Chapter Four - Stunning Indeed
It was the worst sound that Sydney had ever heard in her entire life. A mix between a shrill ringing and a buzzing, it did nothing but enrage her. Her eyes snapped open and she smacked the alarm clock next to her head. Unfortunately for her hand, she was rather unaware of how hard she smacked the alarm. Twice as unfortunate was the sheer fact that the alarm seemed rather unfazed by the assault.
Sydney cried out in a mixture of pain and frustration, and made a second attempt at turning off the accursed device; her attempt was successful this time around. She clapped twice loudly and cursed yet again as the room was flooded with light, her eyes unable to adjust quickly enough to avoid pain.
Oh, I can see where this day is going so far... she thought, grumbling inwardly. Sydney threw off the covers and sat up, her feet hitting the cold floor. She stared for just a moment, then rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Thinking twice, she realized that today was her first day at Wonka's Candies. She was immediately much more awake, actually reading the clock again. 7:00. Tons of time.
Sydney moseyed on over to the bathroom, flipping on the light. She had actually gotten used to that horrid shade of green, and was somewhat growing fonder of it each day. At least it made her smile now instead of want to throw up.
To her, showers were easily the best parts of the day. She always took full advantage of the alone time by singing loudly and out of tune. She was only fairly certain that her neighbors were unable to hear her.
Willy Wonka rather enjoyed showers as well. It was his time, where he could stop and think about anything. His thoughts, surprisingly enough, were not just about work. He felt that he could reflect upon events better there. Of course, it was not unusual for the employees at Wonka's Candies to see their boss come flying down the stairs, dripping wet and only semi-dressed, just to retreat to his Inventing Room/Meeting Room and spend the day there.
This was not one of those days, which was unfortunate for his few female workers.
Willy took a long, leisurely shower that morning. It was rare to hear him singing in the shower. This was one of those days.
"Good morning, staaaarshiiiiine...the earth says hello!" he belted out, slightly off-key.
"You twinkle aboooove us...we twinkle belooooooow..." he continued, shutting off the water and grabbing a towel.
Willy danced about the bathroom to the music in his head, somehow toweling himself off as he did so. How he avoided slipping and falling on the tile floor will remain a mystery.
"Good morning staaaarshiiiiine, you lead us aloooooong..." Towel towel towel. "My love and me as we siiing...our early morning singing song!" Towel towel towel. He began to dress, bobbing in time to the imaginary music.
"My goodness, you are looking stunning today if I do say so," he paused his music and examined himself in the mirror. Willy picked up a comb and groomed the mess of hair upon his head. He continued to hum along as he did so, and when he had finished, he set the comb down and gave a bright smile to his reflection.
"Stunning indeed."
"Ew." Sydney stared at herself in the mirror, a look of apparent disgust upon her face. She had pulled her long red hair into a tight knot at the base of her neck, the way she did at the bakery every day she worked there. The only thing she did different today was put on a light layer of makeup - something she never did.
There was something Sydney found inherently discomfiting about working closely with Mr. Willy Wonka. There was an air of mystery about him that she found uncomfortable.
He's quite a nice looking fellow, too, she thought. Extremely well-dressed. Always a good thing.
"Well..." Sydney sighed, staring herself down, "let's do this." She retreated from her bathroom and gathered up her necessities for the day - a jacket, lunch, and her bag. She was almost embarassed - she had put makeup in her bag, just in case.