Chapter 3 The First Personal Moment

The office was too quiet, the kind of silence that made every small sound feel intentional. Delphine didn't look up when she heard the voice behind her, but her typing slowed slightly as if her body already recognized who had entered. "You're still here," Wilson said from the doorway, his voice calm but carrying that familiar weight that made the air feel heavier. Delphine finally turned her chair slightly, keeping her expression steady. "I said I would finish the reports," she replied. "I don't leave work unfinished." Wilson stepped inside slowly, his gaze fixed on her.

"Most people say that," he said quietly, "but most people don't actually prove it."

Delphine straightened in her chair, refusing to let his presence unsettle her. "Then I guess you're not used to people like me," she said, trying to keep her tone even. That made Wilson pause for a second before he moved further into the room, stopping near her desk without asking permission. "People like you usually last two weeks here," he said. "After that, reality adjusts them." Delphine tilted her head slightly, holding his gaze. "And what makes you think I'll be like the rest?" Wilson's eyes narrowed just slightly. "I don't think," he said. "I observe."

The word "observe" lingered in the space between them, making Delphine more aware of how closely she had been watched since she arrived. She leaned back slightly, folding her arms. "So tell me what you've observed so far," she challenged. Wilson didn't answer immediately, his eyes drifting briefly across the scattered files on her desk. "You compensate with control," he said finally. "People who do that are either hiding something... or running from it." Delphine's lips tightened slightly. "And which one am I?" she asked.

Wilson stepped closer to the desk, lowering his voice slightly. "That's what I'm still trying to figure out," he said. The honesty in that answer was more unsettling than anything else he had said. Delphine exhaled slowly. "You make it sound like I'm a case file," she said. Wilson's gaze lifted to hers again. "Everyone here is a case file," he replied. "The only difference is how quickly they break under pressure." Delphine met his gaze firmly. "And you enjoy watching that happen?" she asked.

For a moment, Wilson didn't answer, and that silence felt sharper than words. When he finally spoke, his voice was lower. "I don't enjoy it," he said. "I prevent it when it matters." Delphine studied him carefully. "That sounds like a contradiction," she said. Wilson's expression shifted slightly, unreadable again. "It only sounds like one if you don't understand the system you're in," he replied. Delphine frowned slightly. "And what system is that exactly?" she asked. Wilson leaned slightly closer to the desk. "One where ignorance is expensive," he said quietly.

The intensity in his voice made her pulse quicken slightly, but she refused to look away. "You talk like you've already decided what happens to people here," she said. Wilson didn't deny it. "I haven't decided," he said. "I anticipate." Delphine leaned forward slightly now, her tone sharper. "And what do you anticipate about me?" Wilson's gaze locked onto hers. "That you're either going to survive this place," he said slowly, "or become part of its history." The words landed heavily between them.

Before Delphine could respond, her phone vibrated sharply on the desk. The sound cut through the tension instantly. She hesitated, then picked it up, her eyes scanning the screen. Her expression changed slightly. Wilson noticed immediately. "What is it?" he asked. Delphine didn't answer right away, her thumb hovering over the message. "It's another unknown number," she said finally. Wilson's voice dropped slightly. "Read it." Delphine hesitated, then read aloud softly. "Someone is watching you tonight."

The atmosphere in the room shifted immediately. Wilson didn't move, but his expression sharpened. "That's not random," he said. Delphine looked up at him quickly. "Then what is it?" she asked. Wilson stepped slightly closer, his tone lower now. "It means you're already inside something you didn't agree to," he said. Delphine's stomach tightened. "Inside what exactly?" she pressed. Wilson didn't answer immediately, his gaze drifting toward the glass wall behind her desk instead.

Delphine noticed it and followed his line of sight slowly. "Wilson," she said more carefully now, "you're not answering me." He finally spoke, his voice quieter than before. "Because the answer depends on whether you're ready to hear it," he said. Delphine turned fully toward him now. "Try me," she said. That earned a faint shift in his expression. Not amusement. Not irritation. Something closer to concern. "You're not supposed to be the target," he said quietly.

Delphine's breath slowed. "Target?" she repeated. Wilson's eyes didn't leave hers. "Not yet," he added. The word "yet" made her chest tighten. She tried to steady herself. "Then why does it feel like I already am?" she asked. Wilson didn't answer immediately. Instead, his gaze dropped briefly to her phone again. "Because someone is testing how close they can get without you noticing," he said.

Delphine's fingers tightened slightly around the phone. "And you?" she asked carefully. "Are you part of that test?" The question hung between them for a second too long. Wilson finally stepped back slightly, breaking the closeness. "If I was," he said quietly, "you wouldn't be sitting here asking me that." Delphine studied him, still unsure. "That's not very comforting," she said. Wilson's gaze held steady. "Comfort was never part of this job," he replied.

The silence that followed felt heavier than before. Delphine slowly placed her phone back on the desk, trying to regain control of her breathing. "So what now?" she asked. Wilson looked at her for a moment longer than usual before responding. "Now," he said quietly, "you finish your work... and you don't leave this office alone tonight." Delphine frowned slightly. "That sounds more like an order than advice," she said.

Wilson didn't deny it. Instead, he turned slightly toward the door. "Call it what you want," he said. "But ignore it, and you'll understand the message in that phone better than you want to." Delphine watched him carefully. "And if I stay?" she asked. Wilson paused at the doorway. "Then I can at least make sure you're still here to ask the right questions tomorrow," he said.

And then he stepped out.

Delphine sat in silence for a moment, staring at the empty doorway, her thoughts racing faster than she could control. She reached for her phone again instinctively, but before she could unlock it, the screen lit up on its own.

A new message appeared on Delphine's phone without any number or sender, the screen lighting up in the silence of the office and pulling her attention away from everything else. Her fingers hesitated before touching it, but her instinct pushed her to open it anyway. The moment she read the words, her breathing shifted slightly, and her grip on the phone tightened without her permission. "You should have listened to him."

Delphine whispered under her breath, "What does that even mean... who is this?" but there was no answer, only silence pressing heavier around her. Her eyes lifted slowly from the screen, and she forced herself to speak again, though her voice was lower now. "Wilson..." she called without turning fully, uncertain if she even wanted him to respond. The unease in her chest deepened when she realized how quiet the office had become.

From outside the glass wall, something moved again, closer this time. Delphine froze immediately, her voice breaking slightly as she said, "Tell me I'm imagining that." Wilson didn't answer right away, but when he finally spoke, his tone was controlled and sharp. "You're not imagining it. Don't move." The way he said it made her body go still, as if his words carried physical weight.

Delphine swallowed hard, forcing herself to stay calm even as her pulse climbed. "Then what is it?" she asked, her voice tightening. Wilson stepped slightly forward but didn't take his eyes off the glass. "Someone wants you to notice them," he said quietly, almost like he was measuring every word. That made her stomach drop because it meant he had seen it too, and he wasn't surprised.

The shadow outside didn't leave. Instead, it lingered just beyond the glass, as if waiting for the exact moment she would react again. Delphine whispered, "This isn't normal... is it?" and for the first time, Wilson didn't respond immediately. His silence stretched long enough to feel like an answer on its own, before he finally said, "No. It's not normal. And that's the problem."

Delphine's hand tightened around the phone again as she forced herself to look back at the message. Her voice dropped even lower as she said, "Then why does it feel like this started before I even got here?" Wilson's gaze shifted slightly toward her for a brief moment before returning to the glass. "Because someone didn't wait for you to arrive," he said. "They were already ready for you."