"I'll introduce you to everybody and show you around. You don't have an office yet, so you'll be staying in mine until we set up your own place," Locious explained while Rose looked around the hall.
At the entrance, a large reception desk was staffed by a girl and a boy. The place wasn't fancy, nor did it look shabby. It looked like any other office in town, but the energy flow was almost tangible. The people there were clearly not common folks; they exuded power.
"These are Pete and Ethel. They are in charge of greeting people. Unless they are overworked and forget where they are, like right now," he commented, placing his palm on the desk with a sharp, echoing thud, making the two workers and Rose jump.
They lifted their heads simultaneously, and recognizing Locious, they smiled.
"Hi there, pretty boy," the girl, Ethel, said with a smile. Her eyes were full of undisguised affection, which immediately made Rose feel uncomfortable.
She realized they had never discussed their love lives; she had no idea what kind of person Locious liked or if he was even in a relationship. Maybe this girl was his special someone. A sudden, unpleasant feeling crawled inside Rose's heart. What was it? Why was she suddenly full of anger? Was it because she thought they were close enough to talk about who they loved? Yeah, that was probably it. She considered him a friend, maybe even her best friend, but he just didn't consider her an acquaintance if he wouldn't tell her he was involved with a coworker.
"And you must be the new employee Loci was talking about," Ethel continued. Her friendly smile was warm and beautiful, making Rose feel guilty for her internal anger, but Really, Loci? LOCI? Did she have to call him that in front of her? "Pete, come here and say hi to the new girl. What was your name? Sorry, I read the paperwork this morning, but I tend to forget things at my age," she apologized.
At her age? Ethel looked barely twenty. With her long blonde hair, big blue eyes, doll-like face, spotless skin, and sweet voice, there was no way that girl was older than Rose. Rose smiled when the others laughed, but she still had no idea what to say. She wasn't sure what she was feeling: one part felt welcomed and happy. Another, darker part wanted to drag Locious out of that place, away from Ethel. The worst part was the utter disappointment she felt.. At herself, at him. "No! It is at myself, 100%. Why would I feel disappointed in him?" she exclaimed inside her head.
"Let's go, we still have a few other people to meet," Locious said, startling her from her thoughts and guiding her toward the door behind the desk.
"I'll bring you lunch, so don't forget to eat, Locious, or I'll be really angry!" Ethel shouted before the double doors closed.
His answer was a loud laugh. Her threat meant nothing to him yet there was a sparkle in his eyes, suggesting the feelings he had for that woman ran deep.
"So, you two are a couple?" she asked, the words snapping out sharp and angry before she could stop them. She regretted it instantly, especially when she saw the smirk bloom on his lips. She wasn't sure what had driven the question, but the uncontrolled hostility in her own voice was what truly shamed her.
"Why? Jealous much?"
"No way! I just thought I'd seen you flirt with anything that has two legs, but never date any of them. So, I was just curious if that was because you were actually married to someone else or something."
"Hahaha! Married? Me? That's something no one will ever see, like, ever. My existence has a very clear purpose, and let me tell you that playing house is not it. I'm not ready for that and I'll never be." For a flash of a second, the playful light vanished from his eyes, replaced by a cold, serious intensity that made her gut clench. But after a moment, his playful smile went back in place and his next words carried his usual teasing lilt. "Anyway, Ethel is one of the oldest employees; she was here even before I was appointed as the boss. So, she kind of acts like our work mum. You don't have to be jealous of my mum," he answered, nudging her with his shoulder. "And what do you mean by flirting with everybody? I have never once prompted someone into believing I wanted to be with them," he added, his expression genuinely confounded, as if his own flirtatiousness was the one thing he wasn't aware of.
Not daring to answer him, lest he continue teasing her, Rose looked around the hallway. The cream-colored floor, so pristine it seemed to shimmer, reflected the overhead light like a mirror, giving the hallway a cold, ethereal glow. The walls were made of glass, and she could see into every meticulously ordered office they walked past. The air itself felt too clean, too silent, a stark contrast to the emotional chaos erupting inside her heart.
Not daring to answer him, lest he continue teasing her, Rose looked around the hallway. The cream-colored floor, so pristine it seemed to shimmer, reflected the overhead light like a mirror, giving the hallway a cold, ethereal glow. The walls were made of glass, and she could see into every meticulously ordered office they walked past. They walked through all of them but no one paid them any mind, as if their work was the only thing important. Rose walked with heavy steps, as heavy as her inner turmoil, until they stopped in front of the only office which wasn't made of glass. The double wooden doors were intimidating and the big sign on top of it, which read "Conference Room," gave a serious aspect to the whole situation.
Locious knocked, and after a few moments, a young man opened the door. He was strikingly neat, with a controlled stiffness to his posture, and his gaze as he looked over Rose was coldly analytical. He let them inside. A large white table sat in the middle, and six people were already seated around it, leaving only two chairs, plus the one at the head of the table, empty. Locious took the head seat. Mike stepped stiffly to the next seat, leaving Rose the chair directly in front of Locious.
"Let us proceed," Mike announced, his voice flat and efficient. "I called you here because our boss wanted to introduce you to our new employee, Rose. She is young in human years and has just finished her training. She is more focused on field work, but it was decided that she should also go through all departments to learn how everything works and gain experience. We are going to work out the schedule, so I ask you to send me your office timetables so we can prepare something suitable for everybody that won't require major adjustments to the workflow."
No one else seemed to notice, but the final phrase carried a distinct, judgmental edge to Rose's ears, though she instantly wondered if it was just her own spiraling emotions making her overly sensitive. Mike finished, sat down, and seven pairs of eyes focused on Rose, making her suddenly feel exposed and mute. She looked at Locious and found him smiling as if making fun of her, which truly infuriated her. She wasn't a shy person, never had been, and being rendered speechless now made her grit her teeth. It was because of that, not because of the bittersweet taste the encounter with Ethel left and the discovering of a very dark side of her.
She fixed Locious with a heated glare, staring straight into his mocking smile.
"I'm Rose, I'm twenty-eight years old, I'm new, and you are a jerk," she said, letting her humiliation get the better of her.She was an employee, meeting these people for the first time, insulting an Angel who was their boss. She instantly knew she had messed up.
"Congratulations, Rose, you've blown it on your first day at work," she sighed to herself and resignedly accepted that a pleasant work environment was now a fantasy.