I was nervous, and so were the others. It was the first time any of us would see them. Not even the director and the top workers in the company could boast of meeting the owners. They haven’t even spoken with them. All ths interactions between them were done through emails. They were like ghosts, almost like the Christophos brothers whose family had stayed long in the city, but no one knew anything about them.
I checked my reflection in the mirror for the tenth time. I was so nervous that I went to the restroom every few minutes to check on my clothes. It was such a pity they didn’t install any mirror for me when they constructed my office. It would have made it easier for me. I wouldn’t have gone to the restroom just for this.
I had my hair up in a neat bun, not a strand out of place. It took me close to an hour to perfect the look. As the best journalist, I had to be in the nicest, if not splendid state. I didn’t bother with makeup since I wasn’t a fan of that. I just dabbed my face with powder and applied an earth-tone lip gloss.
I checked the clothes, to be certain there were no wrinkles on my purple shirt. I didn’t bother with a skirt, knowing I looked more professional in black slacks. I was more comfortable in trousers than I was with skirts.
It took me over 2 hours to select my outfits. In case you are wondering when I rose, to get everything done on time, I woke up by 4. Yeah. You heard that right. I freaking set an alarm for it, knowing it would take me hours to decide on the outfit to wear.
“Bella? What are you doing in there? They are here!” Chris yelled, knocking on the door.
Since I locked it before entering, it was impossible for anyone to step in, not with the door locked.
At her words, a gasp left me. Glancing at the mirror one more time, I rushed out of the restroom, almost pushing her to the floor.
“Where are they?” I breathed out, my heart hammering against my ribcage, the organ practically about to lunge out of my chest. Gulping, I tried to calm my racing heart, but it was impossible to do that, not with the way it kept on thumping.
“Calm down. They are still downstairs. You are not late,” Chris said, sounding more put together than I was. Well, that was Chris for you. She knew how to act cool and composed in situations like this, while I looked like I was barely keeping myself from jumping out of the window.
“That’s wonderful.”
“You don’t look too good, Bella. Are you certain you are okay with this? I can tell the director you can’t make it. The least he will do is help you. He won’t force you should I tell him you are sick. Do you want me to do that?” She offered, stepping up to lend a hand as she had always done.
“No, it’s okay.” I shook my head, stopping her before she could say anything else. “I’m good. It’s just a visit. I have no reason to be scared. I’m stronger than I look. I can tackle anything,” I tried to reassure myself.
She frowned, looking like she wanted to argue with me about that, but she didn’t. She only nodded, taking my hand in hers.
“It’s time to meet the bosses who have been helping you. Are you ready?”
“Yeah.” Nodding, I tried not to reveal how nervous I was, knowing she would try to convince me not to show us.
The other workers were waiting when we arrived. The director, who looked like he was about to shit in his pants, seemed relieved when he saw me. He walked over to my side and took my hands in his, smiling. “Thank God you showed up. Do you have the speech ready?”
“Yeah, I do.” I nodded with a smile, so he wouldn’t know just how scared I was just by looking into my eyes. I was barely keeping my nerves in check.
“Perfect! I hope you don’t disappoint us. You are the only hope this firm has.”
“You don’t have to worry about me, sir. I have gotten everything ready.” If there was one thing I was confident about, it was my speech. Though it came late, since their visit was impromptu, I spent the whole of yesterday going through the speech and giving it a final touch until I felt it was perfect enough for the bosses.
“You are an angel, Bella. Thank you so much!” He let go of his hold on my hand and returned to his side, opposite me, while Chris and I got into the line with the others.
It was just my luck to have Imelda in the same line as me. Though the bitch had stopped disturbing me post terminating her minions’ work contract, she hadn’t ceased making snide remarks whenever she got the chance.
It wasn’t a secret she was out to get me, vowing to make my life a living hell until I gave the position up.
“Are you certain you can do this, Bella?” Chris asked in a hushed tone, so the others wouldn’t hear. “It’s not too late to step back.”
“I’m good.” I grinned. “You don’t have to worry about me. This friend of yours has been through worse. I can accomplish this,” I said, more to myself than her.
Imelda scoffed at my words, folding her arms as she stared at me, amused by my remarks.
“We will see how good you are, bitch. Everyone knows I’m the best when it comes to things like this. You will only make a fool of yourself. Just give up before it’s too late.” She sounded smug, smirking when I lifted an eyebrow at her words.
“Oh? That’s saying something since your so-called best in everything didn’t save your butt when I took the position from you. My dear, Imelda, your comments mean nothing to me. Not when you are no longer the queen of the firm. You are just a…” I leaned in so no one else would hear me cuss. I still needed to keep my reputation. “You’re nothing but a fucking bloody bitch.”