1: SWEETS

"Have you seen the new film of Ethan Kavanaugh? I can assure you that it is the most romantic love story ever told! Like it's . . . So romantic!", Anastasia's annoying co-worker makes a Blended reference. She shimmies like that blonde girl from an Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore comedy film. Anastasia is not impressed. She just continues to brush the fur of the poodle before her.

Working as a dog groomer, she loathes her life. She is already twenty three years old and this isn't the life she imagined for herself. What makes the situation worst right now is the poodle jumps off the red small pillow and starts running around the parlor.

Some of her co-workers scream and some roll their eyes at what's happening before them. Anastasia is chasing the poodle all around the small space of the parlor. She is having so much trouble. Her perspiration is visible to her watching co-workers but they simply don't care at all. After eight minutes, Anastasia finally gets the poodle and starts brushing its white fur once more.

They start to talk again as if Anastasia is not listening. "Uhm . . . Where were we before some incompetent girl interrupted?"

The other one replies, "Ethan Kavanaugh's new movie."

"Okay, well, it is the most beautiful movie I ever saw in my whole life. It's called 'My Monkey Love' and Ethan Kavanaugh plays this gorilla who turned into a man and he looked really hot. He has this wonderful sideburns and amazing blue eyes and his body is a complete epitome of a Greek God sculpture! His honey blonde hair adds up to his oozing sex appeal!"

The other girl asks, "Wait, so you mean that the story is about this gorilla turned man? But, uhm, that sounds really weird."

"Yes, it sounds weird but when you watch it, it just seems like it's not. He turned into a man because he fell in love with this girl who got lost in the jungle. It was played no other than Cassandra Whitman!"

"Cassandra Whitman? Ethan Kavanaugh's leading lady? Gosh! I love their pairing."

The annoying co-worker confirms, "They recently admitted that they are together in real life. It's really perfect, isn't it? Like two beautiful people are a couple and both of them are talented and they make a lot of money. They just have this amazing chemistry and I love how it's real."

Anastasia rolls her eyes as she hears the entire conversation. She badly wants to cover both of her ears but the poodle needs a lot of hair treatment. As the dog is finished, another dog comes in and this time it's a golden retriever. It really needs a bath and Anastasia hates it when bathing happens. How did she even endure working in a dog salon?

As the young lady tries her best not to let the dog know that she is not enjoying her time at all but her co-workers are the worst people that she can ever imagine.

They try to talk again: "Cassandra Whitman just has the most beautiful hair. She has this perfect pear shaped body and the supermodels would look like ordinary people when they are next to her. I would really like to have her gorgeous face. That blonde hair is just amazing and the lime green eyes? They are clearer than the sea."

"Not to mention that she is really smart."

"Yeah, unlike some co-worker we have. All she needs to do is make sure that the dog gets the most hospitable moment of his or her life. Doesn't she get that at all? She is just too dumb to be here."

"You forgot to say that she is also ugly. Her long black hair just doesn't shine at all and she looks like every other girl. There is nothing special about her. She'd look invisible near the Cassandra Whitman."

As soon as she hears those harsh words, she knows that it is time for her to say something. How dare they compare her to Cassandra Whitman? Anastasia knows that they have already crossed the line. Instead of sprinkling the water to the golden retriever, she does it directly to the two girls in front of her. She is raging and she doesn't care at all. The dogs inside the salon bark and start a chaotic scenario.

The two girls where screaming as they get wetter and wetter every second. The dogs are chasing each other to the ends of the earth but Anastasia doesn't care at all. What she needs to do now is to teach those girls a lesson.

"What the hell is going on here?!" Anastasia tenses as soon as she hears the masculine voice. She stops sprinkling the water to the two mean girls and she dramatically looks left to face her four feet five inches short boss.

Anastasia gulps as the boss signals her to proceed to his office.

Anastasia Steele is officially fired from the dog salon after four months of working there. She is now inside the bus hugging her guitar. She looks at the window as tears prickle from her eyes. She doesn't feel hurt because she got fired. Instead, she's weeping because she knows she deserves a life more than this. She rests her forehead on the bus window and remembers how she tried to get the life that she can't ever have.

Since childhood, she believed that Anastasia Steele can be the best singer-songwriter and her boyfriend helped her find record deals but the big bosses will just tell her that she is not good enough to attract listeners and that her type of music is really boring.

Anastasia hates the fact that they want her to write songs about partying, sex, and drugs because it can be sold easily. She's the type of person who knows that music should have emotions and with what comes emotions, comes art. She believes art should respected and it includes music.

At the age of twenty three, she should have her own tour right now. She should have had at least three albums and she should have been free to be seen with her boyfriend in public. Anastasia Steele feels as though her life is headed in the wrong direction and there's no way of stopping it.

She shakes her head and wipes her tears away. Her throat feels hot so she tries to get a bottle of water from her backpack. She curses under her breath when she finds an empty bottle. She throws it to the can near her and resumes crying. See? Her life isn't just working out right now.

The bus finally stops in front of her apartment. She puts her hoodie on and makes sure that nobody else notices her. She looks around to look if somebody is watching her but the coast is clear. She gets inside and finds her boyfriend waiting for her. Dinner is set and his face shows an angelic smile but it falters as soon as she takes off her hoodie and he sees her crying.

"Sweets? What's wrong?" He opens his arms for her and she accepts them and cries even harder. She doesn't tell him what's wrong. She just lets the tears pour relentlessly. She doesn't really feel like talking.

"Sweets? Can you tell me what's wrong when you are ready, okay?", her patient boyfriend asks an innocent request.

Anastasia nods with her face pressing against his hard chest. He soothes her back and she weeps and he patiently waits until she's ready. She is in the arms of her love-of her secret love. Her boyfriend, Ethan Kavanaugh. Her 'Sweets'.

She's fine. For now.