invisible cockroach syndrome

I knew I shouldn't have gone into the lunch room, but I needed the microwave and without it a substantial part of my lunch would go uneaten. And I was already starving. I took a seat next to the window, figuring that the cleaning fumes would not bother me there. I did not count on what I saw on the boxes. Even though it is a very large room, I could see them moving, crawling. Then, as if I needed confirmation, my coworkers started stomping on the ground in a very pointed way.

During the 3 minutes that my mac & cheese cooked, they finished their cleaning and spraying (and stomping) and left. I had allowed myself the occasional peek up. I knew that there was no worry, but I couldn't help but think that maybe some had escaped the massacre of their brethren and made it the seemingly long distance across the open floor and were now crawling on my open-toed shoes and up my bare legs. I calmly glanced down, saw nothing, and put my feet on the chair across from me. I continued reading my book, with only the briefest of brushes of my leg. Once I swear I felt something fall when I brushed my leg with my hand, and then I was sure there was something on my chair near my almost-exposed butt (thanks to my skirt and my feet up).

But my brain knew there was nothing there. I reminded myself that I had seen nothing, heard no telltale clicks of 6 feet scurrying, and not felt any weight on my leg. The tickle was imaginary. But I resumed the brushing of my legs with my hands. I took my full half-hour lunch, debating between the boredom pushing for a longer lunch or the fears pulling for a shorter one.

Fear wins over boredom every time.