Care to Command

53 Breathe

"Bring us your most expensive white wine." My dad smiles at the waiter, then looks at me. "We have an important celebration."

I shift uncomfortably in my cold seat, goosebumps on my arms from the blasting air conditioner.

What's with fancy restaurants and icy temperatures? Do they want their seafood to be that fresh when they serve it? Might as well eat it out of a refrigerator.

"Nice place, huh?" Dad notes and I give him a weak nod. "So, tell me all about it!"

"Uh..." I've said this three times already. "Like I said, he's offering me 110,000 a year with a 30,000 performance bonus. Then a six month evaluation for a 30,000 increase and an added bonus on top of it. Plus being a VP, of course."

His eyes overflow with so much pride, I feel like he'll burst.

"That's my girl!" He raises his voice, careless of the people around. "You negotiated like I taught you?"

"Yup."

"Kept your poker face on the whole time?"

"Mhm."

"Told him you need everything in writing?"

"Yes, dad."

"Good girl!" He shakes his head with satisfaction, slapping his hand on the table. "I've been waiting for this day for so long!"

So have I...

He pulls out a small square box from his suit pocket and puts it between us. It's wrapped in a royal blue paper with a black ribbon around.

"What's this?"

"It's your promotion gift. I picked it myself." He points his chin at it. "Take a look."

"You didn't have to..." I take it with slow hands, not very excited to see what's inside.

"I wanted to! Especially after I... inappropriately learned how much you hated my other gifts." He raises a condescending eyebrow as if I've misbehaved. "I had to find out what my little girl would like instead."

I open it and the first thing that strikes me is the shining diamond around a necklace.

"Wow..." I can't take my eyes off of it. "This is too much..."

"No such thing." He says confidently. "My daughter deserves the best. She's earned it."

The necklace has some brand logo designed elegantly around the round diamond. It's stunning and bold. And an obvious statement.

"It's very..." I curl my fingers and splay them to mimic an explosion. "Very poppy."

"Well, that's what you need to be from now on." He lectures. "Now you're a leader. Maybe in the future, you'll work side by side with me."

My eyes widen in disbelief. He always told me his IT industry was not fit for me. That I'd be better off in media production, because it was creative and 'easier' for me.

"Really?"

"If you keep this up, I don't see why not." He nods, puffing his chest. "You need to keep learning and becoming better." He opens his palm to go over a mental list. "The way you dress, how you behave, how you talk to people." He narrows his eyes with sternness. "You need to be taken seriously by everyone. Even the President! And to become that person, you need to start with things like that." He points at the necklace again. "Know your worth. Treat yourself with respect."

I brush my fingers around the expensive box as the jewelry sparkles at me. Calls for me.

Promises and words I've heard my whole life. Now... some fulfilled and others repeated.