SAVING THE BEST FOR DANIEL

Sienna followed roger quietly down a winding staircase. They came to a halt in front of a sturdy wooden door.

Roger had to shove his body against it to open the creaky door. Sienna coughed as they entered the room.

Piles of paper and files were arranged on hundreds of racks, books were stacked in a huge cabinet. The titles were obscured by the dust that had formed layers on it.

In one corner of the room was a PC and a modem. They were placed on a wooden table.

Sienna was coughing non stop as the dust in the room filled her lungs.

“You can sit at the table and start the PC. I will go get the files for you to work on.” Roger said waving to the computer and left.

Sienna bent over her knees as she wheezed and coughed. This place seemed to have not been opened for a long time.

She fumbled in her bag and pulled out a clean but worn out handkerchief. Then, she placed the bags on the chair. Folding it diagonally, she tied it around her nose and mouth.

She heaved a sigh of relief when the coughs finally stopped. A broom in the corner caught her eye. She picked it up and gave it a good shake. It was old but seemed in a good condition.

It didn’t seem appropriate to be cleaning the office room but she would die if she had to work in such a dusty room.

She got to work; dusting the shelves, ceiling, and floor. Then, she took a piece of cloth and dusted the PC and the shelf. Her back ached by the time she had finished with the cleaning.

Putting the broom behind the door, she dusted her hands. A groan escaped her mouth as her eyes fell on her dusty clothes.

There was a door in the corner of the room. Her face lit up as she opened the door. It was a restroom alright. Moreover, it seemed quite clean.

She washed her hands and dusted her clothes using her old T-Shirt. Then, she applied makeup painstakingly and sprayed some more perfume.

She took out her watch as she walked back into the room. Her eyes widened as she looked at the time. It was already four pm.

“Why didn’t Roger return with the files?” She muttered as she settled down on her seat and fired the computer.

Her stomach growled reminding her that she had skipped lunch. She took out the energy bar from the bag and looked at it for a long time.

She chewed her lower lip as she remembered Ruby talking about the pasta. She rummaged through her purse as she took out all the money she had on the table.

Her lips stretched into a faint smile as she saw the little pile that had formed on the table. She counted the money quickly and muttered, “Forty dollars and three quarters…”

Her face turned slightly pale as she recounted the bills and coins again and again as if counting them would increase the number magically.

She pursed her lips and put the money back in the purse.

“Have to save the best for Daniel…” She muttered as she ripped open the wrapper of the energy bar.

She took her time to chew the first morsel but then gobbled up the rest. She shuffled on the chair as her stomach rumbled yet again. She wished that Roger had brought her work. Then, she could plunge herself into the work and take her mind off the nagging hunger.

The steps of approaching footsteps alerted her and she sat up straight on the chair. She looked towards the door to find Jamie standing there with a scowl.

She stumbled as she got to her feet as soon as possible. Jamie stomped in and banged a thick file on the table.

“I want you to enter all the details in the database before you leave. The Login details are here.” He said as he thrust a piece of paper into her hands.

“And… Yes… if you leave before you finish the work… there is no need to come tomorrow.”  He barked and slammed the door shut.

She took the file with trembling hands and flipped the pages. It would take at least eight hours to complete the work.

Her eyes filled with tears. It was evident that Jamie wanted to fire her right away. Why would he give her such an impossible task otherwise?

Daniel’s adorable face flashed in her mind. She had to do this no matter how late it got…

She wiped away her tears and logged in pursing her lips. Her hands flew across the keyboard as she typed in the details expertly.

Each time her eyes caught the time, her pace increased further. She would halt every once in a while to flex her fingers. Other than that she didn’t even get up even once, not even to use the restroom.

The sun sailed below the horizon and all the others left for their homes. The watchman for the night shift arrived relieving the other one from his duty.

Sienna remained oblivious to her surroundings as she typed at a crazy speed, her legs shook all the while.

She let out a sigh of relief once she was done with her work. She sucked in her breath when she saw the time. It was already Ten o’clock. If she wasn’t so exhausted she would have commended herself for finishing the work.

She licked her dry lips and turned off the computer. Her head spun and she almost caused the CPU to fall when she grabbed it suddenly.

She took out the small bottle of water and guzzled the water in a single draught. Her mouth still felt dry but she didn’t have the energy to go and get some more water. So, she just trudged out…

“Hey there! What are you doing here?’ The security guard stopped her at the door.

Sienna had no energy to even speak to him. She just showed him her ID card.

He gave her an odd look and muttered, “What is wrong with our boss…” Then, he said aloud, “Show me your bag…”

She was too tired to bother, She just let him do whatever he wanted.

Her senses became high on alert as she stepped onto the deserted road. Her heart pounded against her ribs. Fear wiped out all the fatigue and her pace increased.

She chewed her lower lip as she looked around. It was dark except for a street light every few yards. Even the shops had closed down.

She was short on money. She had no other option but to walk to her home.

A sudden flash of light blinded her causing her to stagger. She raised her free hand reflexively to shield her eyes.

Her heart pounded against her ribs and her breath became labored. She didn’t dare to open her eyes afraid of what was lying in wait for her.