polaroid | georgenotfound

07

dev sat quietly, tapping her pen aimlessly against the table. her boss was going over details for a valentine's day party the firm was going to have next week. she did not expect that getting an internship at a prestigious law firm meant planing a silly party based around a consumerist holiday.

"remember, you are not obligated to bring a guest, but it is encouraged. let's have a party, people. you're dismissed. devyn, i want to speak with you privately please."

snapping her head up, she smiles sheepishly at her boss, hoping that she hadn't got in trouble for not paying attention. as the older partners exit the conference room, dev makes her way to the head of the table.

"yes, mrs. james? you wanted to see me?"

without looking up to meet devyn's eyes, the middle aged woman flips through her notes before speaking. "you can call me saoirse, dear. i wanted to congratulate you on getting the internship but you've still got a lot to learn."

"yes, of course, mrs. ja- um, saoirse. thank you so much for the opportunity, i'm looking forward to helping the firm out as much as i can and learning from you as well as the other partners," dev smiles, satisfied with her response.

"lovely. now i wanted you to be in charge of the valentine's day party. you're the youngest in the office, and i want you to bring some life to this firm. decorations, food, anything you think we need for a fun party. you can take the company card for any purchases you deem necessary. have you seen the american version of the office?"

"yes, ma'am."

"then you're familiar with their office parties. a mix between their craziest christmas parties and their drab birthday ones is what i'm looking for. i believe you'll do a good job with this. if you have any questions feel free to ask, i will give you a list of everyone's food allergies and what not."

devyn takes a deep breath. she really expecting to plan an office party her first week at work.

"i won't let you down. will that be all?"

saoirse waves her hand towards the door, dismissing her. devyn nods as she scurries out the room, notes in hand.

"wait- one more thing."

she turns on her heel to face her boss, prepared for the worst. whatever was worse than planning a holiday party that reminded her of how alone she was.

"i know i said that bringing a guest is optional, but it's really not. doesn't have to be a significant other, a friend is just fine. we need people to fill up this desert of an office. understood?"

"absolutely."

dev remains at the door, overwhelmed by the stress of satisfying her boss. who could she bring to this formal party that was not formal but wouldn't make her feel awkward about not having a boyfriend?

saoirse looks up, seeing her intern still at the door, "you're dismissed."

flushed, dev apologizes before almost full sprinting out the door. how long was she standing at the door for?

making her way to the small desk in the corner that was smothered with dust and old papers, dev made a mental note to clean her given space over the weekend. sighing, she turns on her computer to log onto her amazon account, hoping that she could finish buying some decorations before the end of the day.

"is saoirse making you plan the office party for next week?"

devyn jumps, covering her heart with her hand.

"wow, you scare easily. i'm connor, one of the junior partners here," he extends his hand to shake hers.

dev reaches to meet his shake, grinning. "yeah, you'd be surprised at how many times i've been scared this week because of someone coming up to me. i'm devyn by the way, the new intern."

"i figured, saoirse always makes the interns plan the parties. i remember when i planned my first party, it was for halloween. if you need any help, i'm the fifth office from the boss's. i do have some experience with what you're going through."

she lets out a breathy laugh, nodding her head. "i might take you up on that offer."

connor knocks on the desk, turning to return to his office.

kinda cute, she thinks to herself.

spending the next few hours scrolling through pinterest for inspiration, dev has the plans for a theme, some decorations, and a general idea of food that she needs to get.

another knock on the desk, and dev jumps again. "hey, it's 4:30, time to go home.
oh, i am sorry for scaring you again."

"nope, it's fine. i'll have to get used to that if you're gonna be doing it every day. thanks, by the way. you're the only person i sort of know in the office, besides saoirse. and she's my boss so that's kind of weird if your boss is your only friend at work." she grabs her bag, ready to wrap up the workday.

making their way to the parking lot, connor decides to make some small talk.

"so, are you bringing anyone to the party?"

"i wasn't planning on it, but saoirse said it wasn't really an option. i'll probably bring a friend or something."

"yeah, she says it's not mandatory but will give you a nasty stare if you show up alone. so you don't have a boyfriend then?"

"no, thank you for reminding me though. lucky me, since i get to plan the party for the most romantic day of the year."

connor chuckles, stopping at his car. "you and me both. it was nice meeting you, devyn. i'm excited to see how your party turns out."

"i am overwhelmed with stress. i thought this was a law internship, not a party planning internship?" dev nervously tucks her hair behind her ears, a habit she had when she was anxious.

"i'm sure it'll be great. see you on monday?" he opens the door to his polished, expensive-looking car. 

"i'll be here."

she makes her way to her car, sitting in the driver's seat and laying her head on the steering wheel. accidentally pressing too hard, her horn lets out a sounding blare, startling her.

"fuck!" she looks around to make sure the parking lot is empty, and by some brush of luck, it is.

"i can't wait to fucking get home," muttering under her breath, dev makes the journey home.

꧁𝑏𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑚'𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑑𝑜𝑚꧂
oh yeahhhh we doing a SLOW BURN!!!! OKAY CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND BACKGROUND STORY POP OFF. connor be like connoreatspants but it's not actually connoreatspants it's just some guy named connor. sorry it's kinda a filler but i had a lot of fun writing this idk why??? inspired alex quackity, aspiring lawyer. s/o alex quackity. thanks fo reading <3 have a GREAT day ( ˘ ³˘)♥︎