We'll Meet There

Roland's office had a luxurious bathroom hidden away at the back.

After a quick shower, Roland had freshened up from sleeping at his desk and was ready to work.

He picked out a fresh suit from his designer collection and promptly got dressed.

'Hmm…'

Roland subtly glanced out of the glass door to see a shadow lurking.

'Barov seems to be waiting outside again. He always waits outside when I'm getting changed… We're both men; I don't understand why he can't just come in, it's not like I'm naked or anything.'

Roland tucked in his shirt and zipped up his suit pants; Barov promptly entered with a flushed face.

"Sir, the final arrangements for today's launch have been made and need your final review."

"Yes, just leave it all on the desk and I'll look in a moment."

He quickly looked outside his office.

"Is Anna not in today?"

"Since she lives the other side of the venue, I agreed that we could meet her there. Was that wrong of me?"

"No, no, what you said makes sense," Roland replied, but then he mumbled, "I was just looking forward to sharing a car ride with her…"

…

Anna was dashing about her apartment, trying to get ready for her first public appearance as one of Roland's staff.

She'd prepared everything the night before, or so she'd thought. Of course, these things never go as planned. And then, today just had to be the day that she slept through her alarm!

"Dammit!"

She gathered the papers on her desk as she was brushing her teeth. As she was drying her hair, she was reviewing the event's timetable, ensuring that she wouldn't forget anything. She didn't even have time for breakfast, the most important meal of the day!

The event started at 9 a.m. but Anna needed to be there for 8 a.m. in order to set up and help Roland prepare. At 7:45 a.m. Anna hailed a cab outside her apartment and asked the driver to get to the venue as quickly as possible.

She couldn't be late to something like this.

…

In a dark room, Veronica—also known as Nightingale—was busily tapping away at her computer.

"Does she really think I'll let her be pictured with him that easily?"

She harrumphed loudly in her empty room.

"She should think again!"

Veronica worked at her computer with a look of determination on her face that showed how seriously she took this mission, no, this crusade!

"Traffic can be so unreliable at rush hour; one should leave plenty of time in case of accidents."

She laughed heartily as she started manipulating the city's traffic system.

"One should not underestimate the power of the great Nightingale!"

…

Outside her room, Veronica's driver and some of the other house staff stared at each other, concerned by her behavior.

"I thought she seemed better after going outside, but she's back to shouting to herself…"

"Do you think she has some online friends? Maybe she's talking to them."

"No, she's said before that she finds all that stuff childish."

As much as they speculated, none of them had an idea just how incredible Veronica, no, Nightingale was at a computer.