A tough decision....

The door closing nearly caught the corner of his suit - you're
bloody lucky it didn't, he told it silently. Cost me too much to rip in
sodding Metrolink doors.

As usual, the seats were all gone and everyone was packed in like
proverbial sardines. Sean was often late; only last week he'd had yet
another reprimand from the boss. Fat bastard. 'Next time it will be a
final written warning' - as if he cared. The job was crap as the boss
had it in for him.

Some more people squeezed on at the next stop; it had begun to drizzle,
and the smell of wet polyester mixed in with people who'd forgot their
deodorant filled the tram. You always got one though; the lady sat next
to where Sean was standing always put on too much perfume. He hated the
flowery smell - and she always managed to get a seat. Every morning.
How the hell did she do it? Not enough sex, obviously. She never got
any in the mornings, that was the explanation - you could be early if
you never had anyone murmuring 'Just another kiss, please?' in your
ear. Then again, with a face like that, who could wonder?

Sean passed every morning journey in a kind of bitchy daydream, usually
involving everyone around him not getting enough sex, or being smug as
they were getting too much. Sean was currently in the 'not getting
enough' category, but he was always on the lookout. Most mornings were
a 'morning after the night before' - Sean didn't believe in just going
out at weekends. Why when there were perfectly good pulling
opportunities every day of the week? Plus, weekdays were student
filled, and students were often impressed with his money, clothes and
25-year old charm. The fact that the excess Black Russians resulted in
late mornings and bollockings never deterred him.

His stop; everyone got off at his stop. They spilled from the tram and
into the various glass buildings. The rain had stopped, thank God, so
his new shiny suit stayed shop-new. The boss didn't approve of shiny
suits, but there was nothing in his contract. Balls to him. Through the
foyer, nod at the security guard, up the stairs (pity the unfit people
taking the lift) and wave the magnetic pass at the door - beep - he was
in. Another day in the office.

The boss's secretary smiled at him. Linda had only been there a month,
but knew that Sean was the best looking employee in the building.
Always so sharply dressed, shiny shoes, today a cute suggestion of
stubble. His hair was in no real style - just dark and quite short.
She'd never got close enough to see his eyes, but she'd been reliably
informed they were a gorgeous brown. The man just oozed charm. There
was always a nagging doubt though - some people said he was gay. Come
on, he had nice nails, lived in the Village and never seemed to have a
girlfriend. Linda didn't want to believe it - men that gorgeous simply
weren't allowed to be gay. It would be a waste to women.

Sean smiled back at Linda. She fancies the arse off me, he thought
complacently. He caught the spark in her eyes as she saw his smile -
he's noticed me! He smiled! - yeah she's gonna be telling her mates
that later on. She could come in real useful too - being the boss's
secretary, you never know. Smiles don't cost anything, he thought -
flirt with her all you want Sean, mate, you're gay.

Behind the blinds, the boss watched the tiny interchange. Gay bastard.
Flirting with my secretary like that. Ray was about as homophobic as
you could get, and Sean knew it. In Sean's first disciplinary, he'd
given him the usual company spiel about being on time. Then he'd leant
across the table. 'I know you're a fucking queer, OK. I don't like
people like you - so get the fuck out of this office, and work. Any
more problems with you and you're out.' He'd seen Sean in a nightclub
with a man. Sean hadn't seen him.

Sean had been terrified. He knew he should have reported Ray, but the
guy had it over him and there wasn't much he could do. Ray knew his
parents, and his parents didn't know he was gay. He just couldn't tell
them; it would kill them. His parents thought Ray was wonderful - 'Now
Sean, we're sure he'll look after you at work.' And he needed the job;
Sean spent a lot on keeping up his image. It would have been great but
for Ray.

Linda had a busy day ahead, but her daydreams about Sean were getting
in the way. She could just see him sat down at his desk; her monitor
pointed in his direction, so she could look at him while pretending to
do her work.

Sean could just see Linda staring at him over her monitor. He knew the
guy sat next to him was after her. That's irony, he said to himself.
All the best-looking women fall in love with a gay man. He smiled at
the thought, and got busy. He didn't want any more interviews with Ray
for a while - not at least until he could find some compromising
pictures of Ray and his Pekinese, or something. Which was unlikely. The
hideous mental picture of Ray undressed flashed across his mind - not
conducive to work. Concentrate, man!

Just before lunch, Linda found a discrepancy in the accounts. She set
to work to resolve the problem, inwardly cursing - this would really
set her back. Some idiot hadn't filed some accounts, or something.
There was a lot of money gone somewhere, what a crap system. You could
swindle bloody thousands without anyone noticing here, she thought
dispassionately. Should try it myself.

After lunch, Linda was still working on the accounts while trying to
listen in on what was going on in Ray's office. Sean had been late back
from lunch and he'd been caught; Linda heard the words 'final written
warning' from the office behind her. She couldn't believe it - an
office without Sean? What a bastard Ray was - none of the women liked
him, it was something to do with the way he ran his eyes up their legs.
Fat old perv. She gave Sean an embarrassed smile of sympathy as he
walked out of the office past her and just stopped herself going red
when he smiled back.

Sean went back to his desk, inwardly seething and humiliated. Everyone
knew he was on his last chance here; if only he had the courage to just
stand up and say 'Hey you know what? I'm gay. Big deal, OK? And that
guy in there harasses me because he's a homophobe.' With any luck he
could get Ray sacked - but he just couldn't do it.

Linda checked again, and again. The monitor in front of her was like
the winning National Lottery ticket. The figures didn't lie; Ray had
swindled ?32,158 out of the company, and nobody would have found out
but for her. One of the IT people must have given her password the same
access rights as Ray's, she thought, otherwise she wouldn't have been
able to see that part of the accounts. Linda couldn't believe her luck;
not only could she get rid of the boss, but there had to be a date
somewhere in this. Somehow she passed the time until 5pm, and
intercepted Sean just after he walked out of the building.

He wondered why Linda was walking up to him. 'I need to talk to you in
private,' she said, a huge smile on her face. 'Is there anywhere we
could go? How about to your place?'

Bloody hell, he thought, she seems confident. 'What's this all
about?'

'I can't tell you in public; I'll tell you when we're in
private.'

He agreed, and they caught the tram in silence. Linda seemed like she
was about to burst, and Sean was itching with curiosity. It seemed
hours before he was showing her into his flat, where she promptly sat
down and dropped the bombshell.

'I've found out Ray has defrauded the company of about thirty-two
grand. And I know you're on your final written warning. I figured you
might like to know so you can expose him, and get him sacked.'

Sean fell into the nearest chair. 'You are joking me? You mean to say
that I can get the fat git sacked? Really?'

Linda smiled. 'Yep. Here's the printout of everything. It's true - go
in tomorrow and confront him. He won't have a leg to stand on.' Sean
studied the page until Linda started to get impatient; she hadn't
finished yet.

'He definitely has, the bastard!' Sean couldn't believe it. 'I'll get
that bastard sacked - he won't know what's hit him!' He kissed Linda on
the cheek and hugged her in sheer joy; the homophobic bastard was in
for it! Triumph!

'Just one thing though, Sean.' Linda steeled herself; she'd been
planning it all afternoon but it was much harder to say than she'd
thought. He looked at her - they were right, brown eyes. 'I do expect
some kind of repayment for all this, you know, I've really gone out of
my way for you.' She nodded towards one of the doors at the end of the
living room. 'I don't think it's too much to ask from the best looking
guy in the office.'

Sean didn't get her at first - then it hit him. She wanted him to sleep
with her in exchange for the evidence. To get rid of his hell boss, he
would have to sleep with a woman. The thought repelled him. No, no, he
just couldn't do it&;#8230;

'Don't think too long about it, loverboy,' said Linda playfully,
undoing the top button on his shirt. 'If you want I can tell him
myself, and ask him that you be sacked first thing tomorrow. Whatever
you want, really.' She hissed the last sentences into his ear while
undoing the rest of the buttons. Sean couldn't move; he was glued to
the seat with horror. The bitch! The calculating bitch! 'Come on now,
lover, we wouldn't want people thinking you were gay now, would we?'
She ran her hand over his chest, and then down. Thank Christ his belt
was tight, he thought. No way she's getting down there. His mind was
racing - could he possibly do it? He ran his mind back over the past
few months, of the disciplinaries, of the blatant homophobia - could he
hate this man so much he would sleep with a woman to get him
sacked?

He came to a decision. 'Me, gay?' he murmured into her ear. 'You're
about to find out just how fucking straight I am.'