陈豪在北京的ABC美国公司工作。他这两天遇到了感情困扰,去找美国同事Amy讨个主意。

(Office ambience)

C:Amy, 我有点私事儿想请教你。

A:What is it, Chen Hao?

C:销售部来了一个新的女同事,叫Kate. 我想请她出去约会。

A:Then why don’t you?

C:因为我不知道咱们公司是不是允许同事谈恋爱。在我原来那家公司是绝对不行的。

A:You’re smart to check it out first. We used to have that policy, but our management decided that we spend so much time at work and with co-workers that it wasn’t fair to impose that restriction.

C:太好了,那我就准备约她今天晚上出去吃饭。

A:But there are a few issues you should consider if you are going to date Kate or any other co-worker.

C:你快说说。

A:Before you get serious, you need to discuss what you will do if things don’t work out. You will want to avoid any bad feelings between you.

C:是啊,我也是希望万一不行的话,彼此都能妥善处理,不要在工作上相互拆台。

A:That’s exactly what I mean. I have seen it happen. When co-workers stop dating, one or both will often try exact some sort of revenge in the office.

C:哎,先别想那么多了,人家还没同意晚上跟我出去吃饭呢。

******

MC:Amy第二天早上遇到了陈豪.

A:So how did your date go? Kate did accept, didn’t she?

C:挺好的,我们俩儿特别投机。不过,Kate说,跟同事谈恋爱,她也有不少顾虑。

A:What did she say?

C:她觉得,最好不要在办公室里谈我们的关系,如果别人问,我们也不否认谈恋爱,但是不会说得更具体。

A:Even if they pressure you? Some people can be pretty nosy and persistent. They’ll want to know every detail of your relationship.

C:我们会婉言拒绝。

A:I guess you’ll be seeing her again.

C:不瞒你说,我已经被她迷住了,老想找个借口往她办公室跑。

A:That is another danger of dating a co-worker.

C:你是说工作的时候容易分心吗?

A:That’s right. If your productivity and performance begin to suffer, others will notice and you will jeopardize your position.

C:对呀,如果真的影响到工作,对我们在公司的发展不利。这一点我倒是没想到。
Amy, 你再提醒提醒我,都要注意些什么?

A: The first thing is to know the company policy. Decide how you will handle the relationship around the office and what you will do if things don’t work out.

C:我知道了。