Manners and patience

It was past dusk by the time Katherine had retired from her shift and returned home. On her way, she had to drop down to buy groceries at a nearby store. Over the past week, Katherine's work had kept her busy that she could not even buy something for herself, she wanted to make her apartment look decent and not a dump-yard by the time her parents visited her place. When the clock struck nine, her landline started to ring whilst she was in the kitchen; cooking for the dinner. She had to skip her meals to choose a topic and by the time she chose one and went to meet the chief-in-editor, he wasn't in his cabin. Her stomach rumbled and grumbled, both in hunger and frustration; but her stubborn-self had no appetite to eat anything in the afternoon and she was now starving to death.

Placing down the spatula, she rushed to the living room to attend the call.

"Oh, Kathy! How long does it take for you to pick up my calls. Have I not been ringing to your phone since evening," her mother fumed on the phone. "God should know why you leave my calls unattended, always," her mother added in an exasperated voice.

Katherine immediately felt sorry for her mother. She hadn't been able to talk to her mother properly these days because of her busy schedule.

"I'm extremely sorry mama, I haven't checked my phone since morning. It was really a hectic day. How long shall it take for you people to reach?"

"It was for the very reason I have been calling you for a while now," said her mother, who continued saying, "Apparently, there has been a sudden change of plans due to your father's work. You do understand his tight schedule, don't you, my dear. But your father has spoken to Mr. Wooster earlier this morning, we may not be able to attend the gathering on Friday evening and henceforth, his mother and I have come up with a plan in the end to let you and Henry meet in private. It isn't at your cousin's wedding you will be meeting him; but, a restaurant."

Katherine's parents have been pestering her to find a decent man since past a few months, but knowing she was incapable of finding one, her mother had been set on in search of the most eligible bachelors of London.

"But how could you do this to me. I have never met the man!" she whined on the phone.

"What are you, ten? Act like a proper lady and don't you dare ruin things like last time," her mother warned. "Your father and I could not show our faces to the man whom you ditched. I expect you to not repeat it this time. This man is very decent and well cultured, it seems. I think you two might get along well," came the cheerful voice of her mother.

On her previous date, she had to leave abruptly as she was called by Ms. Rafferty even though it was during her lunch hour. She was ordered to edit an article right away. But her mother wouldn't understand her helpless situation now, would she?

"Whatever you may say, don't expect me to nod my head unless I feel a spark between us."

It wasn't the idea of marriage that repelled Katherine; but to marry an unknown person and share the same roof did it. She could have dated one but she was too busy in shaping her career that she had no time for dating in her life.

"Life isn't a fairy tale, my dear. Marry when you could catch a giant shark in the sea, lest you should want to settle one with an aquarium."

"That was a very bad comparison, mama. You should not be saying that to people," Katherine corrected.

"It was just a metaphor, my dear," her mother replied on the phone and a sigh eluded through Katherine's lips, not knowing what else to say.

At the same time, Katherine heard the cooker's whistle and had to cut short her conversation.

"Alright, mama. I need to head over to the kitchen; do send me the whereabouts and I shall look into it. I thought you and dad were coming, cooked for you two," she chuckled softly listening to her mother's apology for not making up to the dinner.

That night, Kathrine had dinner all by herself like any other nights. There were times she wished for a companion in a city where she was away from home. She wished for someone's company, a family, or a friend but she had no one to rely on but herself. Though her colleagues were sweet, they were just colleagues, after all. Katherine had always wanted her article to be published on the front page, she was more interested in writing about current affairs but ended up in writing small weekly columns; though she had done an excellent job in the interview, she would often wonder why.

Writing articles in the education section wasn't bad, but she had other plans in mind before joining in 'TMH'. She had been assisting her senior editors until now but recently became an associate editor where she and her team, were given a task to do in which she had taken an interest in 'Pottery and Ceramics' but all her hard was thrown right away, right in front of her. Pottery is an art, a culture, with an extraordinary history. Children needed to have the knowledge about its heritage. In the times of video games, children have lost the touch of clay. There were times when children around the age of five, were given coloured clays for modelling to enhance their skills but now-a-days, children are made to sit in front of televisions to teach them rhymes.

Clay, knowledge, skills and children.

Katherine who had been eating while watching a movie, rushed to her bedroom to open her monitor. Going through the magazines that had published on the same topic she had been working on since a week. After nearly two hours or so, Katherine decided to write on the same topic with slight changes, she was least bothered about the evil demon who would surely reject it again because she was confident in the topic she chose to write and it wasn't her fault if he does not come to like her work.

The next day, she went early to the office after having a cup of coffee with Mrs. Clarke, who loved to listen to Katherine's talks. The widowed woman lived alone on her own expenses. One day, Katherine was dropped by at her store to help when a few bouquets fell down, since then the young girl made sure to visit the floral store every day, it has become a habit over the time. After reaching her workplace, she checked if Mr. Wynne had arrived and just by her luck, he was in his office. knocking at his door, she entered inside after he gave her a look. The look in his eyes, was meant for her to enter. At first, it was difficult for her to read his expressions, they were indescribable but over the time she had come to learn and understand a little of his stoic face.

"Did I not tell you to come in the afternoon yesterday. What were you doing, chit-chatting?"

He raised an eyebrow at her and Katherine could not believe that he was blaming her, at her, when it was him who was not in the office in first place. She had waited for him the entire evening, but he did not return.

"No, Mr. Wynne. I did come to your office the other day but..."

"Had you come in time, you would have met me, Ms. Priestley," and when she was about to reason herself, "keep your explanation to yourself. We do not have time to ponder over it." His eyes gazed down to her hands that gripped a file.

Katherine who did not understand what was running in his mind, stood like a frozen sculpted statue.

"The file," came a voice in curt, and Katherine was quick to pass down the file to him.

"I went through different articles that published on the same topic and..."

"And you thought you could make slight changes and submit it even after what I had told you to do so?"

This man here, lacked manners and patience.

He barely speaks and doesn't let others speak as well. Katherine was all prepared for his coldness to freeze her but words never came through his lips. Instead, she saw him flip over the pages and unlike previous time, he was skimming through the contents this time.

Lucas hummed while Katherine stood with her fingers-crossed. Though she had told herself she would not change the topic even if the evil demon was against her brilliant idea, she waited for his response in anticipation, hoping he would like it. Handing over the file back to her, he had spoken something she hadn't expected from him.

"Saturday morning, on my desk,"

Though it was the same topic, it was the way Katherine put her thoughts into words. Connecting the importance of pottery to young children that would help them in developing their skills.

He may have not praised her, not that she was expecting anything from him either; but the simple words he had uttered made her day or perhaps her week. Katherine was back to her cheerful-self when she left his cabin that made her colleagues to take a glance at her.

Days flew by with Katherine burying herself with her article and other editorial works she was given by her senior editor who also seems to hold a grudge on her. Alyssa Rafferty, a young woman who is said to be joined around the same time as Lucas Wynne, often gave Katherine extra works than she did to the others in the team.

One day, when Katherine edited a few reports and went to submit them to Ms. Rafferty, the woman smiled at Katherine and entrusted a few more confidential documents to be checked. Katherine could tell the woman was treating her different but she doubted if Ms. Rafferty was aware about her interview. Even so, she wouldn't be surprised if Mr. Wynne let in the woman on her secret. Whatever the reasons may be, Katherine worked double the times of her colleagues and she never complained about it.

It was her way of being grateful to the platform she was given and the person who believed in her. The company was started five years ago with a group of talented youngsters, the CEO of the company wanted it to run by youngsters with new ideas and creative methods, which soon attracted people and the company competed with other news publishing companies. And Katherine just felt blessed to be a part of the leading company.

"What do you mean by you haven't went through them yet?"

It was Ms. Rafferty who had given a few articles to edit that were already edited by assistant editors and they were needed to be checked again; but Katherine did not have enough time to handle two works. She also needed to give a final touch to her article which she was going to submit the next day. She was lost in her own load of work that she had forgotten about Ms. Rafferty's work.

"I.. I thought the article was going to be published next week, is it not?"

"Did I ever mention it to you? She asked and Katherine shook her head, "Then may I ask, what made you assume, Ms. Katherine?"

"It was I, who told her, Alyssa. Is there any problem if she doesn't do it right away?"

They were interrupted by one of the senior editors, Evan Mathews. Of all the senior staff members, she found him to be approachable and Katherine felt grateful for his interruption. Evan Mathews was one of the few people who had joined at 'TMH' in its early days, along with Lucas and Alyssa.

"No, not at all, Evan. But I was expecting her to complete the work by evening," she replied.

"She needs to submit an article to Wynne tomorrow. Let her be for today, she has hand-full of work at the moment already. Don't make the poor girl take too much burden over her shoulder now," said Evan, in support of his team member that brought an unnoticeable frown upon Alyssa's face which she hid it with a smile. Alyssa did not understand why would Lucas take special interest in that ordinary woman. What was so special about the girl that he would specifically keep her under his radar, she did not understand nor did the other employees. They all could see Lucas Wynne picking up on Katherine with difficult questions in the meetings but no one dared to put their thoughts out in front of him. Be it a grudge or something else, people did not bother much but Alyssa seemed to not like it one bit.

"I see. It is alright then, I shall tell someone else to do your job," Alyssa forced a smile upon her lips and left Katherine's desk, sending a silent glare.

"Your timing is impeccable. Thank you, Mr. Mathews. I owe you for that one," smiled Katherine, he returned a charming smile at her.

"It's alright, you need not have to take it serious about Alyssa. Also, it wasn't your work to do but her job. How far have you come up with your article?" he asked, reaching her desk to pick up a file he wanted from her.

"Almost completed," she replied.

"I see, do make sure not to stress yourself. Good evening to you then," the man left with a smile and a file in his hand.

While Lucas was aloof, Evan was affable. He cheers up his sub-ordinates and make their works easier than Lucas, who terrors them.