05 Keep On Trying

Of the ten candidates tested, only two met Evan's standards. One was a man and the other was a woman. Both of them excelled in administrative matters—one of the most important skills as a secretary, but they must be able to follow Evan’s work rhythm. As seen from the psychological test result, they both belonged to the type of workers who were predominantly melancholic, in other words, too careful.

This situation was in contrast to Evan, the choleric type who was very agile; a good fit for a leader. He always did things quickly. He was never a slowpoke type.

Grace wanted to take advantage of this to get the secretary position. She didn't want to stop fighting for it. Her brilliant brain gave her an idea. She decided to talk about the candidates' weaknesses with Evan.

“Mr. Williams, are you sure the two selected people have the qualities that meet your standard? They are the exact opposite of you," said Grace, still standing in front of Evan's desk after handing out the final exam papers for the two candidates.

"What's that got to do with you?" Evan said sarcastically. He didn't even look at her.

'If you weren't my best friend, I'd have thrown rotten mangoes at you, Evan.' Grace cursed inwardly. She still couldn't believe that a soft-hearted person like him could turn as cold as a demon. “With all due respect, I know you VERY WELL. Melancholic people are never your choice. In fact, it’s a sanguine LIKE ME who can follow your work rhythm,” she said, stressing some words to promote herself.

Hearing that, Evan then threw a glance at Grace. "Says who? You DON'T know me enough," he said, stressing the word back at her. “Now please leave this room. I need peace.”

Grace was furious. She already felt exhausted after dealing with the tests and completing all of her tasks in one day. However, the way she was treated by Evan had gotten her to chin up even more. At first, she was about to explode in anger but then thought that this could be a trap. She believed Evan was doing this on purpose to get her to give up and walk away.

'No, Evan. I'm not going to stop here just because of your sarcastic remarks.' Grace smiled vaguely with the upturning of her mouth corners, pretending to be calm. “Alright. Please enjoy the peace, Mr. Evan Williams,” she mentioned her full name in a little sarcastic way.

Evan acted indifferently and just looked at his laptop screen.

Unfazed by Evan's cold demeanor, Grace left the place quietly. She walked back to her office.

On the way, Grace ran into one of the assistant managers as well as a staff she had never seen before. They were smiling fakely in front of her, but her ears were sharp enough to hear the mocking remarks said behind her.

“Grace really is shameless. Previously, she seduced her own supervisor. Now the GM. Does she actually think she's beautiful?”

It wouldn't be surprising if Grace had the desire to slaughter the two women with harsh words right at that moment. Her ears were so burning and she was sure that she could do it. If it hadn't been for Evan who taught her how to restrain her emotions years ago, she would have already earned the title of 'Devil Woman' by now. No one would be able to hold up after receiving curses from her.

Grace quickened her pace to get to the pantry as soon as possible. She wanted to cool her head which was now smoldering like a burning forest.

One of the things that Grace loved about working at this hotel was the facilities provided for the employees. This pantry looked like a luxury bar equipped with various beverage makers and ingredients. Ready-to-drink beverages were always available; almost never ran out.

From inside the refrigerator, which was about fifteen centimeters taller than her, Grace took out a box of orange juice. She stuck a straw into the box and took a sip of the drink that instantly refreshed her throat.

While enjoying the juice, a man and a woman entered the pantry. The woman seemed to be complaining about something while the man was listening.

“Why do I have to do it? We have office clerks to do this. I not here working as a maid! If she wants to bootlick the GM, she has to do it herself. Don't make other people do it.” Those were the things that the female employee was saying so loudly.

Grace didn't know which manager ordered the woman, but she did know that it had something to do with Evan. She smiled as an idea popped into her mind. Without further ado, she approached the two unfamiliar employees.

“Hi. Sorry to interrupt. But if I'm not mistaken, you were told to do something for Mr. Williams?” asked Grace without hesitation.

The woman took a deep breath as she controlled her emotions and nodded. "Yes. I was told to make a drink and deliver it to him," she answered.

“Ah, then let me do it. No worries. Actually, I am about to go to Mr. Williams' place," said Grace offering herself.

With wide eyes and a bright smile, the woman replied, "Really? Wow, you're amazingly kind. Thank you!"

Grace nodded then turned to the fridge. She took a box of chocolate milk and fruits such as strawberries and blueberries. She also took the mixer from a shelf not far from where she was standing. She deftly made Evan's favorite smoothie.

The healthy drink was ready and Grace placed it on a tray. Carefully she brought it to Evan's office.

“Grace, Grace!” Mario's voice calling her out was heard from behind. He just came out of his office.

Grace stopped walking and turned to her boss. "Yes, Sir?" she asked.

Mario frowned seeing what Grace was carrying. “Why are you bringing a drink? For who? Mr. Williams?" he guessed as he was walking up to her.

“Yes.”

“But why are you doing it instead of the office clerk?”

Grace pressed her lips together. “Hmm. Earlier, I heard that the office clerk in charge couldn't do it. Then there was a staff member who was ordered to do it. But she seemed to be busy. So I offered myself. By chance, I've got some free time and working hours are almost over too,” she explained.

Mario took some time before answering. He looked like he was pondering about what to say, knowing how strong-willed Grace was. “Grace, your job is to be an assistant manager. You can leave this task to the office clerk. Don't waste your talent and reputation," he said.

Grace raised an eyebrow. “Is it that low to deliver drinks?” Her question pierced his heart at once.

"That's not what I meant—"

"Don’t you always say to take initiative when help is needed? And it happens that the help needed right now is delivering drinks. Don't worry. Things like this won't affect my reputation,” said Grace, giving an explanation that Mario couldn't refute.

Taking a deep breath and nodding, Mario replied, “You're right. Sorry, I just don't want your name to fall into disrepute because of this. You know, a lot of people have been talking about you behind your back, right?”

Grace smiled. “Thank you for your concern, Mr. Suganda. I have no control over keeping their mouths shut. But I have control to cover my ears," she said calmly. “Is there anything else you need to tell me? Because otherwise, I need to deliver this drink to Mr. Williams.”

There was really nothing else Mario wanted to say. He approached Grace only because he saw her with the drink. Now he felt even more in love with her with the answer she just gave.

"I guess not. Go ahead. Do what you need to do," said Mario with a small smile.

Grace slightly lowered her head in respect and then continued walking toward her intended destination. Her focus immediately shifted from his conversation with Mario to what she was going to say to Evan later in his office.

Overjoyed to be seeing Evan for the second time that day, Grace nearly ran into the finance manager who suddenly appeared around the corner. Luckily she was able to keep the drink from spilling or falling.

"Hey! Use your eyes when you walk. Careful!" yelled the woman who was a bit older than she.

"Sorry, Miss Kendall. I'm in a hurry to deliver this drink to Mr. Williams," Grace replied.

Gwen Kendall, the manager well-known for her sassiness, looked at the drink and said, “Let me do it." She pulled the tray from Grace's hand.

But Grace couldn't let that happen. It was she who had this opportunity and had spent time making the drink. "No need, Miss. I can do it myself,” she said softly but with a hint of anger.

"When I say I'm gonna do it, don't stop me." Gwen glared at Grace, signaling the start of a fierce battle between the two women.

Grace was shorter than Gwen, but that didn't mean she was any less powerful. She held the tray while holding the glass so the smoothies wouldn't spill. “Miss, please let go. Let me do my job,” she said in a firmer tone this time.

"You're just an assistant, you know that? Don't fight me!" Gwen exclaimed then violently pushed the tray toward Grace.

As a result, Grace stumbled backward and hit the wall with her back. The delicious-tasting smoothies spilled out, staining her white blouse.

"See? Bad karma! It’s because you go against your superior!” snapped Gwen with her arms crossed.

Grace's hands were full, one holding a tray and the other a glass. She was boiling mad right now. She was ready to strike the manager with what she was holding.

Nevertheless, before war broke out, Evan came out of his room and shouted, “What the heck? Why make a fuss in front of my office?”

In self-defense, Gwen hastily said, “I was going to deliver a drink for you, Mr. Williams. But she snatched it and insisted that she would bring it to you. So the drink spilled. My hands are also sticky. Look.”

Grace couldn't understand how she could have crossed her tongue, distorting the facts. 'Dang it! There’s not a single drop of the smoothies in her hand. How could he say her hands were sticky?' "Do you believe it?" she snapped, glancing at Evan.

Evan knew very well that Grace wasn't a troublemaker. If she got into trouble, it would be only because she wanted to defend herself. Nevertheless, he remained calm to assess this matter wisely without taking anyone's side.

"I don't care who's right. But you two are at the scene. Get it all cleaned up. I want this to be cleaned before working hours are over," Evan ordered.

While Gwen made a disappointed and angry face, Grace smiled cynically. Feeling satisfied that the notorious financial manager also got scolded by Evan. Plus, she didn't mind cleaning the small stains on the carpet. Cleaning was not a big deal for her; she was used to doing it at home.

Gwen put her hands on her hips and left the place without saying a word. Either she would return to do what Evan had said or not.

"Sorry for the mess," Grace said before Evan went back into his room.

Whether she could be considered lucky or not, there was one thing for sure. Grace was definitely relieved. From what she could see, Evan actually believed her.

An office clerk came out of the corner where Gwen had gone. She approached Grace and offered to clean it up. At first, Grace refused because Evan asked her to take responsibility. But with the office clerk's insistence, she agreed in the end. She also handed the dirty glass and tray to the middle-aged woman in front of her.

Grace rushed to the toilet. Luckily she always pocketed her phone. She contacted Nita to help her. She waited for some time while cleaning her blouse with water and tissue.

It was not far to go from her office to the toilet she was in now. However, Nita only arrived twenty minutes later, out of breath.

"What took you so long, Nita? You’ve got work to finish?" she asked.

Nita shook her head as she half raised her palm. “How could you be … this messed up? Don’t you know … you’re such trouble? You look like you’ve been … in a war," she said then straightened up after catching her breath. "Here's a blouse for you."

"Oh my, thank you, Nita. You don’t have to buy a new one for me,” said Grace, smiling when she saw the Batik blouse she knew was sold at the store on the first floor.

"I only went there because Mr. Williams ordered me to do it. And it’s on him," Nita told her.

Hearing those words warmed Grace's heart. She could already guess that her best friend wouldn't have the heart to see her go through something bad. No matter how bad Evan's attitude was, it didn’t necessarily change Grace's thoughts about him.

[ABY]