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Office Rat

copyright comidacomida 2020

original world concept and 'Indigens' by https://fabulousmoose.sofurry.com/

used with permission

Chase never liked taking the bus during the best of times, and his trip into the city center was nowhere close to that. Granted, the Main Line that stretched from the outer parts of the county into the business district was a lot nicer than the ones that stuck to the furthest most suburbs, but at least on the number nine route there weren't so many humans. Indigens, in the rat's mind, were a lot easier to deal with.

It wasn't that Chase was racist, but he was more of a realist. When humans saw Indigens like him their usual reaction was to pull away, keep their distance, and assume he was up to no good. He didn't take it personally, and never did he think it was because he was a rat; truth be told, he'd seen humans react pretty much the same to dog Indigens, cat Indigens, bear Indigens... pretty much anyone who didn't have soft skin and no muzzle.

In most circumstances, Chase would have been happy to stick to The Neighborhood, the several block area where most Indigens in the greater metro area lived. From what he understood, most cities had a Neighborhood; it was a universal term for Indigen communities. Neighborhoods were close-knit groups, friendly, helpful, and always looking after one another. Most of all, there were few humans so nobody had to be on guard about offending or wronging one of them. He considered The Neighborhood home but one of the many things that 'home' lacked was a well paying job.

Considering his good fortune in getting a paid intern position at a respectable office downtown, Chase had to be willing to step outside his comfort zone and that started with the Main Line Bus. His employer knew that he was an Indigen and, despite the interview being by phone, it seemed like it would be a good fit, and so he accepted. It was his hope that he'd be able to make things work and, if everyone was excited for him to start as his interviewer then he knew that the uncomfortable trip in the bus being stared at by and avoided by humans would be worth it. Unfortunately, things did not improve at the office.

The logistics firm took up the entire third floor of a leased office building and consisted of the owner, an administrative assistant, twenty-something employees, and four interns; Chase was the fifth. The moment he arrived he was met by his interviewer, who also turned out to be the owner, a 50-something, slightly heavy-set human with a ready smile and the kind of glow to his nose and cheeks that suggested he liked his alcohol; that impression was only further reinforced by the faint scent of it on his breath.

The owner, Morris Lake or, as he asked Chase to call him 'Mr. Morris', was buddy-buddy with him the moment he walked in, grabbing him around the shoulder and walking him right into the main work area, which had been set up for a staff meeting. For the next forty minutes, Chase was standing right next to Mr. Morris as the older human constantly gestured to him, talking about how great it was for the firm to finally have some variety among its workers. "We're a progressive company, and this here's proof!"

Unfortunately, Chase realized, not once did 'the proof' even get introduced. In the end, what probably hurt the most was when Mr. Morris indicated that everyone should consider him the company mascot. Shortly thereafter the meeting ended and Mr. Morris pawned him off on a put-together, well-kept, well-dressed, finely groomed blonde haired blue eyed guy with a simple "Here ya go, Scotty... why don'cha get our new intern settled?" The day did not improve.

Scotty or, more precisely, 'Scott' (and don't you fuckin' DARE call me 'Scotty', 'rat boy'), was just as good at making Chase uncomfortable as the owner, but for the exact opposite reason: for as sickeningly sweet Mr. Morris had been, Scott was a muzzle-ful of acidic sour. Chase had been hired to help with the operations side of the daily work but Scott apparently decided that he was best for menial tasks involving trash. Trash and the bathroom. Also, the bathroom trash. "It's what rats are good at." he indicated.

Regardless, working as an intern was a good line item for his resume, so Chase lowered his head, squared his shoulders, and moved on with what was demanded of him. He weathered the ridicule via sidelong glances, poorly hidden gossip, and not-so-quiet whispers. If he'd had any illusions that he was welcome in the office they were dispelled well before lunch. Not only was he excluded from the opportunity to join the other interns in the important projects that they were given to handle, but the work schedule sheet that was set up in the break room had his name, followed by a week long assignment of "Trash and Poop Detail" written in by hand.

At one point he was in the break room when two other interns came in. One was complaining to the other about being sent on yet another coffee run-- the third of the day. Chase looked up from the newspaper he was reading. "Oh! I can go get everyone's coffee if you want. I don't mind."

The two interns backed away from him, the one who had been complaining previously quickly clarified "Oh-- no... that's okay, man... I'm not sure-- I mean... uh-- It's okay mah'man... I got it. They... uh-- they probably don't want any fur getting in their coffee, am I right? Yeah."

Every attempt he made to help was avoided, blocked, sidestepped or downright rejected. Despite how much he tried to find a place for himself, he was starting to think that there wasn't really any room for an Indigen outside the Neighborhood; many of the residents had tried to tell him as much but it took first-paw experience for him to actually let the understanding sink in. He was reveling in that defeatist attitude that evening on the way to the bus stop when his thoughts were interrupted by a loud shout. "NO! Let GO!"

Turning, Chase saw one of the interns, a good looking human girl probably about his own age; she was being followed by Scott and two of his work buddies and Scott had a hold of her sweater, pulling on it slowly as if reeling in a fish. He talked to her in a demeaning baby-tone. "Oh come on, Katy... I thought you wanted everyone to like you."

She turned and pushed him. "I said LET ME GO!"

He let go of her sweater and her weight shifted; instead of him being shoved, she pushed herself back, and, off-balance, she fell. All three of the guys started laughing and, once Katy started to cry, Chase realized that he'd had enough. He wasn't about to stand up for himself but he wouldn't be able to look himself in the mirror if he didn't say something. "Hey! Guys! Cut it out!"

The three of them turned their attention on him. Scott actually laughed. "Hey! It's the janitor rat! Did you squeak something, rodent?"

The number one thing that an Indigen learned from a young age was to never 'make sounds' at a human. Humans were naturally flighty and were already afraid enough that the last thing any Indigen needed to do was to be mistaken as a wild beast. In that moment, Chase didn't care. Baring his teeth, he raised his paws, curving them slightly so his inconsequential claws were presented, and he let out a hiss. It was all he needed to do as the three thugs turned tail and fled.

Chase paused, wriggled his lips, adjusted his shirt and tie, and then looked down to his fellow intern, offering her a paw. "Are you alright?"

She inched away from him and slowly stood up on her own. A human might have missed how uneasy Katy was with his presence; she at least did the courtesy of trying not to appear disgusted, or afraid, or repulsed or whatever it was she was feeling when she looked at him. The wind changed and her scent told him which of the three: all of them. Despite that, she still managed to power through her obvious dislike of his presence by providing a half-way convincing smile. "I-I'm fine... thanks."

Letting out a sigh, Chase shrugged. "Yeah... don't mention it."

He started the long walk back to the bus line immediately; no sense in offending her with his presence any further. The rat wasn't surprised in the least when she didn't bother following him, tell him to stop, ask him to wait, or even acknowledge his presence. His feet dragged along the pavement as he shuffled his way back toward the transportation that would help him flee the city with his tail between his legs. At that point, all he really wanted was to go home.

A voice, however, did call to him. "Hey."

Pausing, the Indigen turned to see the fourth intern, a red haired human who Chase hadn't actually met during the day. He was a little shorter than the rat and the few extra pounds he carried gave him a baby-face. Unlike anyone else Chase had met at the office, the smile on the intern's face felt genuine. The Indigen took a step back as the intern approached. "Uh... hi?"

The red haired human smiled again. "Rudy... and you're Chase, right?"

The rat nodded. "Yeah... um... what's wrong?"

Rudy glanced off in the direction Scott and his lackeys had run. "Other than those three assholes?"

The statement made Chase pause. "Huh?"

The intern smiled again. "I saw what you did, Chase... you know... helping Katy."

The rat shrugged, wondering just how much trouble he was going to get in for becoming involved. "I guess... yeah. Why? Is there a law against it or something?"

Rudy laughed-- it wasn't a chuckle or even a giggle; it was a full-on, deep-from-the-belly guffaw. He recovered quickly enough. "Dude... relax. Believe it or not, the world isn't out to get you."

Considering the day he had, Chase wasn't completely willing to agree. "Yeah? Well sometimes it feels like it."

The human smiled, motioning toward the parking lot with his head. "Well, not the WHOLE world anyway. Come on-- I can give you a ride home if you want."

It took all of two seconds for the rat to consider the implications, such as what that would mean for himself, but also for Rudy showing up in the Neighborhood. Maybe nothing, he realized, but maybe something. "Nah... that's okay. I have a bus pass."

He half expected Rudy to shrug it off as a service offered being his 'good deed' for the day, but the rat was honestly surprised when the human insisted. "Bus takes forever to get anywhere. I don't have anything going on tonight-- at least let ONE person celebrate the hero of the hour... honestly, I've been waiting FOREVER for someone to put Scott in his place."

Sighing, Chase gave in. "I guess... I mean... I never really liked the bus anyway."

A ride home turned into grabbing some burgers first, and a long chat as they ate. Ron was honestly good company and, as the human pulled up to in front of Chase's parents' place, he held out a piece of printer paper. "Oh yeah! I don't think anyone got you the call tree... my number's at the bottom."

The rat smiled. "Thanks for the ride... and dinner... and-- uh... just... thanks."

Ron smiled back, offering a friendly wave as he pulled away. "No worries, hero. I'll catch you at work tomorrow!"

Chase, despite how most of his day went, found himself looking forward to it.