Encoding Love

"THIS IS WHERE YOU WILL BE WORKING during your tenure here at Klein Technologies.” A man with curls as brown as rich soil, flourished his arms in a manner to present a small yet open space.

She stepped out from behind his broad shoulders and suit-clad body. Warm amber eyes peered around her surroundings behind black framed glasses. She walked towards a desk stationed in the center and allowed her fingers to skim over the melamine surface of the all-white desktop. The room was clean, minimal design with a few basic modern furnishings such as an empty bookcase a black leather couch.

“Mr. Klein is all about productivity and to increase efficiency he believes it would be best for the juncture of the collaboration if we can lessen travel time between headquarters.” The man spoke once again.

It all seemed excessive, but regardless Zorah nodded her head. She would not argue against having her own private workspace in Klein Tower. It was twice the size of her office at Lolland and even included the latest desktop computer. No doubt courtesy of the inventor himself, Nathan Klein.

Klein Tower was a soaring edifice of glass and steel on Fifth Avenue. It did not surprise her to see a wall of floor length windows on one side of the room. The building stood adjacent to Central Park, but as luck would have it she received an office facing other brick and glass structures.

“I hope you find everything to your liking.”

Wilson Donovan, the personal assistant to Mr. Klein had served as her guide and liaison upon arriving to the tower that morning. Zorah was under the impression that she and a Lolland representative would be negotiating all of the intricacies of the contract with Nathan and his attorney. However, she was given the grand tour of the inner workings of a gigantic corporate business.

All morning, Wilson had been pumping her with all sorts of information. All she could do was listen and try to retain everything being said. Occasionally, Wilson would stop and ask her if she was overwhelmed, but she would assure him she was managing. In truth, Zorah was exhausted, but she was taking it all in stride.

It was a different experience for her. She was out of her element. The corporate world was chaotic and she wondered if she would be able to handle everything that was expected of her. Going into a large venture with Mr. Klein would certainly prove to be her biggest challenge to date.

“Yes. Everything is fantastic, Mr. Donovan.”

She turned to him them. He stood like a patient and obedient servant awaiting orders. His back was rigid and straight with his hands held behind his back. Zorah figured he was man who was always on guard, but it was something she expected from someone who worked closely with a powerful businessman.

“Wonderful. Mr. Klein will be glad to hear so. He wants to make sure you feel as comfortable as possible,” he declared earnestly.

Zorah could not imagine Mr. Klein taking the time out to make sure she was adjusting. She had him pegged as someone who would allow her to figure things out on her own.

“There is a conference room right next door for your use only. You can convene with your team without-“

“My team?” She questioned abruptly.

Wilson brushed off her interruption. “Yes. Mr. Klein has already assigned you the best programmers in the company for your complete disposal. You can meet them tomorrow and then delegate tasks and schedules.”

Zorah smiled. It was a lot to do, but she was excited. This was the first step to doing something that mattered to the world. Even though she felt immensely pressured, she appreciated the opportunity.

“Will Mr. Klein be having a role in this project?” Zorah asked sheepishly. She felt foolish for asking, but she truly wanted to know.

“He will be overlooking your work. Monitoring you to make sure you stay on track, but essentially everything rests on you, Ms. Rhodes.”

She had assumed such an answer would come, but that didn’t mean she liked hearing it. A part of her – a small, tiny, microscopic part of her – thought she would be working alongside the technology god himself. What was she thinking? He’s the CEO who has other things to do than to babysit her through her own design. Still, she had wished.

“If you do find yourself needing Mr. Klein’s immediate assistance, you can contact me.” With that Wilson retrieved a business card seemingly out of nowhere. “It’s the only way you’ll be able to reach him. To get to him you have to get through me. Most times, depending on the severity of your needs, I will be the one to assist you. You will probably be seeing very little of Mr. Klein.”

“Makes sense.” She uttered, taking the card. Such a busy man didn’t have time to waste on every little thing and detail.

Shortly later, Wilson had left her to settle into her workspace. She sat in silence at her bare desk. Her stay was temporary. Four to nine months at the most if she counted promotion and release. Then she would be back in her cozy and warm office where Eric could pay her a visit.

Eric – her stomach flipped just thinking about their impending date. It was cute - the crush she was slowly developing for him. There has only been one other man in her life that she’s ever been smitten with - her ex-boyfriend, Jesse Newman. She dated him briefly while attending college at Columbia. He was a flight risk to begin with so Zorah was not too surprised when he ended their relationship after a few months of casual dating.

Since then, the only lasting and steady relationship she’s had was with her handy laptop named Elsie. Hopefully things will go well enough with Eric that she could have a real relationship, with a real human and not a piece of machinery.

For the remainder of the afternoon she worked on creating a thorough presentation of her design. She would demonstrate it to her team during their introduction meeting. She was interested in feedback and seeing what corporate bigwigs thought of her work. Her design still didn’t have a name and that didn’t seem to bother Mr. Klein, but he didn’t offer her any opinions or criticisms.

Zorah was so deep into her thoughts, she was startled when an office phone stationed in the corner of her desk began to ring. The sound was loud, echoing around the empty space of her office. She would have to find a way to change the volume, but regardless she picked up.

“Ms. Rhodes, I’m terribly sorry to disturb you, but Mr. Klein has requested your immediate arrival at his office.” Wilson’s voice rushed out before she even got a change to say a quick greeting.

“Of course, I’ll be there at once.” She answered, not fully realizing she didn’t know exactly where ‘there’ was.

“Thank you. We are located on the top floor. Please arrive promptly.”

The line was cut without another word. Another thing she would have to get use to was having to do everything urgently and also getting use to how frank and straight forward everyone was. It was all business around here, so much so that it took up time just to end a conversation with a proper goodbye.

Zorah left the confines of her office as soon as she returned the phone on the hook. Her floor – the 34th floor – was quiet and empty compared to Lolland’s main floor. There was more glass and white modern furnishing that made up corridors and open spaces. She figured she was on the same floor as Klein Technologies executives, but she had yet to cross paths with anyone other than Wilson.

The elevator ride to the 37th floor was short and quick. As soon as the doors opened, Wilson stood before her. They were in a very large room with only a wide desk stationed in the center. Natural lighting streamed into the room from the windows. Behind the desk was two frosted glass doors and she knew exactly what was beyond them.

“This way.” He directed with a small nod of his head. He began to walk towards the doors and Zorah braced herself for another encounter with Nathan Klein.

Wilson tapped against the door once and the low and distinct voice of Mr. Klein ordered them to enter.

“Ms. Rhodes, sir.” Wilson announced.

Storm gray eyes found hers immediately and she felt her heart jump up to her throat. They were so strikingly beautiful yet daunting in their appearance. It was rational for Zorah to feel anxious underneath their gaze.

He sat behind a desk entirely too wide and too large for one man. She was sure his office space took up the entire floor. She was in the domain of tech wizard and she was not disappointed by what she saw.

The wall behind him was completely floor length windows while the wall to the left was paint a bright red with a large LCD screen. There were several monitors and state of the art devices overruling the surface of his desk. What looked like sketches and mockups littered a round table in the right hand corner of the room. There was a nice seating area to her left before the room cut off and rounded a corner she was unable to peer around.

“Thank you, Wilson.” Nathan dismissed.

Zorah had wished the P.A. would stay but the man left without a moment’s hesitation. Closing the door behind him, perpetually sealing her in with a man who unnerved her in a single look.

Nathan stood, allowing Zorah to appreciate his lean physique in an Armani suit. She always adored a man dressed nicely. It was a different change from the programmers at Lolland who wore messy tees and jeans with orange Cheetos stains.

“Please have a seat, Ms. Rhodes. There are some things I would like to discuss with you.” He gestured to an armchair situated in front of his desk.

To Zorah, it felt like it took an eternity to cross the room. The room was so large and filled with so many different things. She tried to keep her eyes glued to the dark gray carpet beneath her short heels, but something would catch her eye. It looked like he was in the process of creating a new mobile device. She noted how there were several pieces and prototypes laid carelessly across his desk.

“The contract has been drafted and needs your immediate attention.” Nathan went straight to business once she was seated.

She noted he remained standing, no doubt a power play on his part. He then retrieved a rather large file from a drawer hidden in his desk. He pushed it towards her and continued on.

“Most of my terms are standard and non-negotiable. However, there are stipulations that I want your full agreement on and we can work together to reach a sensible understanding.”

“On what terms exactly?” Zorah hesitated to ask. She felt as if Nathan wasn’t the type of person to question. Maybe it was a sort of office rule Wilson had accidently left out. Never question Mr. Klein and never ask him to explain himself.

His gray eyes flashed, letting her know that he was surprised by her inquiry. “Licensing, patents, distribution and things of that nature come standard. Design, implementation, production, ownership – those type things we can discuss.”

Zorah felt apprehensive. Her greatest fear was Klein Technologies taking over her concept and giving her no credit. She wanted to play this smart because if it did come down to such a situation she didn’t want to find out that she signed away her rights in a legally binding contract.

“You can look over it, have your legal advisor review the terms or if you’re feeling brave, you can sign it now. It’s entirely your call, but it will need your signature before we start anything.”

Zorah, once again feeling overwhelmed, eyed the file with heavy trepidation. “I think it would be best to consult an attorney.”

Nathan nodded his head. “Wise decision.” He turned his back to her then, deciding to peer at the views of Central Park. “As for profit for you and your company, I’m willing to meet any terms you may have.”

It was actually the first time Zorah contemplated her salary. If her designed failed, she didn’t want to be left with nothing but she wasn’t concerned with the number of zeros this opportunity could bring her. She just wanted full credibility and to contribute something amazing to the industry. Something never done before. Something not even Nathan Klein has done himself. She wanted to be in history lessons and be remembered as a genius. She wanted success more than any paycheck.

“I’m an agreeable person, Mr. Klein. You will find that I don’t ask for much.”

Nathan faced her once again. His eyebrows were raised high, surprised by her admission. Before Zorah had a chance to register the emotion it was gone and replaced by his usual stolid façade.

“Very well. I’ll decide on a number I think is reasonable and then you may approve.” Zorah nodded her head. “You can contact Wilson if you have any questions or concerns about the contract. That is all for now.”

He dismissed her and she stood at once, collecting the contract and turning towards the door. She was nearly out the room when she stopped.

“Mr. Klein?”

“Ms. Rhodes, do you have a question?”

“No, I just wanted to make a quick comment.”

Nathan returned to his seat, waving his hand and prompting Zorah to continue.

“I want to thank you for this surreal opportunity. This is what I’ve been dreaming of doing my entire life. I can’t express how truly thankful I’m am for you taking a chance on me, even if it all turns out to be a huge mistake. Honestly, thank you for everything.”

Zorah smiled bashfully. Her face was slightly flushed after having admitted her deepest gratitude for the man. She was one slip away from ranting about how he was her idol.

She started to fidget under Nathan’s unwavering gaze. “I should be going,” she mumbled when there was no response. She began to leave again.

“Ms. Rhodes.” She heard him call her softly. Zorah stopped and turned and witness how the sun captured angles of his face perfectly. “I don’t make mistakes,” he said in a crisp tone.