[quote=@Haeo]
"Good morning, Shizuka."  He said.  His tone was a little upbeat but too regular to be natural.  He was being professional through his worries with a little effort, and that effort showed today.  "You've been handling things well.  Just, remember to check the balcony during your morning walkthrough, and keep up the good work.  I only realized today how easy it is to hide up there.  I'm working on a solution, but for now just be a little extra careful."
[/quote]

Shizuka was a little startled when Vern greeted her, having assumed she was alone in the shop. His reminder to check the balcony also served as an explanation for where he had been this whole time.  [color=a187be]"Understood, Mr. Smith, I'll be more vigilant,"[/color] she replied.  Shizuka had known Mr. Smith for a few months since she started working for him.  So far, their relationship was simply that of an employer and employee; cordial.  But she admired him somewhat.  He gave the impression of a man with a complete awareness and control of his body.  He seemed to make no wasted movements, every action was efficient, like a man who had programmed and fine-tuned his body like a machine.  She didn't know what sort of background would push a man to become like that.  She could guess some sort of 'special forces' or perhaps 'martial artist', but Shizuka wasn't the kind of person to guess at a person's past.  And it was for this reason that the words coming out of Vern's mouth were so troubling.  Despite his control, Shizuka was able to detect a hint of stress, or attempt to hide that stress, in his voice.  Although he did just notify her to check the balcony from now on, Shizuka did not misconstrue his tone as one of displeasure or nagging, this tiny oversight on her part wasn't what was bothering him. Shizuka did not feel like Vern was 'taking it out on her' in the slightest. As it was a slow day, there was plenty of time to make conversation, so Shizuka asked, [color=a187be]"I don't mean to pry, but is something upsetting you?"[/color]