Annabeth was running late, which was unusual for her. Her alarm didn't go off and by the time she woke up, she only had five minutes to look decent for her big presentation today. A large airline company was looking for someone to design a new building in the downtown area for their corporate office. If she got this job, it could open up countless opportunities for herself. The architecture firm that she worked with hadn't exactly given her the career that she desired. Her boss had his favorites and she wasn't one of them. Because of that, she hadn't gotten onto the design teams for any of the projects her firm was hired for. It was frustrating so Annabeth decided to take a chance by going solo. She had Piper to thank for her meeting today. Without her Annabeth wouldn't have stood a chance of catching a job like this. Jason, Piper's new boyfriend, was the son of the owner/founder of Olympus airlines. He had convinced his father to give a young, creative, upcoming architect (i.e. Annabeth) a chance to pitch her ideas to the board. She was grateful to Piper and Jason for setting this up and now she was going to ruin it all by being late! First impressions could make or break a person's opinion of another.
Thank God she had forgotten to wash off her makeup last night. Two-day-old eye shadow and mascara was better than nothing. Nothing less than taking a shower could have fixed her hair so her only option was a bun. That looks professional, right? Annabeth usually didn't care about her appearance this much, she would much rather be comfortable, but that isn't accepted in an office setting. Throwing on a pencil skirt and tucking in a gray ruffled shirt, Annabeth rushed out the door. Waiting for the elevator, she noticed she had forgotten to put on shoes. She ran back in, grabbed her favorite heels, and practically ran back to the elevator, catching it just in time. Slightly out of breath, Annabeth stood anxiously watching the arrow move slowly down to the ground floor.
She almost screamed out of frustration when it stopped on the fifth floor to let a young man with black untidy hair on the elevator. He looked afraid of her as he stepped to the far corner of the small space. Was she glaring? Could he tell she hated him right now? Oh well, he wasn't the person she was trying to impress today. As soon as the door opened, Annabeth ran out to the street trying to hail a cab. Soon the young man joined her on the curb trying to wave a cab down himself.
Within seconds, a taxi pulled up to the curb next to this black mop. Annabeth could practically feel her blood pressure rising in fury. She was not going to be late; Annabeth Chase was never late. Before she knew what she was doing, Annabeth ran over and slipped right under his arm as he was opening the door. Quickly she grabbed the handle and slammed the door shut behind her, locking it for good measure.
"Olympus Offices please and hurry, I'm running late," She told the driver. He was looking at her judgmentally and raised an eyebrow. "I said I was running late! I stole a cab, it happened, now get moving." Annabeth turned to look at the man whose day she probably just ruined. He was slack jawed, his initial surprise quickly turning to anger. Pulling away from the curb, Annabeth only had enough time to shrug apologetically before she was gone.
Heart racing, Annabeth let out a long breath trying to calm her nerves. The man whom she stole a cab from was soon out of her mind. She had more important things to worry about right now. Relishing the few minutes of silence, Annabeth closed her eyes to go over her presentation one more time in her head. Before she knew it, the cab ride was over. Annabeth paid the man with the remainder of the money in her purse (she usually took the public transportation) and stepped out onto the sidewalk.
She made her way into the building stopping at the main reception desk. "What floor is board room number 4 on?"
"The sixth floor. There's a waiting room adjacent where you can sit until your meeting starts." The woman behind the large desk answered.
"Thank you." Annabeth headed for the elevators, anxiously checking her watch to make sure she would make it on time. She had about 30 seconds until it was 9 am and damn it if she wasn't going to be perfectly punctual. The doors opened and she stepped on, immediately pressing down on the close button. "Hold the elevator!" Annabeth looked out the doors right as they were closing and saw the same black haired man whose cab she stole. The doors clicked shut, but not before she saw his eyes widen in recognition. He probably worked here. Oh that'd be wonderful if she made an enemy before her first day, assuming she got the job.
The doors opened on the sixth floor to the SAME black haired man breathing very heavily, Annabeth noted. He was clutching his side, glaring daggers at her. Did he just run up six flights of stairs to confront her? Oh God he looks really angry. Annabeth couldn't think of anything to say so she panicked and said, "You're drooling," pointing for good measure to the tiny line of drool that resulted from his panting.
He was taken aback at that. "Wait….what? You steal my cab don't hold the elevator like a decent human being and that's what you say to me?! You have got to be the rudest woman I have ever met." Annabeth was still standing on the elevator; angry black haired man was holding the door open with one hand and preventing her escape by standing directly in her path.
"Look, I don't have time for this! I have a really important presentation happening," She checked her watch, "right now. I didn't want to be late and that's why I stole your cab, the whole elevator thing was an accident I swear. Now would you please get out of my way."
"Not until you say you're sorry."
"What?! I just did."
"No you explained why you did those things but you never actually apologized. I want an apology."
Annabeth grinded her teeth in frustration, "FINE, I'm sorry." He smiled at that, but still didn't get out of her way. She raised her eyebrows and made a motion for him to move. He shook his head no.
"I changed my mind. An apology isn't the only thing I want."
"Well what then?! Want me to pay your cab fare or something? Swear to serve you until my debt is repaid? Punch myself in the face for being and I quote 'the rudest woman you have ever met?'" Annabeth was really annoyed now.
"Go on a date with me. This Saturday at 7. Say yes and I'll let you go to your meeting."
Annabeth was fuming, but she forced herself to smile. Stepping close to the man, she felt him tense as she put a hand on his chest. He looked at her, the ghost of a smile on his lips. He smelled like the ocean and like fish, but not in a bad way, it reminded her of family vacations to the beach. His green eyes glinted with mischief, thinking himself clever for cornering a woman into going on a date with him. Annabeth stood on her tip toes, leaned in, whispered "Not in a million years," and slipped under his arm out of the elevator. She half ran down the hall, stopping at the door of board room number 4. Looking back, expecting to see him angry again, she watched as he stepped on the elevator. He turned around, locked eyes with her and for good measure she flipped him off. That's when he started laughing. She chuckled in response and he waved as the doors closed again.
Finding herself in better spirits than she would have thought, Annabeth felt ready to tackle this presentation. She was confident as she stepped into the room, closing the door behind her.