Routine

Siri walked down the flight of stairs leading out of her apartment. She was running late but did not have the strength to be bothered with how much trouble she was in at the moment. The hospital had just called in to remind her to pick her grandmother up on the weekend.

As she put on her jacket while going down the stairs, she tripped down the 4th-to-last stair and had to jump to land at the foot of the stairs or risk spraining her ankles. She landed awkwardly and held the railing for balance. She felt something smooth and mushy dangling on her palms and she unceremoniously swatted her hand on the frame of the door leading outside.

She breathed in stale air as she walked out of her apartment building. It was sickening. The sky looked dull and grumpy, refusing to let out the sun. She looked at her surroundings. She had lived in these streets for as long as she could remember. The air was very chilly and she took out her muffler from her bag tying it around her neck.

She had always been fashionable and chic even though she was introverted. Her Dior boots were cheap yet beautiful and they complimented her high waisted denim jeans and a flowery shirt. The jacket was the same leathery material as the boots and the only thing disrupting her dress code was the large mono strap bag.

It contained a lot from USBs to prescription medicine, big files, her laptop and many more. Her shoulder ached a bit but she did not mind it.

She smoothed her edges pressing her index and middle fingers and the front of her hair. The styling gel had still not dried. She decided to buy another on her way from work. She ruffled the bun she held up in an updo. Her curly hair swished about in the cold wind.

A car honked as it pulled out from the driveway shouting at her to get off the road. She moved back and let the driver speed away. She looked into the distance. The other surrounding buildings were more eye-catching and stood more magnificently.

Most of the shops were closed and some were just opening for the day, as she walked past, she replied greetings to some of the neighbours she was acquainted with, walking briskly down the well tarred hilly road. The Burger truck was out thankfully and the burger man was out and selling.

She took out the money from her pocket and quickly bought one, that might well be the only thing that would stay in her stomach for the day. The air was clogged and the stench of the back alleys made her gag, the rain that fell heavily in the night brought out the worst kinds of stench in the morning, she covered the burger as she ate as if to ward off the smell.

She took the last bite of the burger and made to bring out her bottle from her bag to sip water. She was near the junction that would lead to the main road where she would have to take a bus.

"Hey! Wanna try your luck today?" the newspaperman beckoned to her.

She ran over to him and picked up a copy of the paper. She checked in her bag for money, and her purse wasn't in it. She wanted to scream. She would miss the bus if she went back home.

The paper man looked at her worried face and handed her the paper she had dropped while she searched for her purse.

"You can have the paper. It's on me."

"Thank you. Very much."

"Anytime milady."

She smiled and held her skirt, bending her knees slightly in a low courtesy. He laughed gleefully and shooed her away.

She took the paper and walked away increasing the pace of her footsteps. She brought out a water flask and while she drank, she looked at the front page. It read:

Mark Lucas buys Techtranet for 500 Million.

She looked last past the headline and turned the magazine to the back. Down below she looked at the code for the lottery on the paper and typed it in her phone. She soon got a message much like the others she had been getting for the past two months.

She looked at the time on the top corner of her phone and made a gasping noise. She started to walk briskly.

She got to the bend which led to the main road, then she walked past the bus stop and then walked for 35 minutes before some kilometres away she saw the building which had EagleNews written boldly.

She climbed up from the boulevard to the stairs leading into the tall building. The security manager smirked at her as she walked in and she immediately knew "Medusa" was around. She swiped her card to allow her to walk past the security enclosure and ran ahead to catch the elevator. She got to the doors just in time and was able to squeeze in. As the elevator went up, so did her blood pressure, the indifference had been replaced with anxiety. She stepped out on the third floor and went into the door that read “Marketing Department"

As she went into the room which seemed silent from the outside it was as if she stepped into another world. She knew she should be used to the ruckus but she wasn't.

The office was abuzz with many different sounds. Telephones were ringing here and there, one of the workers was shredding paper and tapping his feet furiously, several people were talking loud over the telephone, she bent her head and walked straight to her little desk near to a spacious, well furnished, empty office, she breathed a sigh of relief when she found that her boss was not in at the moment, she wondered what the chaos was about and she settled in to check and organize a very high pile of mails which she would have to hand to every department member as soon as she could.

The buzz began to die off as a familiar sound of stilettos hit the ground gracefully and somewhat melodiously, the hair at the back of her neck stood on the edge and she began to sweat on her upper lip. She instinctively began to shuffle through the mails harder till she heard the clacking sound stop a few feet from her desk, she quickly stood upright and greeted the scowling yet breathtakingly beautiful woman.

I see you took your time coming to work today. Right.

The question sounded equally like a statement and a question and it left Siri gaping like a Blowfish

"Morning Ma'am, I'm sorry for-'

"I will be needing coffee in about, say, the next twenty minutes so do what you have to do quick and get me my usual."

"Yes ma'am"

"Atta girl."

The silence was deafening and Siri found herself bowing low like a Chinaman. She wanted to smack herself silly. The gorgeous woman assessed her from head to toe and then walked into her office which was few metres away and sat on her office chair, removing her blazer and hanging in on her chair.

She popped her knuckles and began to clack furiously on her laptop which was on the table.

The noise reappeared again, this time, it was less rowdy and more coordinated. Siri could feel the migraine hitting hard and she quickly distributed all the mails on her table and other documents to the rest of the people. She looked briefly at the office and the owner raised her eyebrows and tapped her watch.

Siri immediately ran to her table and fished out a credit card from her drawer. She saved the document she was typing and then she ran out the door and closed it. She made to run to the elevator and without looking ahead she did not see the person in front of the door. She bumped into the person and fell back against the door.

"I am sorry, I..."

She started but was cut short by the elegant look of the person in front of her, he was tall, very tall and very blond, with a face model's facial feature the only thing that wasn't right was the large patches of coffee stains that bedecked his white shirt. The leather jacket on his arm and the watch on his wrist looked expensive and was thankfully not splashed on. She grew faint and soon began to apologize again even more furiously.

The young man let out a low chuckle and took out a hanky and patted his clothes.

"Can I quickly take it to the bathroom to remove the stains?'

Siri asked

"Are you suggesting I remove my shirt?"

He asked with a mock surprised look which sent Siri stuttering even more.

"No, I am sorry. I am just very sorry."

She broke down a little and a tear fell down her cheeks she swatted it seriously without making a sound. The man did not know what to do except tell her it was okay. If she had looked up maybe she could have seen he was genuinely being polite, but her head was bent and her shoulders sagged so he just decided to hold her by the shoulders.

"It's fine, seriously, it is. I know you were rushing off somewhere, so I don't want to stop you or hassle you. Just go. It's fine."

Siri stood still and then spoke, her voice shaky and her head still bowed

"Thank you very much, and I am sorry."

He let down his hand from her shoulders and she moved away from the door. He artfully put on his jacket and zipped it up and then opened the door and went in.

Siri sniffled and ran down the stairs she knew she would hear an earful when she returned with the coffee. The walk to the Barista was short and uneventful and she hoped whoever the model came to see would dismiss him quickly she couldn't believe she just broke down in front of a stranger.

"Miss, miss?"

She looked up and the shop attendant was trying to get her order. She quickly paid for and took her order and was on her way back to the office. As she got back to the office, she cautiously looked around the office and didn't see the person she assaulted, she sighed heavily and then walked briskly towards the Manager's office. She stopped by her desk to pick up a file she saw was addressed to the manager. The blinds were down and she wondered briefly what was happening inside. She quickly knocked on the door and heard brief shuffles and then she heard "come in"

But by then she had already opened the door and walked in as was the usual way: two knocks followed by the entrance a few seconds after. She was greeted with an angry stare from her manager and an appraising look from another pair of eyes.

She looked to the visitor she thought she had never seen and as she was about to look away, but then she abruptly turned her head towards him and she stared deeply and deliberately. He was the same guy she bumped into earlier, he gave her a knowing smile and she immediately wanted to enter into the ground.

"Why did you just barge into this office?"

The older beautiful lady was fuming, from where she sat, she looked regal in her designer outfit and the young man next to her complimented her well.

"I just wanted to drop off the coffee you asked for, I ..."

"Oh, shut up Missy, you saw the blinds were down. Does that happen often? Shouldn't that tell you I wanted privacy?"

"No, but... "

Words failed her, she did not know why the manager was so angry and then she absent-mindedly looked at the visitor more closely and noticed a lipstick smear on his cheek and his hair was ruffled. He gave her a blank look and then he put his hand around the woman's neck and spoke in her ear. Siri shifted uncomfortably, the manager smiled sheepishly only for a second before assuming her steel stare.

"I am sorry!"

"You better be! Go away, please. I want to be left alone, cancel all my engagements for the next two hours. And see yourself out the door"

"Yes ma'am."

Siri quickly dropped the coffee on the table and went back out to her desk. Her work chair was a bit lopsided and her back had been aching for the past two weeks. She sat and started making calls to cancel the plans for the manager.

She worked for a couple of hours and looked up to see it was an hour to closing, some of the staff had begun to leave and the visitor was still inside. She wondered if she should be wondering about what was not her business.

She stood up and stretched then she picked up a file from her desk. It was addressed to the HR department and she was to go and drop off the file. As she picked up her phone and made to leave, the door to her manager's office opened and the young man walked out. He straightened his jacket and took long strides past her and was soon out the door amidst stares of admiration, contempt, neutrality from the other workers.

Siri walked past one nosy, redhaired who wore glasses and was famous for always having the juiciest gossip, she was busty and small faced, her broad shoulders and chest contrasted greatly with her narrow hips and flat bottom,

"Hey, server, who's he?"

Her face expectant for a controversial answer was greeted with a shrug. She took off her glasses and beckoned for Siri to move closer.

"Yes, Miss T?"

Siri walked closer and stopped at the front of her cubicle trying not to get too near to the lady.

"When you walked in, were they startled? Did you see anything? Do tell. What were they doing?"

Siri kept her face straight and shrugged again. She was not going to chat with this loudmouth.

"I have to get this document to HR now."

There was an awkward silence before Miss T dismissed her with a wave of a hand. Siri immediately walked away and people kept mouthing to her about who the guy was while she shrugged her replies.

As she opened the door out of the office and stepped out, she saw the same guy who had left a few minutes ago, he was perched by the door leading to the stairwell. She took long strides and walked past him. As she was about to pass him, he grabbed her by the hand opened the door and dragged her down a flight of stairs.

He was still holding on to her hand when he finally stopped under the stairwell and looked about to ensure they were alone. He looked into her eyes deeply and moved closer to her, he was a bit surprised at her composure, most people would have been hyperventilating if they were in her shoes. she took a step back as to be advanced and then another step back till her back was on the wall, he flicked the one strand of hair that stood out, loose from the well-pressed edges and high updo and then raised her chin to meet his gaze.

"Did you just ignore me?"

The look on his face was no longer gentle but carried an urgency she could not explain. She was genuinely confused and she had to get the file to HR.

"I did not, but if you feel that way I apologize?"

She freed the hand that was held hostage and rubbed her wrist. Looking at him squarely in the face.

"This meeting is all but appropriate and I feel very uncomfortable also I have to give this to HR in the next few minutes or I will be in a lot of trouble, you're holding me hostage."

She was not in the mood to thank him for the morning and did not appreciate being dragged away like a rag doll.

"Yes. I am holding you hostage and if you want to be released, you should comply, remember you owe me."

He drawled the last word and she gave a quizzical impatient look which he ignored. She made to move while he stepped in front of her and this time he moved in closer to her face, a few seconds passed and then she breathed heavily in his face, pointed to her watch and moved aside before breaking into a run. The young man stared at her running figure. Bewitched.