Chapter 8: The Promotion

AARON.

This is ridiculous.

 I stared at the bowl in front of me. "Why do I need this?" My stomach lurched. Inside the bowl were various vegetables, ground into a fine paste. Beside it were several pieces of roasted meat, which I presumed was lamb.

"You haven't had a good meal since your…encounter. Your inner wolf is basically crying for help. Human food doesn't do nearly enough." Luna said, leaning on the tree behind me. She was right. Besides the Mac and Cheese I successfully cooked two days ago, I hadn't had a proper meal since I started staying with Helena.

"You could've gotten me something more appealing at least." I whined. I could hear her laugh softly. "Eat up, I've got a few things we need to talk about." She said, walking away.

Okay vegetables, come on… I brought the spoon to my mouth.

Nope.

I couldn't. The spoon fell back into the plate, and I turned my attention to the lamb.

I munched on the lamb, savoring its juices. It was surprisingly well spiced. I dipped a piece into the vegetable paste and bit. Not so bad.

Within minutes I was done with both plates. Luna returned with a jug of water. I gulped it down in one swallow. I immediately felt better. My inner wolf growled in approval,"I enjoyed that."

"Alright, get up. We have quite a journey." Luna said, walking in front of me.

"I want to go back." I had spent too long out of the house, and I knew Helena would be worried sick.

"You will go back when we're done."

"Can I at least see her?" She paused, sighed and snapped her fingers. The orb materialized in front of her, its bright purple colors shining. She traced a pattern on it, muttering incoherently. "Look."

I brought my face close to the orb and gazed. Helena's farmhouse came into focus, the dried green fields and the barn beside it. I could see her in the kitchen, eating bacon and eggs. She really loved bacon. She was getting ready to leave, probably for work. But there was something off about her. She looked tired, sad and hurt all at once.

My gut twisted. Her hair was tied in a slightly messy bun, and she was dressed corporately. The image dissipated. "Happy now?" Luna said, her voice laced with sarcasm.

"Let's just get this over with."

HELENA.

Ladadee ladadoo ladadummm….

I hummed quietly, typing on my computer in the office. It'd been three days since Aaron left, and I was not getting used to the emptiness in that house. I constantly looked forward to coming to the bank, drowning myself in work until Georgina basically begged me to go home and rest. On the bright side, Veronica was coming by the weekend, and I couldn't wait.

"Helena, the manager wants to see you." I stiffened in my seat. I turned around sharply, and met Georgina, her eyes darting everywhere but mine.

"What happened? Did anything go wrong?" Dear God. I started sweating.

"Relax dear, it's not… anything too bad." Her voice was nowhere near reassuring. My heart dropped into my stomach. So something did happen. My manager was a tough, hard going man, and he seldom called people into his office. When he did, it was either to reprimand the offender, which usually results in salary reduction or even worse, fire them.

I steeled my steps and walked in the direction of his office. I tried to calm my frantic heart, but I couldn't help but wonder what I'd done to anger him. I tried my best to be perfect. At least. I stopped in front of his office door, with my heart pounding with trepidation. Sucking in a few breaths, I walked in.

His office was a sharp contrast to the colors in the rest of the office. Dark gray walls, two small gray sofas on opposite sides of the room, gray guest chairs, gray window blinds, even his laptop was gray. Weird obsession with one color but okay.

"Miss Lawson. Have a seat." My heart was well prepared to fly straight out of my mouth. I rubbed my sweaty palms on my skirt, filled with anxiety. "Relax, Miss Lawson. I'm not here to yell or fire you." He said, his eyes glowing with amusement.

"Oh…uh..yes sir. I just..um.." I struggled for words.

"Shhh." He laughed, finally taking his eyes off his computer and landing them on me. They were calm, and that was a good sign. I still felt uneasy. "I do have quite the reputation."

"I understand why you're nervous, but rest assured, I am not in a bad mood." He continued. I shifted and realized I was still standing. Hurriedly, I sat down, facing him. "Um, so why did you call me here sir?"

"Ah yes, it's regarding the reviews from our customers." He paused. Oh no.

I had always been polite and nice to customers, even though some of them made me wanna split my head open. Who could've put in a bad review for me? "Uh…what about them sir?"

"They're impressive. Best of any employee I've had to work with. I want to give you a raise in appreciation." His smile grew wider.

What?!

I was too dumbfounded, too stunned to speak. He was...giving me a raise? Oh goodness. "Thank you so much sir. Thank you thank you …" I fell on my knees.

"Hey hey hey, get up. Don't do that. It's something you deserve." He almost got up from his chair, urging me to get off my knees. I sat back on my seat, straightening my clothes. After I had calmed down, he opened his mouth to speak again.

"Also, you wouldn't be working at the front desk anymore. I'll arrange for a private office for you soonest. You'll move there next week." My jaw dropped. A private office? This counts as a promotion right? Someone pinch me. Ouch.

 I smiled inwardly. I wasn't dreaming.

My pulse had calmed and I wasn't sweating anymore, but the joy in my heart and the adrenaline surging through my veins was just as potent.

"Oh my…..thank you sir. I appreciate this so much!" I was on the verge of crying. This was too much.

"You're welcome. Now get back to work. Wouldn't want to slack now do we?" He steered his eyes back to his laptop, dismissing me. I thanked him one last time and basically skipped out of the office.

I had just settled back in my desk, reeling over the news I just got. Wow. Just wow! I grabbed my phone and dialed Veronica's number. This was worth celebrating.

"Oh my gosh girlie!!! This is amazing news! How about I head down tomorrow? I can't wait!" She kept rambling after I told her the news.

"No, you will stay until the weekend, just like we planned." Jeez.

"Oh come on…."

"I mean it, Veronica. Besides, you still have to attend Joshua's recital tomorrow." Joshua was her little brother.

"Argh, fine. I'll wait. But don't go to any night clubs without me." She whined.

"I can't go to any club without you." Maybe I could, but hey, who's watching? She giggled on the other side of the phone.

"I'll take you up on that. Hey, we'll talk later. I think Joshua just got home." She said. I could hear the faint sound of a door clicking.

"Alright, bye."

After work, I made a quick stop at the grocery store. I wanted to do a little celebration of my own tonight. I strolled down the aisles, my eyes running over the different items neatly stacked on the shelves. I picked out strawberry milk, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, Sprite drink, and an ice tray. I was going to try something different tonight.

I walked over to the cashier and he began scanning my items. An image flashed in my head, and my heart rate increased. I shook my head, trying to get rid of the image. I was still mad and hurt by what he did, but I missed his presence. Aaron was the only one who made me see "men" in another light.

"That'll be $43.50."

I don't still get why he left without saying goodbye. It was unlike him. What did I even know about him?

"Ma'am? Are you paying by cash or debit card?" The cashier's voice yanked me out of my thoughts.

"I'm sorry, how much is it again?" I replied, a little embarrassed.

"$43.50."

I handed him a $50 bill and he returned with my change. I left the restaurant, a little somber than I was when I entered.

I got home, took a shower, read a bit and finally got the energy to make what I got my ingredients for. I had seen a picture of the dish a few days ago and today was the perfect chance to make it.

Hwachae.

I grabbed my biggest bowl and poured all the berries inside. After they had been washed of course. Then, I poured in the strawberry milk. Next, I added the sprite. It smelled so good already. I had placed the ice tray in the freezer when I got home so they were perfect little shaped balls of ice waiting in the tray.

I poured them into the bowl and stirred. Moment of truth. I tasted it.

Damn...

I moaned in appreciation. I really should make this often. I giggled, doing a little dance of victory. I'd make this for Veronica when she got here. I took a picture of the bowl and another picture of me eating it and sent it to her. She replied with an angry face emoji. Classic.

I was about carrying the bowl off the counter when I spotted a faint movement in the trees beyond the farmhouse. It was quick, but I saw it. A chill went down my spine.

I slowly dropped the bowl and leaned towards the window.

Nothing.

Complete silence.

Total darkness.

Why does this keep happening?

I slowly turned around, when I spotted a pair of bright red eyes staring straight at me from the trees.

I froze.