”

“Please, Barista, we can talk about this,” Candoor spoke softly.

“No we can’t. I’m going back to Hubbyman. I don’t want you to contact me again, Candoor. It’ll be bad enough seeing each other at work, but I can’t go on like this. I’m going back to my husband. That’s final.” Barista hung up.

Feeling more pained than he ever had before, Candoor contemplated for a moment, and then headed off to see Zon.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“Well that’s all very good; Smed, but you haven’t told me anything new, there. I still could never trust you. You made me feel worthless and wretched. I don’t want to get into this anymore. Please leave.”

“Won’t you at least give me the chance to prove that what I did was a one off, a mistake? Please, Tart. I’ve done nothing but think about you since I met you. It was never just a casual fling; you were never just a passing fancy. I swear to you, Tart, you always meant more to me than that. And I am fully prepared to show you just how much, if only you’ll let me.” Smed was earnest in his expression.

“Smed, just what the hell are you babbling on about?” Tart was confused.

“Well, I guess… I guess what I’m trying to say is… Will you marry me?”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“You want me to grant you a period of indefinite leave while we’re so short staffed? You’d better have a bloody good reason for this, Candoor.” Zon was incredulous.

“I do. But I can’t tell you what it is. It’s personal.” Candoor felt like he would burst into tears at any moment. “I’ll resign, if that’s what you want.”

“Of course that’s not what I want. But…” Zon faltered.

“It is important, Zon. And I know we are working to minimum capacity, but please. I really need to do this. And I’ll take it all as unpaid leave, I swear.”

“How long?”

“I don’t know. But I will be back.”

“Alright. As you wish.” Zon sighed. “You can leave at the end of the day. Just make sure you have all your loose ends tied up. Tart will be back soon and she can take over some of your workload.”

“Thank you Zon. Thank you so much.”

“By the way, what happened to your nose?”

“Oh, it was nothing. I walked into a door.”

“Hmph,” snorted Zon, as Candoor closed the door behind him.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Hubbyman sat in Smash’s bedroom, waiting for him to wake up. He stared contemplatively into the mug of coffee Jennifer had given him.

“Hey dude,” Smash woke up and rubbed his eyes. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, Smash. Hey buddy, how you doing?” Hubbyman grinned at him.

“Not so bad. How about yourself?”

“I’m fine. Sort of.”

“Sort of?”

“I’ve been suspended from work.”

“What? Why?”

“Zon thinks I’ve been using the place to sell drugs.”

“Oh fuck off!”

“I’m serious, Smash. She’s suspended me. She found a load of coke or something in my locker. I haven’t got any idea how it got there. Someone’s trying to set me up.”

“Who the hell would want to do that?”

“I don’t know. But I intend to find out. I need your help.”

“How can I help?” Smash was confused.

“You’ll be going back to work soon. Keep your ear to the ground, see if you pick up any whispers from anyone. If someone’s using the place to sell drugs, then you might just hear something. Will you do that for me?”

“Hell, bro, of course I will.”

“Thanks. You’re a dude.” Hubbyman smiled.

“No worries. We’ll find out whoever it is and they’ll be fuckin’ sorry.” Smash tried to look fierce but was too tired.

“Oh yeah. They’ll be very sorry.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“Workcrush?”

“Jim?”

“The one and only! How are you doing?”

“I’m fine! It’s lucky you rang when you did. I have been in and out all day,” lied Workcrush, who hadn’t moved from the sofa except to visit the bathroom and make coffee.

“I was wondering if you might like to go out for dinner tonight,” Jim asked.

“Oh, I would like that.” Workcrush decided she wasn’t going to play games. “Yes, I’d like that very much.”

“Excellent. Shall I pick you up around seven?”

“Sounds great!” Workcrush replaced the receiver and with renewed energy, set about getting ready for her date that night.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“Reservations.”

“Hi,” said Candoor “I’d like to book a ticket, please.”

“Fine sir, and where will you be flying to.”

“Anywhere.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m sorry. What’s the next available flight from Heathrow?”

“Let me see… Well, can you make it to the airport by six?”

“No problem.”

“Then that would be Rio de Janeiro, sir.”

“Good. Book me on it.”

“Is that a return journey?” The clerk asked.

“No, one way.” Candoor sat back, surveyed the room around him, and prepared to say goodbye.