Cry with Inanimate Eyes
It was not a good morning. Her coffeemaker hadn't automatically gone off that morning, her father was being belligerent, she missed her train into the city, and on top of it all, she was late to her first day at the office. Gwen had heard rumors of the hardass bitch that was Raina De Luca. Considering she was being blackmailed into working for her, probably should have clued her into that fact. When Gwen had escaped to California, in order to go to law school at USC, she never imagined that she would end up back in the city, once again cleaning up her dad's messes. When his name had flashed across the screen of her phone for the first time in months, she knew she shouldn't have answered it, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Still, against her better judgment, she had, and now she was in this mess. Getting caught stealing from a major company was exactly like something he would do, yet she never thought he'd be stupid enough to do it to someone like Raina De Luca. Everything she had read up on the woman described her as a ruthless businesswoman. Siphoning funds wouldn't be taken lightly, and they weren't. On top of it all, her father had had some heart attack, and couldn't work to pay off what he owed, which is why he even called Gwen in the first place. Just once, she wanted her father to call her to wish her happy birthday, or even just see how she was doing. However, she'd lost pretty much all hope on that after she turned twelve.
By the time Gwen arrived at the large, intimidating building that loomed over the ones surrounding it, she was ten minutes late, and it took her another couple minutes to even get up to the 94th floor. She rushed through the office, ignoring all of the looks that she got from the people sitting in cubicles, and she arrived at the door she was looking for. Raina's name was written on the door with gold letters, and she slowed, biting her lip as she tried to make herself look a little more presentable. She hoped she didn't look like she just sprinted halfway across the city, but with the way her luck had been this morning, Gwen wouldn't have been surprised if a bird had nested in her hair. The first time she had met Raina De Luca, she had been anxious, but that feeling was nothing compared to what she was going through now. Steadying her breath, she knocked on the door, fidgeting slightly with a stray string on her dress. When the door opened, she launched into a quick apology. "I'm sorry for being late, Ms. De Luca. There were some unforeseen circumstances on my way here this morning." Snapping her mouth shut because she didn't want to pile on the excuses, Gwen simply stared just past Raina's face, focusing on the wall behind her. She didn't need to get fired on her first day.
