Chapter 7
1592 Words
_ The Thief _
George????
George is among the people I hoped never to see again. Seems the universe had different plans...
It's not that I hate him. Trust me, I don't. But he hates me. f**k! He hates me.
You can see it all over his face. He doesn't even hide it. He hates the way I breathe. The way I talk. The way I walk. He just hates everything about me...
All because of that one afternoon in school that changed everything three years ago...
He was in his last year on campus and I was a freshman...
I hurt him. I hurt him so badly that he couldn't forgive me.
If I knew George works in this company, I wouldn't have applied for internship here. He sure knows how to make my life a living hell.
And he enjoys it!
George turns to look at me in surprise.
A smug grin draws on his lips.
"Terry!!!!"
He knew I hated it when people called me Terry. But I'm not in the mood to argue with an ex-friend in an elevator because of my name. It's not worth it. Plus, I'm exhausted.
"George."
He looks at the boxes and smirks.
"Still a hard worker, huh?"
I force a smile and nod.
He scoffs.
"If only you worked smart instead..."
I choose to bottle up my anger. I'm afraid if I let it explode, I'll f**k up on my first day. But I'm so tired of keeping my cool with everyone.
My first day has been a disaster. From waking up late to my engine not working to Mr Grumps being an asshole to him actually being my boss to meeting Madeline and now George?
I need a f*****g break!
This place is suffocating.
The doors open and George waves at me.
"See you around."
I hope I never see him ever again!
But that will be impossible since we are working on the same floor.
I pick up the boxes and step out of the elevator.
George stands there, enjoying the pleasant view of me suffering.
I smile and act cool but deep down, I wish I could shove these boxes down his throat.
I walk to Madeline's office, my heels killing me.
Madeline scans the boxes carefully.
"The packages are not mine."
My heart drops.
I wish the ground could open up and just swallow me whole. This is the worst day of my life.
Maybe that's why my name is Terra. Because terror follows everywhere I go...
Madeline snaps her fingers, scowling at me.
"Hello? I said those boxes are not mine! Go back with them and bring mine! Faster! Shoo-shoo! God! You're so lazy!"
She flicks through some beauty magazine before stopping and looking up at me.
"Am I speaking French?"
I turn back and roll my eyes so hard. I'm tempted to slam the door but I don't.
Fuck her!
The elevator dings and the doors open.
This is my first day and nothing has gone according to plan. I feel disappointed and exhausted and humiliated. There's a lump growing in my throat. I feel like breaking down.
But I can't.
I have to be strong to continue working here. I have to be strong to tolerate Madeline. I can't be a crybaby.
I step into the elevator and drop the boxes.
I heave a sigh of relief before someone clears their throat behind me.
Mr Grumps steps in.
Kill. Me. Now.
I get a whiff of his cologne when he stands next to me. He smells so damn good. Atleast there's something good about this day...
He has a stern look on his face and when the doors close. He slowly turns to look at my shoes.
Okay...
That was weird.
When the doors open, his lips curve a little smile.
A little cute smile.
"There are bathrooms here to wash your feet, you know?"
And then he walks away.
Okay...
Mr Grumps turns to Mr Weirdo...
I wonder what his real name is...
How does that even concern me? He's my boss. That's all I need to know about him.
But I wish I could put a name to that face...
Trust me, Mr. Grumps doesn't suit that face.
I hope his name is just as lovely as his face.
****
I step into the coffee shop.
And for a moment, I feel a surge of relief.
There was a lot of pressure inside there and I needed a moment. A moment like this.
To be alone. With some hot coffee and some muffins, especially in the cold weather.
Madeline is like an endless horror series. You need a commercial break. And this coffee break is my commercial break.
I'm standing in the long queue.
A man in a black jacket is standing in front of me. He seems a little bit restless and uneasy. Looking closely, I notice that he's slowly drawing a purse from a short lady's handbag. She's standing in front of him, talking cheerfully on her phone. She has no idea that she's getting robbed in broad daylight.
I spin around and snitch him to the guard at the door.
"Stop!" The guard yells. "Thief!!!"
The thief tries to run but he's pinned to the ground and points a gun at him. He surrenders and gives back the purse before getting kicked out.
The lady smiles at the guard after the whole commotion.
"Thank you." She says, taking her purse. "Take this."
She hands him some cash.
The guard shakes his head.
"No. She's the one you should be thanking."
She smiles at me and then at him.
"No. I insist."
He sighs and gives in.
After that, the lady turns to me.
"Coffee on me."
"No, it's-"
"No negotiation." She says. "I'll bully you into saying yes. So, let's save each other the time."
And that's how she buys me coffee and makes me sit at the same table with her.
She's short and petite with eyes too big for her small face. I can't help but envy her buttery brown skin. She must have a morning and night routine to keep it glowing like that.
She's a cheerful person who talks endlessly. She reminds me of Dee, just that she seems a bit softer and fragile.
"My name is Zara." She says.
I smile.
"I'm Terra."
She grins.
"Oh, Te-rra. Za-ra! Has a ring to it, right?"
I laugh at that.
"We can be best friends."
Oh, just like that?
"Scratch that. We're best friends already." She says. "Nice to meet you, bestie."
"Nice to meet you too." I shake her hand. "Bestie."
I like her already.
I'm surprised to see the badge on her blouse. We are working as interns at The Jean Company.
What a coincidence!
"We're interns at the same company!"
Best thing to happen today.
"No f*****g way!" She shrieks. "At least I found a gossip partner."
I giggle.
"Zoe is pretty good at that."
She rolls her eyes.
"You mean the receptionist? She talks s**t about everyone. The first week working there, we were the best of friends. Then I found out she made some pretty nasty comments about the color of my skin."
I knew that Zoe was the office gossip but she didn't strike me as racist.
"And have you met Madeline?" She snorts. "She's the literal human form of a migraine."
"She's the one training me!" I sigh. "She's technically my boss."
"Dude! You're so unlucky!" She laughs at me. "Have you started carrying the stupid boxes?"
I nod and she bursts into a laugh.
"She didn't even spare you on the first day. You're the newest baby in the company. She should have given you some time to start crawling atleast..."
Behind that laugh, I can tell that she feels a little sad for me.
"Have you started kissing her ass?" She asks.
I look at her in shock.
"That too?"
"Drop that look. I'm kidding," she chuckles. "She's not easy to work with. But just do as she tells you to avoid trouble."
I sip my coffee.
"And you? What do you do?"
"I started as a PA for Madeline the first month. I legit went for therapy after that awful experience. And now I'm working as a PA for CJ."
"CJ?"
The name is new to my ears.
"The CEO. Cedric Jean." She says. "But he prefers CJ."
"Must be an old lad to own such a big company," I say.
She shakes her head.
"Nah, his dad has been ill and he finally gave the position to CJ. Word on the street is that CJ has been living in England all these years because he hates his dad. The only reason he came back is to run the company."
I would like to meet this CJ.
Wait... Could he be...
"Does everyone call him Mr Grumps?" I ask.
She nods.
"Yes, they say the dad was nicer. CJ never smiles or laughs. He doesn't entertain girls. He doesn't joke when it comes to matters of the company. He's been working in the company for the last eight months and you can already see the improvement. He's a great asset to the company even though everyone thinks he's an asshole."
Oh, that explains why he's serious all the f*****g time. But hey, he smiled at me earlier... for the wrong reason though.
How could he smile because my feet were dirty?
Zara leans in to whisper.
"Can you keep a secret?"
I nod.
"CJ is gay."
****
- Writer
