The tower rose somewhat threatening in the morning mist, but however it was announcing the sweet promise of a new beginning. There is no more art, she thought, looking at the cold height of the glass building. Why do we hide in the tallest towers? But I'm not the one to talk about hiding.
The sound of her heels could be heard clicking and up beating, as her heart did too. The hallways dwindled in those two sounds that were plaiting and completing the previous one. Heels, heart, heels, heart. Each step brought stings in her heart and brain, making her to no longer think of anything else than to every second and every move she was building. Now is my time, she thought. It will be awesome. It has to be this job, this company. This will be it.
Time stood in place, and it was contemplating too this magnificent creature. She didn't seem to notice, as all eyes were returning ends when she passed or how groups of men simply stopped speaking. A transcendental silence surrounded her and she seemed to come out of it.
That day she began working as an intern at the largest Oil and Gas Company in the country. It was simply the place where everyone wanted to work. How did she get this, she didn't know. She knew someone who knew someone else and somehow she agreed with this job for three months. It wasn't for the money as the job was paid badly. A kind of dazzling magic was attracting her towards this. She needed to escape her previous life; she wanted to be normal, safe and secure.
She head to the elevators and she waited for the future to stop a run on the third floor. When the doors opened she found herself in front of a huge mirror and saw the image of a Black Panther wearing … pink. Really, is this what you want to show? Amusement? Sarcasm? Throwing arrows with your eyes? An acid smile? We're here to charm our way through this company. Work a little bit for this. As she was talking to herself, she noticed her features sweetening, a warm smile appeared on the face, her body relaxed and the ferocious panther turned into a claw less cat. She analyzed herself in the mirror inch by inch. Although she wasn't a very tall woman, the long muscles were making her thin and tall. The curly black hair made her look like she was always just out of hairdresser. Her green eyes seemed to be Medusa's reincarnation when she was angry, but at that point, she had the sweet eyes of a deer. She didn't consider herself a very beautiful woman; however she was an exceptionally interesting and seductive woman. That office pale pink dress, pink Dior as it is said, that she tried on that morning was particularly chosen to make her look suitable for the job, a little scared and inexperienced, but she did not know how she always managed to look naked and appetizing. Oh, that strength of hers, if she managed to control it, she could become a goddess.
- Third floor. Please mind the doors. This is it. Fucking high heels shoes…Come on, Anastasia, move slowly like a lascivious snake.
- Good morning, everyone! She smiled as she entered in the open area where lots of small cages they called offices were. The big department occupied the whole third floor with the elevators in the middle, at the right it was a set of offices and in the left another set. In front of the elevators was the cafeteria through where you could exit on the balcony. She hated this idea of open space. Too crowded, too many feelings, she had the impression that she was an experimental rat and there was nothing in the world that she hated more than to feel ordinary. And now she was an intern, the lowest of the lower in this company chain.
Her office was on the left side, on a set of six small boxes. Her new boss, Lauren, was the middle aged woman that was struggling to keep up with innovation and the idea of management. She was reading quotes of all great managers and successful people, trying desperately to imitate. Therefore, she was constantly ready to say yes. You know those annoying people that talk in quotes and embrace every small shit their bosses say? Well, this was Lauren.
- Good morning, Miss Lauren, Anastasia said loudly and smiling.
That joyful attitude was not Anastasia's natural behavior. But she did say she will charm her way through this company.
- Good morning, baby!
Is she for real? Baby? Anastasia hated the sweet talk that she usually found demeaning for women. We are not puppets, nor cute animals, nor weak. A well instructed woman could damage anything and everything. She had three more female coworkers and one man. In general, she didn't like to work with women. They were jealous, mean, hormonal, whiners and many more things. She preferred men, mostly because they were instantly enslaved.
- Anastasia, baby, can you please translate these presentations? I need it for next week. I know you haven't received your laptop yet, but you can do it on paper.
- Sure, Miss Lauren. Can I go grab a coffee first?
- No worries, dear, I was just saying that I will need this, but of course, go get a coffee.
- Thanks, Miss Lauren. I can't really function without coffee in my system, you desperate annoying little woman…
The shoes were killing her. She was already feeling a huge raw forming on her ankle. She tried to walk stately to get a coffee, feeling every single bite of the leather on skin. Note to self, never wear shoes without tights. The balcony was full of people. There were two tables; one in the right and one in the left. The exit was in the middle and usually people just turned right to sit at the table, drink some coffee and smoke a cigarette. She took a dark coffee and bravely exit on the balcony. She loved smoking. That was the 5 minutes break that she needed once every hour just to sit alone with her thoughts and analyze all that went wrong or good in the past hour. Her necessity of control was present even in what she thought. Her every feeling was dissected into million puzzle pieces until only a shadow of recollection remained.
She never had a problem with people, so she just went and sat near the group. As always, they stopped talking when they saw her. Maybe I should say something…
- Good morning, I'm the new intern. I'm Anastasia, nice to meet you all.
- In which department? An old guy asked. He was called the Colonel because of his huge experience in the Company. He was working there since 1900 and many were going to him for advice. He was actually a manager at some point, but after careful considerations, he was replaced. Now he had the job of a junior with a manager salary. Nevertheless, once a manager, always a manager. The colonel was short and fat, like a big bubble of kindness with white hair and even whiter mustache.
- I'm in … HSSE.
- We are all in HSSE, sweetheart. Where exactly?
- At Miss Lauren?
- Oh, at Miss Lauren. Very nice. All their interns remained in the Company.
No pressure there.
- Will see. I'm planning to learn first and after that, who knows. And you are from which department?
- We are from Security and Resilience. I'm Nicholas, but you can call me Colonel. This is Matthew. These are Aylin and Julia.
Matthew was a middle aged man, very tall and very skinny, like a walking skeleton. What she noticed the most was that he had perfectly ironed clothes. Julia had a mousy figure, blonde, professional, much focused and always ready for action. Her talking was mostly about work. Later Anastasia found out that she followed the classic trend in the Company. She entered as an assistant and maybe worked her way to the top. There was nothing special in that. All the pretty girls were assistants, trying to fuck some manager or expat or both. The Company had employees from all over the world, but the Expats were the privileged ones with their huge salaries and the fact that the Company was paying for everything. And soon after the Company open its gates to the world, The Expats Chase began. And why not? Every girl was using what she had. And here it was beauty.
Everybody tried to be very charming with her and she didn't wonder why. It felt natural. It was not the first time that men fell at her feet. In two hours, the whole department knew that there was a new Intern. This might get easier than I thought.
Anastasia was in her late 20's. She needed stability, a place to stay and also a place where to use her enormous brain. Because yes, she was a very beautiful woman, but first of all, she was incredibly smart. The wheels in her brain never stopped turning. She didn't see the world like everybody else. She saw emotions and feelings. She had the extraordinary ability of seeing what was hidden in the darkest corners of the souls she was interested in. Her biggest problem is that she tried to fix those broken souls. She actually succeeded that, but after that she was loosing interest in the subject. Anastasia hadn't found the soul that could make her stay, That Soul.
The job was like any other entry level. She had to do everything, anything she was asked. Presentations, translations, ideas, paper works, printing, scanning, and ordering rooms, office supplies. She didn't have a problem with doing this kind of job although she had the brain to rule the world.
In the next break, when she stepped on the balcony, on the right, there were three guys. All three about 1.90m, in suits, talking. At the first glance, expensive suit, cigar, power, nonchalance… In general, everybody knew everybody on the balcony, they were all in the same department and smoking was for relaxing. You couldn't bother anyone. But this time, she took a lonely smile and asked while walking towards the table:
- Do I bother you?
- YES! The bearded cigar guy powerfully answered, semi turning to see her and not actually seeing her.
In that moment precisely, all planets aligned and the Great Black Panther got out. She clenched her jaw, trying hard not to spit out all her rage, flashing burning eyes, imagining how she would rip his stomach. Her blood was actually boiling. He paused for a moment, seeing her stiffness. It was only a millisecond in which they shared worlds, before she head back, turning on her toes, throwing a hissed "Fine!"
Who the hell does he think he is? If you want a private meeting, go into a fucking meeting room! Do not come on the balcony where people come to relax and try to take a five minutes break. Fucking asshole with his fucking cigar! How could he talk to me like this?
Then Matthew appeared. He saw the three guys and turned the other way around coming next to her. He lighted a cigarette and noticed her questioning eyes.
- Bosses…he smiled.
Bosses? Really? That's it? There are three idiots that can ruin your day, acting like they own everything and we're the slaves and the answer is "bosses".
- Well, bosses, yes, but it's not OK to come and have a private meeting on the balcony if they don't want to be disturbed, she acidly said.
- It's his thing. That's Christian, our boss. He likes to come on the balcony, smoking his cigar and if there are urgent matters, he will solve it here. You're new, you couldn't have known. What happen? He can be really though.
- It's not about what happened, it's about the principle. We need our place to relax, not to go on our peaks just because some hot shot is smoking his cigar.
She was secretly watching him. Usually she would have been attracted by this kind of man, powerful, firm, cold, but not this time. He stepped on her pride and that was something she could never forget. With his left hand in the pocket of his pants, he was holding the cigar with the right hand; his wrist was gracefully turned on the outside. He had elegance, that's for sure. While people were talking to him, he appeared sort of absent, just enjoying the hard taste of his cigar. From time to time, his body changed its balance center from toes to heels, imprinting a swing like an approval. How old could he be? In his 40's definitely. Expat, for sure. This is the kind of man I should be careful with. I'll just ignore him.
What she didn't know at that point was that he was watching her too. Christian was a former US Military, used to getting things his way, loving his power and others submission. His employees respected him until sky and beyond, he was managing his department with firm hands. He didn't like to be contradicted. Christian was spreading respect, fear and professionalism. A manager should be loved, feared and respected. Until today, until this girl. He powerfully took a smoke from his cigar, making circles and watching her through them. Interesting loot, he thought, this should be fun.
In the same moment, two different and not so different people were taking separate decisions about one and other. She decided that she hates him, definitely doesn't want to know him and she will never talk to him again, he decided that he enjoys her, she's definitely interesting to get to know and he will see her again.
