Chapter 31: You Still Remember Me, Don’t You?
“Make a good impression on them. It will surely be helpful for your job in the future!” She continued.
Scarlett held her head high and flipped her hair. “Oh, don’t worry about me. I’m very good at that!”
They soon arrived at the 68th floor, the center of power. High heels stepped on the soft carpet, and people coming and going looked both serious and proud. Scarlett was quite comfortable with life at the very bottom of society and suddenly felt a sense of inferiority here. After all, she was like a fish: she was flexible and could rapidly adapt to all kinds of water conditions.
A tall woman in a gray suit stood in front of them, flipped through the folders, and said,
“Send these to the reference center, please.”
“Oh, alright!” Leah held the files and walked into the grand office, and Scarlett just followed obediently.
“Oh? It’s you!” Scarlett followed Leah forward with her head lowered, not realizing that the voice was targeted at her. Until she was patted on the shoulder, she recognized the woman in front of her. It was Francis’s private secretary.
“Oh, hey!” Scarlett stood up straight, and her lips were stiff.
“I’m Amanda Howard! You still remember me, don’t you?” She smiled and said.
Scarlett nodded,
“For sure. It’s been a while, though. Hmm… I came up to deliver these folders, so I probably should first…”
Amanda, laughing at Scarlett’s nervous look, showed her the coffee cup she held in one hand and said, “I’m not busy at all. Take your time.”
“Oh, alright. I’ll send these in first!”
Amanda put down her cup and took some folders from Scarlett.
“Thanks!”
Seeing Scarlett and Amanda coming in, Leah gave Scarlett a look of approval, thinking that Scarlett finally unleashed all her charm. After they arranged the folders on the table, Amanda said to Scarlett,
“Are you busy now? Could you do me a favor?”
“Of course she can!” Leah pushed Scarlett forward and said. “I’ll go down first. Scarlett will stay here to help! See you!”
Scarlett watched Leah running away like a rabbit. She knew that Leah was trying to give her the chance to engage with senior staff and make a good impression on them for the future. She turned to Amanda and said,
“What can I do to help, Amanda?”
Amanda smiled and said,
“Actually, there’s nothing to do. I just wanted to talk with you during the break. Do you mind if I interrupt your work?”
“Nope, not at all! I’m not busy.”
But Scarlett was actually feeling confused inside. Their only contact had been during the interpreting job… what did they have to talk about anyway?
“That’s good. I remember that you are a student of UI… right? Do you major in Russian? Is it difficult? I know there is a music festival in your school every November. I’ve been to it once, and it was just so fantastic! I learned French in high school, but my pronunciation is just awful! Bonjour, mademoiselle! Haha!”
Scarlett didn’t expect that Amanda Howard would be so talkative. She thought this conversation would be endless if nobody would come to interrupt them. But, fortunately, somebody did come.
A girl with short, curly hair said to Amanda,
“Amanda, Mr. Sandler would like a cup of coffee.”
“Okay, got it,” Amanda then turned to Scarlett and asked, “Can you make coffee?”
Scarlett nodded.
“I used to work at a coffee shop.”
“Perfect. Then could you please make a coffee and send it to Mr. Sandler?”
“Me? Hmm… it’s probably not appropriate…”
“Come on! He asks about you several times these days. I don’t know your relationship well, so it’s better that you go in yourself and report your… work!”
Scarlett had no choice but to accept the job. She went to the tiny break room and started to make coffee. When she poured the coffee into the cup, the fragrance of the coffee spread in all directions.
Scarlett took the coffee cup and felt that it was much heavier than the pile of folders, somehow. Standing behind the wooden door of Francis’s office, she hesitated for a while but finally knocked on it and pushed the door in.
Sitting behind his desk, Francis had buried himself in his work. Since the weather had turned cool these days, he had added a gray sweater vest to his professional business ensemble. Without a tie, his collar was popped, and his sleeves were rolled up, revealing his lean forearms. He was looking so intently at the files that he didn’t notice that his assistant had changed.
Scarlett walked to his desk, almost tiptoeing along. She wondered if she should say something or just put down the cup quietly and leave before he recognized her.
Usually, Amanda would put the coffee on the tea table beside Francis’s office desk. So when Scarlett put down the coffee on the desk gently, Francis raised his eyebrows and caught a glimpse of a blue sleeve and a light-brown, thin hand.
It was not Amanda. So he looked up and encountered Scarlett’s bright smile. It was the first time that Scarlett had her dark-brown, wavy hair tied in a ponytail. Her energetic ponytail just perfectly fitted with her sky blue blouse, making her look refreshing and even more attractive than usual. Her new look astonished Francis and definitely in a good way.
“Uncle Francis!” Scarlett’s plan A, which was to put down the coffee and leave without a word, failed, and she flexibly conducted plan B.
“I’ve told you before, don’t call me uncle!” Though Francis was scolding her, there was no anger in his eyes.
Scarlett suddenly felt a strong sense of belonging. After all, Francis was the most familiar person she knew at T. B. S. Empire, and they had gone through some unforgettable– though mostly unforgettably terrible– times together. So, she felt unexpectedly relaxed when she was with him.Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.
She sat down with ease, smiled happily, and said,
“How nice to have a niece like me, good looking, good grades, and occasionally serve as a good driver and interpreter. What else could you ask for anyway?”