7
I go blank and it did not go unnoticed by the heartbeat that wants to get out of my chest with the news that has just hit me abruptly.
“Does he require my presence…?” I manage to formulate.
“To meet you, it's nothing bad.”
I swallow.
"Alright”
“Follow me.”
She nods at me and I feel my heart skip a beat as we stop outside the CEO's door. Julia taps three times and we both wait for a signal to enter.
"Forward.”
He is a masculine voice, hoarse and imposing.
Julia opens the door and we enter the office that is four times more luxurious than mine and the entire building. I look at the man who is looking at the other woman who is on the side of the desk, her hair is loose and she has tears in her eyes.
My colleague clears her throat before speaking.
"Mr. Hills, I brought Mrs....”
He gestures for her to stop talking and turns his attention back to the other woman.
"Would you do me a favor and go now?” he speaks to her again, with that voice.
"Nicholas...”
"Go away, don't make me repeat it" he demands.
The woman gives us a look before leaving the office, slamming the door a bit excessively. Mr. Hills's gaze moves from Julia to me. He stays examining me for a long time, getting on my nerves. I'm afraid of what he's going to say. However, his dense gaze leaves me alone and falls on Julia.
"Retire" pronounce, dry.
She leaves in complete silence, without even complaining.
I take the time to examine him with my eyes. His hair is dark brown, I'd say almost black, but I'm not sure. His blue eyes are tight, his hair it falls on his forehead in a rebellious fashion and he is wearing an all black two-piece suit. His look has that something that gets on my nerves. It's... deep and intimidating. I would dare to say that I have never seen someone who transmits so much with a single look, it is as if it were a range of indescribable emotions. He stares at me again and I could tell he’s curious, but I'm not entirely sure.
I am in shock...
Seeing it in person is so different.
"What is your name?”
“Eva Miller.”
"We have seen each other before?”
His question puzzles me.
"No...”
I don't remember seeing it before.
And it's impossible for us to know each other. He is Nicholas Hills and I am a mere mortal. Mr. Hills makes a small noise and returns to his seat. His presence is imposing and he seems to be aware of it as he stares at me from his place.
“Isn't you going to sit down?”
"Sure," I clear my throat.
I take a seat as he seems to want. The atmosphere is tense, it is easily perceived, or at least that's how I see it. His look continues to get on my nerves.
"So...?”
I look at him, again feeling dwarfed by his gaze.
“Are you satisfied with your work?”
"Yes sir.”
“It's good to hear.” stands up “Because while I'm here, I'll put it to the test and it's something you should be clear about. I am not looking for mediocre people in this company, much less useless people who are not capable of doing their job. Think you can make it, Miss Miller?”
I lose sight of him and that makes me nervous. I only hear his footsteps and perceive his manly fragrance that insistently walks around the room.
"Yeah...”
I want to show myself haughtier, surer of myself. But those confident words don't seem to want to come out of my mouth, which makes things difficult for me. His presence is dark. I just met him and I can perceive that he is that type of person who carries an immense darkness on top of him.
Mr. Hills circles the desk, his gaze never leaving mine.
"I hope so.” He slides his hand across the desk material until it falls on his seat. I can't help but focus my gaze on them, observing the masculine structure that he possesses as well as the veins that are marked on them. “You can retire, that's all for today.”
"As you say, sir” I stand up “Good morning.”
He doesn't answer, he just looks at me, so I decide to turn around and leave that office full of tension. When I lock myself in, I lean against the door, letting out a short breath. Everything felt so tense that only now do I realize how much air I was holding. How am I supposed to work with a person who looks at me like I'm a statue? I hope to adapt.
Peeling away from the door, I walk around the desk and slowly, plopping down on my seat.
It's half past eight at night when I get to my apartment. I visited Louis in the hospital and Harmony who reiterated a thousand times that she had to leave so she could rest stayed with him. This whole situation makes me bitter and eating something right now is not even in my plans, so I move towards my room, however, I stop when I perceive a delicious smell of food coming from the kitchen.
As I cross the threshold into the kitchen, I'm surprised to see Carol there.
"Good night.”
She comes over to greet me.
"Good night...? You didn't tell me you were coming.”
"Yeah.” She pouts her lips “It was a little detail that I forgot to tell you about, but I made dinner! That's good news, don't you think?”
“I appreciate this, but I'm not very…”
She stops me, holding up her hand.
“You have to feed yourself.”
"Carol...”
“A little bit, okay? I know this situation sucks, but you have to eat. You can't do this to yourself.”
"Alright. You're right.”
I put my bag on a kitchen shelf and watch my friend serve the food on two plates. Something I've always liked about Carol is her inquisitive aura; she always has a smile to give to others. She is a sweet and compassionate woman who does not limit herself to anything. She is the type of person that doesn't take long to make you feel at home. Her appearance makes you think that she has her whole life figured out, that was my first impression when I met her. Her red hair complements her personality, her almond shaped eyes and her kind smile shines on its own. But nothing is what it seems, she also had a very hard life, I would dare to say that she maybe a little harder than mine. That is what we have in common; we are both equally screwed, we are two people who have been through a lot.
She was my support, we worked together in the same place as waitresses and we saved money. I remember we rented a cheap apartment in the middle of the city and we used to live together. Later, she went to live with Josh, I finished my studies, gave birth and moved here. I remember that everything seemed to be going relatively -well- at the time; she had received me, she was happy with Louis. My only drawback was the constant nightmares I used to have; They were related to that event that marked me for life. I couldn't see clearly, but I could hear his voice, smell his masculine scent, his laugh, his -relax- his -let's have some fun,- his body on mine and the way he forced me down. kiss it. I think I was able to ease the tension of that issue a bit when I talked to Carol and let off steam; I told him how my sister's fiancé was obsessed with me and I didn't realize it until it was too late.
After talking it over with her, I ended up seeing a psychiatrist Carol told me about. The truth is that I did not want to do it, I did not like the idea. I was used to experiencing nightmares related to that fact.
“Aren't you going to tell me how the job went?”
Carol takes the seat next to me, and I am a little embarrassed as she hands me my plate of food. She was so lost in my intrusive thoughts that I didn't help her.
“I met my boss.”
She drops the silverware and she look at me, circumspect.
"And how was it?”
A shudder runs down my spine at the memory of her intense gaze of shades of blue.
"Normal...”
"That's all?”
"And a bit intimidating," I add. “I don't know if it's going to be easy to adapt to his demeanor." I put a hand to my face. "But I need the money and I only have very little time, I can't give it up. It's the only job I've gotten and it's not just any job, it's special.”
“Eve, you're going to get it.”
"I don't want to create false expectations...”
We leave the conversation at that point and talk about other matters in order to dissipate the tension of the previous conversation. Carol tells me about her week, her plans with her partner and I dedicate myself to listening to her carefully, because I don't have anything pleasant to tell, no funny anecdote or something that produces happiness.
When we finished eating, I helped her wash the dishes and let out a yawn when we were done with homework.
"I'll go to sleep. I am very tired” I say “Are you going to stay?”
"Probably. It bothers you?”
"Not at all. Good night.”
"Good night.”
And without further ado, I lock myself in my room. Without bothering to turn on the lights, I go into the bathroom, turn on the shower tap, undress and get under the stream of hot water that makes pleasant contact with my skin. I decide to keep my mind blank, a shower is supposed to be a little moment of relaxation, but for me it is torture to know that after this I will go to sleep and tomorrow will be another day, another day in which I have not yet been able to get the money. Another day that is one more failure on my list because it makes me feel like shit unable to make her son get ahead.
When I'm done showering, I wrap a towel around my body and head back to my room, this time turning on the lights and putting on my nightwear. Also, I brush my hair that I dry a little with the help of a towel and finally, I let myself fall on the bed when I consider that it is time to sleep. With all the accumulated stress and fatigue, it is not very difficult for me to fall asleep.