Chapter Four: First day.

ASHLEY.

"Lend me your blue shirt, Maya. It would go well with my black skirt tomorrow," I said after swallowing the food in my mouth.

"Sure. Still can't believe you're going to be working with my crush up close." She squealed.

I rolled my eyes at her. She's one of his fans.

"It’s nothing special."

She glared at me like I ate her favorite candy. "People will kill for the spot."

I swallowed the sandwich in my mouth before replying. "I wouldn't."

She looked at me like she realized she was wasting her time discussing this with me.

We didn't have much foodstuffs, so we made a turkey sandwich for dinner.

"The pay is good. It would help you a lot," she said after a while.

"Maybe we can finally move from this neighborhood downtown to somewhere safer."

She smiled at me. "You have other problems to worry about."

I pushed my hair out of my face and sighed.

She knew about Melissa. We have been friends since high school, so we knew everything about each other. Her family helped me a lot. Her mom usually keeps a food cooler for Lily and I. It worked well since we lived in the same street.

"I sleep with one eye opened," I huffed.

She gave me a pointed look. "I get scared when I wake up in the middle of the night. " I added quickly.

"Which is never. You're a heavy sleeper, Ash. Don't kid yourself."

I pouted at her words and put the remaining sandwich in my mouth.

I wrapped my hands around her after getting up. "I need to go to bed now. If I don't wake up by 6 a.m., you are free to dump a bucket of water on my head."

She smirked as I pulled away. "I will happily do so."

I stuck my tongue out at her and mumbled a goodnight.

I headed to my room and walked in. It was just a regular room. The paints were chipping off. My bed was a queen-sized bed. There was the chair I bought last year along with my vanity table.

I set my alarm before crawling into my bed.

It didn't take long for darkness to draw me in.

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Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring!

I groaned loudly as the sound kept going off. I couldn't help but open my eyes to glare at the intruder.

I stared at the time on my alarm and got out of bed.

6 : 40 a.m.

Already?!

I grabbed my towel and headed to the bathroom on the other side of the hallway. I brushed my teeth first before taking a quick shower.

I strolled to Maya's room to get her blue shirt. She was still sleeping soundly when I entered. It's her day off today.

I picked the shirt she had already laid down on her chair. I headed back to mine and dressed up quickly.

I put my hair in a ponytail and applied just my lipgloss.

It's basically the only makeup I could afford.

I put on my only pair of heels and put the necessities in my shoulder bag.

I grabbed an apple and headed out of the house after locking the door shut.

I walked to the bus stop and boarded the bus quickly.

I ate my apple while staring out. I already read the attached file over and over again. It's engraved in my head.

It had so many rules and instructions. They were things that I could do easily.

I started the small walk into the office when I alighted from the bus. I walked to the reception to collect my ID card as instructed.

It's a different receptionist, and I was thankful.

"We could hang out during lunch," Anna said after handing me my card.

"I would take your offer on that. Thank you."

She waved me off and wished me good luck. I strolled into the employee's elevator and had to scan my ID card for it to open.

It took me to my floor without needing me to press any button. I walked out and strolled down the same hallway. I headed to the secretary desk and it's some old lady.

She smiled warmly at me, and I did the same. "You must be Ashley Walker."

I nodded, and she got to work immediately. She told me everything I needed to know about my boss.

How he liked his coffee. What he hated.

She showed me my office and I was wowed. I had a private room to myself.

I didn't have one at my old job.

It's really cozy. The walls were painted blue. I had a chair and desk to myself. There's a small fridge stocked to the brim at the corner.

Snacks. Drinks. You name it.

That was going to be my favorite thing about this office.

She showed me how to use the company’s IPad and laptop.

"You need to make his coffee before he gets here." She told me where the coffee maker was.

She headed back to her desk while I went in the direction she told me. I made it just the way she told me he liked it.

Black coffee. One teaspoon of sugar.

Typical. I almost rolled my eyes at his order. I made another for myself. Something creamy and sweet.

The elevator dinged open just as I was about to head to my office beside his.

I quickly headed to him and handed him his coffee. "Good morning, sir."

He glanced at me once before focusing back on his phone.

He sipped his coffee and nodded. "My schedule for the day."

I unlocked the office's iPad that I was holding. "Final meeting with Scott Inc. by 12 pm. Meeting with the finance department by 2 pm. That's basically it for today, sir."

He nodded and entered his office. I went to mine and got started with the task he sent to me via my company's email.

The day was hectic.

My boss was officially a workaholic. He was just a regular boss at the office. We only talked about things related to work. His reputation had me thinking otherwise.

Maybe I shouldn't really judge a book by its cover.

I had a lot of work to do. It's like the personal assistant before me didn't do anything. I almost missed my lunch break.

I met up with Anna and her friends at the cafeteria. They were really welcoming.

"You are going to like it here, Ashley," one of her friends said to me.

There's something about his presence that I couldn't explain.

I didn't know what it was, and I wasn't planning on exploring it.

I knew in my head that it's bad for me.

Maybe, just maybe I could kill for this job.

Maybe I was actually going to like it here.