Summary: zemyx Sometimes when getting hired for a job, One will come out with more than just income. Zexion realizes that as he copes with difficult managers, cubicle drama, and a romance that never stays in one place.

PROLOGUE

"The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary."
-Donald Kendall

Zexion looked at the large building overshadowing him anxiously. It was his first actual job- not counting his brief experience as a McDonald's part-time worker (he'd never walk into that disgusting hellhole again). Just standing there was enough to make him want to tear up, if he was a moody female. But he wasn't, so he just looked up, unemotionally. He had worked 5 incredibly long, frustrating years to get a degree that would lead him to this- and here he was, standing in front of the very building that would support his very future. A future that was bright. And rich.

It was just a bit unfortunate that said building seemed to be incredibly… purple. And the dark, gloomy sky that seemed to only float above the building and no where else seemed almost like a foreshadow of his future, if he would believe so. It looked like it would rain, in those 100 feet of dark clouds. Sighing, he then remembered that he didn't bring an umbrella.

Zexion didn't realize how strange he looked, standing there, unmoving, just watching the purple-colored building. He was so transfixed with staring at his future, that when someone bumped into him he fell and sprawled against the cement steps. He looked at the grainy, grey ground in confusion, wondering why the ground was suddenly so close.

"Oh man- I'm sorry I just- I don't have time- SORRY, I gotta go!" Snapping up, Zexion glared up at the teen, annoyed. The teen, with strangely shaped hair, gave him an apologetic look before sprinting into the very building he was staring transfixidly at before, not even allowing Zexion to speak.

He slowly stood up and patted the dirt from his now soiled pants and frowned. What the hell was that? How rude, he seethed, before letting it go. No point. The guy was probably just there to see if any jobs were open. And then he would most definitely get declined, because only intelligent, sophisticated, respected men with business degrees worked at Heartex. Like himself.

Figuring it'd be more productive to actually walk into the building, he began to climb the steps. His elbow was feeling sore where he attempted to catch himself from the fall. Innerly, he ranted at the strange-haired teen about safely walking, with some profanity, more or less.

And then he stepped inside and found himself blinded by white. Someone apparently had a white fetish.

There was hardly any color in the lounge. The chairs, the walls, the sofas, and the floor- everything was a shade of white. Even the flowers and potted plant (though he had no idea white-stems existed) were white. A little bit of color wouldn't have hurt, but he wasn't really going to complain about the color choice. At least not outwardly.

"May I help you?"

A girl (she couldn't have been legal) spoke up, smiling gently. She looked like a secretary, sitting on her desk with a pen at hand, wearing a white dress. Her blonde hair was probably the only bit of actual color in the room.

"Yes, it's my first day here," He said quietly, walking up to the front desk. She nodded in understanding, scribbling something quickly into her notepad.

"Oh, Zexion Koishima,…?" He nodded. "We've been expecting you. Welcome to Heartex. I'll ring up Xigbar to show you around."

Zexion quietly thanked her as she dialed a quick number, speaking softly into the phone, still writing. He drowned out the sound, looking at the notepad she had written in before. An amateur drawing of himself looked back at him. It was pretty good for something that was drawn so fast. He had hardly been there a couple minutes.

"Xigbar will be arriving soon, sorry for the wait, Mr.Koishima," she said, hanging up the phone with a click. He looked at her name tag. Namine, it said.

"Thank you, Namine."

She smiled again, gently. The frail girl seemed almost wrong for this type of atmosphere, he noted. He didn't even know her for very long, but this whole place seemed strange to him.

But it didn't matter. This was his new future. And he'd get used to it.

What Zexion expected walking out of that door was a well-groomed man, ready to greet him.

What he didn't expect was for that man to look like someone who just got recruited out of a biker gang. Xigbar, as Namine had called him, had an eye-patch, scars, grey-black hair, and a messy suit with stains. He attempted to keep his incredulity from his expression, but Xigbar seemed to expect the disbelief.

"Hey, you the new kid?" Zexion nodded in affirmation. Xigbar had thick surfer accent, it appeared.

"Awesome, new meat," Xigbar sneered. "What's your name again? I don't bother remembering names of newbie's."

Zexion closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Annoying co-workers could always be ignored after he got settled in, he told himself. Don't let him affect your performance.

"Zexion. Zexion Koishima."

"Not much of a talker then. I like you already. Anyways, let's get this started. Follow me, rookie." He turned around and walked through another open door. Zexion followed behind. "I'm Xigbar. Nothing more, nothing less, got it?" A nod.

"Great. You like itty bitty squares? Well that's where you'll be for a while, so learn to enjoy it." The room they entered was huge, filled with hundreds of tiny cubicles, each with a person working hard on their laptops. The sound of typing seemed almost soothing.

As they walked, he noticed the all the workers wearing gray-white suits. And like the first room, all the walls and ceilings and cubicles were white. He spent 5 years of college for this?

Zexion nearly bumped into Xigbar's back from surprise when he suddenly stopped walking. The grey-black haired man turned to the workers and then looked back at Zexion.

"These are all the little nobodies. Aren't they cute? Some of them are new, like you, but most aren't, so don't expect to be all great on your first day." He said, not even bothering to cover his loud voice. "This isn't just any old job, this is Heartex, and we expect the best of the best, so don't slack off or we'll fire you so fast you're head'll spin. You are nothing. To us, you are nobody, you do not matter at alllll." Xigbar grinned, surprising cheerful. Zexion looked at the man, unaffected by the speech. Chuckling, he continued walking again, past all the employees.

"Where is your cubicle?" Zexion asked, following the slow-paced Xigbar through the room.

"Sorry, my 'cubicle' isn't here." He pointed up and smirked.

"I'm on the second to top floor, kid. The Board of Standards. Can't get much higher than me on the pyramid."

Zexion couldn't keep his incredulous expression from appearing. Someone this lazy and messy and rude couldn't possibly be on the board of Standards! He seemed so unworthy, so inadequate for such an important job.

The board of Standards, or so he heard, was a group of highest importance in Heartex. Each individual board member controlled a certain portion of the company- each section to play around and fix to their desires, with limits, of course. His throat suddenly felt dry. He'd work under this guy?

"Unluckily for you, I'm only here cuz I gave my section a break to go the beaches. Plus, I wanted to visit your vice manager. You're under Xaldin's jurisdiction now. Prepare to be worked like you've never worked before!" Xigbar gave a sharp laugh and slapped the back of Zexion hard enough to make him nearly fall. He caught his balance and frowned.

Xaldin couldn't possibly be as bad as the man standing before him. Strict was fine with him, he hardly broke any rules, so he had nothing to worry about.

Right?