Somewhere

"What do you think would happen if we had people like you who took their jobs lightly? The world would definitely crash." said Dom.

"The sheer incompetence you displayed today gave insight into your true character." said Dom.

"You better stop pleading and be thankful that nothing serious happened, or else you would be facing more than just a firing." said Dom as he scoffed, he was still getting angrier by the moment, he needed to calm down.

"And you're even luckier that I'm still going to pay you a salary you don't deserve." he said.

"But effective from today, you no longer work here, pack up all your belongings and leave, I don't even want to lay my eyes on you again." said Dom, was he even angrier because it was his sister that was affected? Of course he was, but what drove him mad was the fact that this man here didn't seem the slightest bit remorseful for his actions.

If anything, he was here to beg and plead for mercy because he had found out that it was the boss's sister he had ignored when she called for help, and that just ticked Dom off, that he didn't truly care for the innocent lives of other people.

"Get out of my sight, another word from you and security will be the ones throwing you out." said Dom icily as the technician did not need to be told twice, he got off his knees and turned around, leaving Dom's office.

Dom scoffed as the door to his office closed with a click, it was because of men like that idiot that the world was the way it was, so dark, with few people truly caring for the discomfort and wellbeing of others.

Dom picked up the telephone in his office and said, "Find me Michael, I need him in my office right now." 

"Right away sir." replied the Secretary quickly as she saw the devastated technician pass by her desk and she shook her head. The poor idiot brought this on himself.

True to her words, Michael was in Dom's office mere moments later.

"Is Lulu okay? I heard what happened, it's the new office gossip." said Michael in worry as Dom stood up and sighed.

"She's fine luckily... but she's still a bit shaken up." replied Dom.

"Who wouldn't be? I was in my office when I heard the elevator crash, it was definitely alarming." said Michael as he sat down.

"Where's Lulu?" he asked.

"Benjamin offered to drive her home, I would have done it myself, but I can't leave abruptly, I just fired that incompetent technician, can you believe that he has the audacity to come here and beg me? Beg me?? Beg me for his own faults and mistakes?!" said Dom, it was clear that he was still very much upset.

"I know that this is very angering Dom, but you need to calm down, we should be grateful that both Lulu and Benjamin are alright." said Michael as Dom sighed.

"So what do you need me to do?" asked Michael.

"I don't know why this happened, the elevators are brand new, and apart from that they are serviced regularly, I need you to find out what caused the crash." said Dom, for the sake of everyone else in the building, they needed to be aware of what caused the sudden malfunction.

"I'm on it." replied Michael instantly, he knew that it was important for everyone to be able to rest at ease. In a building as huge as this one, it was impossible to go from place to place conveniently without using an elevator.

"Thanks Michael." said Dom.

"Don't worry about it, you need to calm down Dom, or else, there's no point of staying in the office if you're not in the right frame of mind." said Michael.

"I'm fine Michael, I'll just check on Lulu later." replied Dom.

"Are you sure?" asked Michael as Dom nodded.

"Very sure." replied Dom as he showed a sad smile on his face.

"Alright then, I should have an answer before closing time." said Michael as Dom nodded and he left his office.

Dom sat down at his desk with a sigh, he was extremely worried about his sister, but he knew that worrying would do him no good, he had to focus right now.

...

Lulu and Benjamin walked out of the office, they proceeded to the parking lot. They both had not said a word to each other since they walked down all the flights of stairs.

Benjamin occasionally glanced at Lulu, checking to see if she was okay, but she remained silent.

"The keys?" asked Benjamin as they finally stopped in front of her car and she handed the keys to him wordlessly.

They both got into the car as Benjamin turned the ignition as he pulled out of the parking lot and they drove away.

They drove in nothing but complete silence. Lulu was still and unmoving, she stared out the window blankly. This was unlike her at all, she was far from silent, and yet in this moment, she was as still as a rock.

Benjamin was also silent, not because he was shaken up, but because every single time he looked at Lulu he could not help but think that if not for the fact that she dragged him along with her, she might have not been able to escape from the elevator.

He could not help but feel guilty, so guilty that he could have been so adamant not to follow her. Who knew what could have happened? She could have gotten seriously hurt or even worse.

Benjamin could not even bear entertain the thought of Lulu getting hurt. Yes, he said that she was annoying and he could not stand her sometimes, but he did not hate her, far from it. 

She was a person, she was always herself no matter what, and that was just her personality. He had been so inconsiderate to see her as annoying when all she was trying to do was be friendly.

The more Benjamin looked at Lulu, the more he felt guilty for the way he had treated her unfairly. How he had told her so many mean things that would hurt anyone and everyone, and yet she continued to pursue to be his friend.

What sort of friend was he? He only followed her into the elevator because she promised him that after this last meeting together, she would leave him alone for a week. He was a terrible person.

He continued to feel even more terrible when he saw the blank stare in her eye. The coldness, the fear. Everything he described was not the slightest bit Lulu. She was still scared and he knew it.

What happened back there was more than enough to shake even the firmest of hearts. Even he had to admit that in that moment when he heard the cable snaping, he was scared, so scared that she wouldn't jump, so scared that he wouldn't be able to catch her, so scared that he had left her up there all on her own.

But his guilt was more than his fear. He could do nothing but be grateful that they had come out of that incident unscathed, it was nothing short of a miracle.

Lulu stared out the window. She didn't feel like talking, she didn't feel like moving, she just felt so cold, and so sad.

She watched the hundreds of cars pass by, the trees, the road signs, and the people that all passed by as they drove away.

Then she noticed that Benjamin had taken a wrong turn, instead of going on the highway, he turned to the right. It was clear that they were not going home, they were going somewhere else.

"Where are we going?" she asked, her voice pale and monotonous. She did not sound as if she was interrogating him, but rather, she just sounded tired and exhausted.

"Somewhere." he replied as she did not question him, rather she sighed and stopped looking out the window. She rested back in her seat and closed her eyes. She was not wary, she was weary. So weary.

Benjamin could feel her exhaustion, he could feel her tiredness, her weariness, and that was why he concluded that it was not good for her to go home right now. She needed to cheer up first.

If everyone saw her like this, so far from her usual self, they would be extremely worried, and they had every right to be. He just felt like it was his duty as a friend to be there for her when she needed comfort the most.

Call him crazy, call him hypocritical considering how he had behaved towards her ever since they had met was not the nicest. But he knew that if he was feeling down, she would have done the same for him.

She would have done everything in her power to cheer him up, and he would certainly do the same for her.