Chapter Six

Stella’s POV

I crashed into my apartment by 7 pm after the very strenuous day. Or maybe it is because of my long time of unemployment that made today longer than usual.

As I sat on my sofa, undressing, an email came in.

Rule for Day Two.

A cup of coffee and my full schedule on my table tomorrow before I arrive.

That was it. No greeting, no signature, nothing. But I knew who it was from.

Suddenly I wished I were unemployed again but as fast as the thought came, I dismissed it.

If I will get to work earlier than Mr Blackwell tomorrow, then I need a proper rest.

I didn’t bother making dinner. It was not as if I had anything anyway. I just took a very relaxing shower and called it a day.

By 6 am, my alarm rang through the apartment. I was about to hit the snooze button when I realized what was going on.

I’m employed. And my very grumpy boss needs his coffee and his schedule.

I quickly stood up, went through my morning routine properly provided that I wasn’t in a rush.

By 6:55 am, I was out of my apartment and headed towards the nearest coffee shop.

The office was not far from my house. A twenty-minute walk was all it took actually.

“Hello, how may I be of service to you at this time of the day?” The barista asked cheerfully.

“Hi.” I tried to reply with the same energy but I wasn’t finding it in me so I just replied to him normally. “I would love a cup of coffee.”

“Any specifications?”

Damn, Mr Blackwell didn’t say what type of coffee he liked and I can’t exactly send him an email now asking him what kind of coffee he likes.

“Black. No sugar.” I played my best card. If he is that grumpy, then he must love black coffee.

“Got it.” He replied. “Name?”

“Um, Stella.”

I found a chair close enough to the counter and sat there while I pulled Mr Blackwell's schedule on my phone.

Vanessa helped me set that up. I never even knew it was possible.

I looked through the schedule and made a mental note of the time for meetings, their venue, and the department having them.

“Coffee for Ms. Stella.” The barista announced.

I walked up to the counter to collect the coffee.

“In case you are in a better mood, my name is Alexander.” The barista smiled sweetly before taking one of the paper towels and scribbling on it. “And this is my number.” He slid the towel towards me.

“Sure. Have a nice day.” I said as I took the coffee and the paper towel and fled the scene.

A boy problem wasn’t exactly on my to-do list for this year.

By this time, it was already 7: 38am which gave me a good amount of time to finish Mr Blackwell’s request before he came in.

I finished my quick walk to the office building.

In the elevator, I met Vanessa.

“Hey. You look better today. How are you doing?” She asked.

“I’m much better and organized.” I smiled.

She nodded her head and that was where it ended.

After the few agonizing seconds of silence, we finally reached the seventh floor.

“See you later.” I said to Vanessa and managed a small wave.

In my office, I set Mr Blackwell’s coffee aside and double checked his schedule for the day before printing it.

‘What if he wants it as soft copy?’ My inner self asked.

That makes sense. Mr Blackwell has shown to be very unpredictable. So who knows?

I pulled up the company secretary email and sent him a copy of his schedule.

Picking up the coffee and the schedule, I made my way to Mr Blackwell’s office. Thank goodness he wasn’t there yet.

I set the almost cold coffee down and placed the schedule beside it before exiting through the linking door.

About thirty minutes later, Mr Blackwell arrived.

“Daddy, can we go visit the zoo on Sunday?” I heard the little boy ask excitedly.

Though, I didn’t hear Mr Blackwell’s reply but I knew his answer was positive because of the little boy’s yelp of happiness.

By 9:15, my alarm rang.

Here we go. Meeting One of the day.

I picked up my book of minutes and headed out of my office. Coincidentally, Mr Blackwell was also just leaving his office.

“Good morning sir.” I said, making a move to collect the things he was holding.

“Your assistance is not needed for today. I got it from here, Ms…”

“Kingsley, sir. If I may ask-“

“No, you may not, Ms. Kingsley.” Mr Blackwell replied, dismissing me totally as he walked off.

I stood in the middle of the hallway dumbfounded. So I just sit in my office for the day and count how many English alphabets we have?

So be it.

I walked back into my office and flopped on the small couch at the corner.

I was kicking off my shoes when I heard a tiny knock on the linking door.

The little boy.

I wore my shoes back and walked to the door to open it.

“Hi, there.” I said enthusiastically.

Maybe I won’t have to count the English alphabets during my leisure time today.

The little boy looked at me and smiled before slowly walking in.

“Do you know that when you smile, your brain thinks you’re happy, even if you’re not?” He said before he climbed onto my previous seat.

“Really? And how do you know that?” I asked because I never knew or thought of that before.

“Watched it on YouTube last night.” He simply replied.

“That’s really nice, little guy.”

“My name is Kaleb.” He said, correcting me.

“A cute name for a cute boy. My name is Stella.” I introduced myself.

By this time, I have already pulled my office chair to his side so that we can talk without shouting.

“That is the name of my best friend in my previous school.” He said, looking at me intently.

“Then what happened?”

“I moved here.” He shrugged like he already accepted that he wouldn’t see his best friend again.

“It can’t be that bad. I can also be your friend, you know? Maybe not best friends yet but a friend.”

“Promise?” He said, extending his pinkie finger.

Linking my pinkie with his, I replied “I promise.”

We were both smiling ear to ear now but our little bubble was shattered.

“Kaleb?” Mr Blackwell said from his office.

I looked at Kaleb, panicked. I never even asked him if he was permitted to come here.

He made a motion for me to keep quiet while giggling quietly.

My panic quickly disappeared and I also giggled.

“Ms. Kingsley?” Mr Blackwell knocked from his side of the linking door.

I quickly hid Kaleb under my desk before answering.

“Yes, sir?”

“Have you seen my son around?” He asked like he was about to lose his calm.

“I don’t think so, sir.” I replied.

“Alright.” He said, turning his back to go and keep looking for his son.

“You little rascal.” I laughed as I squatted under my desk. “You’ll make me pay for your mischief.”

“He’ll never find out.” He said quietly.

“Or maybe he will.” A new voice sounded from above us.

In a haste to stand up, I hit my head against my table.

“You are terrible liar, by the way, Ms Kingsley. And as for you, get your mischievous ass over here.” Mr Blackwell said.

Kaleb laughed and crawled out from under the table before opening his arm for his father to carry him.

Mr Blackwell promptly did but not before he ruffled Kaleb’s hair and threatened to take the zoo off his calendar.

That sobered him up real quick. Then he turned to wave at me before going. Then I realized, Mr Blackwell might be a grumpy boss but he is definitely a sunshine parent.