It's a miracle that I was actually able to write something over this last week. Between work and uni, my life has just been... ugh. And I've been trying to fit in time to see my boyfriend and friends and it just ain't working out.


"See you at five." I called over my shoulder as I swung my stocking clad legs out of the car. The chill bit straight through them and I cursed myself for working a job that required me to look semi-professional. Pencil skirts and thin blouses were my typical choice of attire and I couldn't wait for the day where I could wear ripped jeans and a messy bun to work.

Derek grunted something that sounded like a response before I shut the car door behind me and walked towards the office, hoping that the heating had already kicked in by now. I pried the door open and called out to Angela as I hung up my coat and purse in the staff room.

The damage to the office had been more extensive than Nate had initially thought and we were closed for the last three days while things were being repaired and replaced. A leak in our roof meant that our computers needed to be replaced along with most of our furniture. While this was happening, we were out of work. Angela wasn't complaining, but this time my frustration didn't stem from missing out on the money I so desperately needed for a new car, but instead from being stuck in the apartment for those three days. Something had put Derek in a sour mood and I was left to feel his wrath while Tori would seek refuge at her work office.

I rounded the corner back to the reception desk to find not Angela, but Julia walk through the doors. It was beyond me why she still had her job. Angela and I had a theory that Julia only kept her job because her and Nate had a thing. It wasn't confirmed, of course, but it was hard not to conjure up theories when we were finding pieces of lingerie in the stockroom. Pair that with Julia's inability to do anything, anybody would wonder how she hadn't been fired by now.

"Where's Angela?" I asked through grit teeth, trying to keep the frustration out of my voice.

"Sick." She replied before walking over to our new computers and firing them up. The absence of my beloved coworker meant that I'd be picking up the slack from my other not-so-beloved coworker.

The weather outside was still terrible and as a result, a lot of our appointments were cancelled. I realized that it was a good thing when I noticed that Julia was spending most of her time on Facebook instead of making supply orders. As expected, I was left to process the orders and check in patients while she was texting her new fling of the week.

"Could you file these order receipts while I'm on my break?" I didn't even bother to hide my annoyance. Now I understood why the office was always a train wreck when I came in after my day off - she never fucking did anything.

Julia's lip curled up and the look of anger told me that she wanted to argue it. Before any of that could happen, I thanked her and hopped out of my seat. After walking into the staff room, I fished my phone out of my purse along with my lunch. A notification had popped up to remind me of my upcoming job interview with Michael and I remembered that Tori was going to help me prepare. Nate had graciously given me that Thursday off, but he didn't know what it was for. He always said that there wouldn't be any bad blood if I had to leave the office for another job, but I didn't want to speak too soon in case I wasn't successful.

I scrolled through my Facebook for the next half hour and sent Angela a text, pleading for her to return to work soon, before returning to the front desk. At the desk stood a patient waiting to be checked in with an annoyed expression painted on his face. I looked over Julia's shoulder to her computer where she was playing some dumb online flash game.

Breathe, Chloe. Don't strangle her in front of the patients...

"How can I help you?" I smiled at the man, hoping to make up for Julia's lack of effort.

The man grunted a response and I promptly checked him in, gesturing towards the waiting room where he took his seat.

"You can't just leave patients waiting while you play games." I told her in a hushed tone, annoyance seeping through.

She curled her lip up at me for the second time that day. "Well I heard you coming back."

I pinched the bridge of my nose as she turned back to her computer, this time pretending to read a spreadsheet so it would look like she was doing something.

"So a little birdy told me you have some hot house mate or something."

"Would that little birdy's name be Angela?"

"Amber, actually."

That didn't surprise me. Amber could hear every dirty piece of gossip from her office and I was sure that she saw Derek picking me up from work once or twice. She was even worse than Angela. While Angela was certainly forward with men, Amber was a whole new level of forward. It was a surprise to me that she hadn't jumped in the passenger seat of Derek's car before I got to it and asked him to take her home.

"So, would you go there?" She asked suggestively.

I sputtered a cough and mumbled for her to get back to her work. She laughed, which only made me feel more agitated by her behavior. We were here to work, not gossip about the ridiculously hot guy I lived with.

She eventually slunk away for her break and when I was certain that she was gone, I flipped through the stack of papers that were strewn across her desk. Sure enough, the same papers I had asked her to file just thirty minutes earlier were still there.

This job interview couldn't come quick enough.

Five o'clock rolled around and I quickly tidied my desk before grabbing my coat. Julia hovered by the door, probably waiting to get an eyeful of Derek - not that he'd even leave his car.

Julia's attitude throughout the whole day just dampened my own mood. There was a good reason that Nate was going to fire her at one point and I was furious that he didn't end up going through with it. But anything for an easy screw, right?

I hopped into the passenger seat of Derek's car without a word.

"Who pissed in your Cheerios?" He asked as he took in the scowl on my face.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" I snapped, thinking back to Derek's foul mood over the past few days.

A flash of emotion came as quickly as it went before his usual stoic expression replaced it. "What are you talking about?"

I scoffed. "Don't think Tori and I haven't noticed your sudden change in mood. I'm surprised you haven't turned green and burst out of your clothes."

"Hulk?"

I gave him a pointed look and he sighed before asking, "What happened at work today?"

"Angela was off sick today." I grumbled. "The other girl is useless. Working alongside someone like her is the equivalent of working on your own. And every time I go in after my day off, the office is a mess. Seriously, how can a grown woman keep a job while being so unmotivated and lazy? I'm pretty sure she's just screwing the boss so that-" I stopped myself and glanced over at Derek when I found my tone growing angrier with every word. Wide emerald eyes peered back at me, dancing with amusement at my little tangent. "Sorry, got a bit carried away there." I mumbled.

"We have one of those at work." He started. "We call them Josephs."

"That's his name?"

"Nope." He grinned. "There was a Joseph, but he was so awful that he left some kind of legacy. Once he left a pot of coffee on over one weekend and on the Monday, what was left of it was just black sludge. Had to get a new coffee maker. Now every assistant we get, we refer to them as Joseph if they're awful. Terrible, I know, but-"

"I totally understand."

He exhaled a heavy sigh and gave me a sheepish look. "Good, I was worried I was going to look like a douche."

"Speaking of you being a douche, what's with the attitude lately? You completely ignored my question."

He ran a hand through his thick, ebony hair. It was clear that he hadn't had his hair cut in quite some time. His hair hung in his impressively green eyes, not at all professional for a lawyer but it worked for him. It was kind of hot. "It's nothing. I'm just being a jerk." He finally said, breaking me from my thoughts. I was grateful for that.

"I believe we've had this conversation in here before." I smiled at the familiar memory. It was only after that conversation that Derek really started to let his guard down.

"I believe we have."

He wasn't as cryptic as he thought he was. I knew that he was a jerk to push people away, but why would he turn that on me? Unless I was the person who he was trying to push, but that didn't make sense. It seemed to me that our relationship was growing.

I'd have to ask Tori about it.

Derek pulled into the parking garage and killed the engine. We hopped out the car, both feeling thankful that we could put our feet up after what seemed like the longest day ever. My mood hadn't lifted, however. I was left with all of these thoughts of Derek buzzing through my head.

He set his briefcase down by the door before shrugging off his jacket and I did the same, hanging it up beside his. Tori was sat in the recliner, flicking through the channels as she absently greeted us.

"By the way, Chloe, some guy came to the apartment looking for you. Wouldn't leave a name though."

That was weird, I wasn't expecting anybody. "Could it have been my dad?"

She shook her head. "No, too young."

"Well what did he look like?"

"Tall, blonde hair, kind of weird." She shrugged. "He seemed familiar but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Could be a secret admirer."

I knew tall, blonde hair. I knew it all too well, and I sure as hell hoped that it wasn't a secret admirer. "Long hair?" I squeaked, voice threatening to break. Derek's head whipped around to where I stood and he visibly tensed, knowing exactly what I was thinking.

"No, it was short."

I nodded and closed my eyes so I could focus on my breathing. My breaths finally evened out when I was sure it wasn't Liam. It couldn't be.

"Next time someone comes asking for Chloe, get a name." Derek grunted at his sister before retreating to his office, slamming the door behind him.

Tori glanced at me, confused. "What was that about?"

I shrugged. "He's been in a mood, remember?"

She nodded. "We should get you prepared for this interview."


"Morning." I chirped as I poured myself a cup of coffee. It was the day of my job interview and I was feeling good about it. Tori gave me some great tips and told me how I could make Michael melt like putty in my hands. I wasn't so sure I wanted to manipulate the guy into getting me a job, but if it came down to it...

"You're too happy for this time of morning." Derek narrowed his eyes before plucking the pot of coffee out of my hands and filling his own mug, readying himself for the day. "Tori mentioned you were meeting up with some guy today." He mentioned casually.

"Michael." I nodded. "It's just for an internship but it's a start."

"What?" He asked, confusion laced in his voice.

"The job interview?"

"Job interview?"

"Well, yeah. That's what it is." Why did he seem so confused?

His frown disappeared and was quickly replaced by a look of understanding. "Good luck." He grunted before retreating back to his bedroom.

What was that all about?

I cradled the steaming mug of caffeine close to my chest as I retreated to my bedroom to get ready. The interview was at nine thirty and I had two hours to shower, decide what to wear, and tame my hair. While I worked a job that required me to look professional, I was still stuck on what was interview appropriate. My closet was a wonderland of blouses, pencil skirts and blazers that were perfect for the job I already had. I knew that black and white were the go-to interview colors but I wanted to look at least a little bit interesting.

Tori soon came to my rescue when she burst through my bedroom door without knocking.

"Alright, let's get you dressed." She started flicking through my closet before I could even bid her a good morning and set my favorite pair of black slacks down onto my bed. "Those are an easy choice. They make your legs look long."

"I was thinking of wearing something with a bit of color..." I suggested.

"Good idea. Michael likes people who aren't afraid to test boundaries. He's a total hipster." She shifted through my closet for a few moments before plucking out a dusty rose colored blouse with long sleeves. "This seems good. Not too boring, but not too flashy. Wear those heels you always wear to work and you're done."

"Thanks, Tori."

"Not a problem, but you're buying me a cocktail if you get this job."

"It's a done deal." I grinned.

Tori left my room to get herself ready for work, leaving me to find out the hard way that she had taken up my bathroom. This wasn't a new occurrence, but I didn't need this today. I knocked on the door to her excuse of 'five more minutes', which would have been fine if it weren't for the fact that she said this four times over the span of twenty minutes. Groaning, I beat on the door one last time. Tori sure hadn't shied away from making herself at home.

"Just use my bathroom." Derek grunted from the living room where he was loading up his briefcase with various manila folders.

I grabbed a spare towel from the linen closet and mouthed Derek a thank you before disappearing into his bedroom. Nothing had really changed from the last time I had used his shower - it was still tidy, not a thing out of place. It baffled me as to how his bedroom was so tidy, but his office was such a pigsty.

His bathroom was tidy, but small. I yanked on the taps and allowed the hot water to steam up the bathroom while I stripped down to my bare skin. There wasn't any counter space so I carefully placed my folded up clothes on the edge of the tub before stepping in and letting the water fall down my back.

Once I was clean, I hopped out of the tub and unfolded the towel. Somewhere between me being in the shower and drying myself off, my clothes had fallen into the tub. Going by how drenched and unwearable they were, my guess was that I knocked them in while the water was still running and I didn't even notice. I cursed myself before tightly wrapping the towel around my body, realizing that I was going to have to make the quick dash into my bedroom.

I tightened the towel around my body before cracking the bathroom door open and peeking into Derek's room. The coast seemed clear but when I fully swung the door opened, I realized that I wasn't alone in his bedroom.

I blinked.

I blinked again.

Derek was standing with his back turned to me as he fumbled with something in his hands that appeared to be a shirt. That would make sense, because he was naked on his top half. His muscles rippled with every move and I felt my mouth go dry as I gawked. He was way more muscly than I had initially thought and perhaps my eyes lingered for a bit longer than they should have.

Derek spun around, still fumbling with the piece of clothing in his hands. He was trying to undo the buttons when his head finally snapped up, realizing that I was standing there.

He frowned as he took in my appearance.

"I-I-"

"Sorry, I spilled coffee on my other shirt." He mumbled as he gestured towards the stained shirt that laid on his bed. "Had to change it."

"I dropped my clothes in the tub." I grimaced as I held up the bundle of wet fabric in my arms, lowering it when my towel came dangerously close to coming undone.

"Seems like it's not a good morning for us."

I couldn't help but notice that Derek's eyes, like mine, had lingered a bit too long before his gaze snapped back to the shirt in his hands. Secretly, I loved it. I loved that a man was taking the time to ogle me, even though my feelings for him were confusing. Even though he was my flatmate and things could get pretty awkward.

Most of all, I loved the fact that it was Derek who was doing the ogling.

"Can we have this conversation when I'm not wearing a towel?" I asked, suddenly feeling self conscious.

"You're more than welcome to take it off if you want, but that'd make things kind of weird."

I narrowed my eyes and smacked his arm as I glided past him and out of his bedroom, feeling a shift in my confidence. "Things are already weird."

It looked like Derek had gone back to his old self, and I was happy for him.

The rest of the morning went by uneventfully. I managed to dress myself up and make myself look presentable for my interview and caught the bus to Gloria's cafe where I was to meet Michael. The bustle of people in town unnerved me, but Tori taught me a few, surprisingly helpful, breathing tricks to calm myself down. The last job interview I had was when I was seventeen, and that was for the job I was in now. Needless to say, I wasn't an expert at interviews.

I sat down at a quiet table in the back of the cafe as I pretended to look over my resume. Realistically, I was too nervous to actually read it but it made me look busy.

"Chloe Saunders?" A man's voice broke through my thoughts.

I craned my neck up and locked eyes with a surprisingly handsome man who couldn't have been much older than myself. "Michael." I addressed him as I stood up to shake his hand. "It's good to meet you."

Michael wore his blonde hair messy and unkempt and his blue eyes were shielded behind a pair of black framed glasses. The stubble on his face made him look rugged and paired with his choice of attire - a plain white v-neck, black jeans and black canvas shoes, he didn't seem to care about looking overly professional. He looked easily approachable, which I liked about him. His laid back vibe made me relax a little and suddenly most of my worries were pushed to the back of my mind as we began.

The interview was very much a reflection of Michael. "This isn't one of those super formal interviews where I judge you based on your body language and other meaningless crap. I know what it's like; interviews are nerve wracking and you're obviously going to be nervous and uncomfortable. Just try and relax." He told me straight off the bat.

The first thing Michael asked was about my work history. Not that there was much to tell. I had only ever had one job before, but I managed to work in all of the experience I had gained in production between high school and college. He seemed impressed by the long list of shows I had directed, even though most of them were in high school. It was only when I told him about how many scripts I had written did his eyes really widen in astonishment.

"You're very passionate." He laughed.

"That's an understatement." I grinned sheepishly.

Michael was easy to talk to. The interview was going swimmingly and almost every question he threw at me, I nailed.

"Okay, one last question. As an intern, what do you think you could bring to Lyle Productions? What really makes you stand out?"

This was a question that Tori and I didn't prepare for. I thought for a second, trying to wrack my brains for what made me unique.

"I understand that the position I'm interviewing for is an internship, but I know for a fact that I have the passion and the potential to go beyond intern duties. It's my dream to write and direct, and I think over time, I can prove myself to be valuable to that aspect of Lyle Productions."

"Write and direct?" He asked, scrawling down some notes. "What makes you want to do both? Most people just pick one or the other."

"Writing is where everything starts. Starting a whole new project and telling a story is exciting. Then, directing is where your ideas really come to life, you know? And when you're doing both, you're getting things done exactly how you want them. Exactly how you pictured."

Michael grinned. "Tori was right when she said I'd like you."

"She never leaves any room to be wrong." I wanted to say 'likewise' but I didn't want it to be too obvious that I was basically kissing the guy's ass.

"Well, Chloe, I'm happy to conclude this interview." He leaned back in his seat and crossed one leg over the other. "There's not too much to think about. You've got the right amount of experience, you've got the passion and you seem eager for this job. I don't usually offer jobs on the spot, but our other candidates aren't quite what we're looking for and you're the last person to be interviewed. Not to mention our beloved friend Tori was the one to refer you. So how about it?"

Was I hearing this right? Was I really being offered my dream job? Well, an entry position to my dream job, but my dream job nonetheless. "Y-yes, of course! Thank you so much, Michael!" I wanted to tell him that he wouldn't be disappointed, but I was afraid of that being too cliche, even more so than the idea of an employer hiring an intern on the spot.

"Sweet. There's a contract that you'll need to read over and sign which I'll mail out to you. Once I receive it back then we're in business. I look forward to working with you, Chloe." Michael stood up out of his seat and I mimicked his actions.

After shaking hands one last time, he disappeared from the cafe and I stood there, dumbfounded. I was rooted there with a stupid grin plastered on my face which probably earned a few stares, but I didn't even care. Once I came to my senses I all but skipped out of the cafe and took a deep breath.

The only way this day could get any better would have been if the sun was out. If it weren't for the looming grey cloud in the sky, I would have walked all of the way home, but the bus would have to do.

With a skip in my step, I rounded the corner to the bus stop. I was too high on life to even care where I was going and my face collided with a solid chest. If it weren't for the firm and almost painful grip the stranger had on my arm, I would have been sent flying back on my butt.

My eyes traveled upwards, finally landing on my victim's face.

No. Not today, please, no.


Oh girl, that last part was hard to write. I don't even know why, I just struggled to get it out there y'know? Was it too rushed? Too lame? Too bleh? I suck at ending chapters.

Does anybody have their own version of Julia at work? Because this is the kind of shit I'm dealing with in real life right now and it's driving me crazy. I mentioned in last chapter's author's note taking the position of stand-in boss while the actual boss is away and I still don't have the power to fire this person. Life is so unfair.

Reviews are more than welcome!