LISA MANOBAN
Lisa Manoban looks at the imposing office door, rage bubbling inside her. The double doors reach all the way to the high ceiling, and look quite heavy. On the other side is an egotistical stuck-up bitch. Lisa thinks she is probably sitting behind a giant desk, or maybe on a throne like a queen. Well, the raging Thai supposes, she is queen of the building. "Ms. Kitty", as she likes to call Jennie Kim just to piss the beautiful CEO off, owns the place.
Lisa works in the coffee shop downstairs in the building's lobby. Well, she did until about fifteen minutes ago. She knows Jennie is the reason for her quick termination that day, and she's there to give the Korean a piece of her mind.
There's no way she's going back to the shelter! The coffee shop job barely afforded her enough money for the pay-by-the-week motel she and her older sister are staying at. They've been there for the past few months, but anything is better than staying at the shelter. One week without a job, and it will force them back there. That's not something she can handle.
"Is that bitch boss of yours in there?" Lisa snaps at the woman sitting at the desk in front of the double doors.
The woman jerks her head up, and looks at Lisa in shock, but her face quickly turns to disgust. Of course, Lisa mocks inside her head. Jennie has a perfect-looking assistant sitting outside her office. Black hair pulled back into a tight bun, light brown eyes with thin black-framed glasses, and a low-cut top. Very low cut. The woman looks like she could do the whole sexy librarian turned seductress thing at any moment.
Maybe that's what she does.
Lisa can tell from the scrunch of the woman's nose she finds the Thai's get up repulsive. Lisa is her polar opposite in every way. They might both have dark hair but it clearly ends there. Lisa's shorter do with bangs has also streaked with pink and blonde at the bottom. The under-hair dye makes her look more of an aggressive, rebellious rocker.
The Thai can see the other woman's legs under the desk with shoes that probably cost what she makes in three months. Lisa's black military-style lace-up boots completes her punk princess get-up. The other woman, Lisa can tell puts time into maintaining herself. Total opposites.
"I'm going to have to ask you to leave," the assitant squeaks at her in a voice that sounds like nails on a chalkboard. She reaches for the desk phone, Lisa's sure to call security, because she is after all barely dressed. She's only wearing her black tank top barely covering her bra, black pants and her boots. No way was she letting that dipshit downstairs take fifty dollars out of her last check for her coffeeshop uniform, and she has no plans of ever seeing that dickwad's face again.
The asshole had the balls, after firing her, to suggest Lisa drops to her knees and he'd pay for other services if the Thai needed the money so bad. When the barista started to unbutton her top the little fucker thought he was getting what he wanted. All he got was Lisa's shirt and apron thrown at him. Well, and a black eye. The Thai can still feel the sting on her knuckles from the punch.
Oh, yeah, the asshole's eye is going to be a nice black and purple come morning.
Growing up in foster care, Lisa and her sister Lily learned how to throw a mean punch.
Seeing that her time has now become limited, Lisa walks past the assistant and push open both doors.
"Marie I told you—" Jennie's words cut off when she looks up and sees Lisa. Jaw slacked, eyes flaring as she takes in Lisa's attire, or lack thereof.
Today, like every day, Jennie's wearing a classy pant suit, now it was light pastel pink blazer and trousers with a crisp no-collar white shirt. She's always so neatly put together. Even her gorgeous face is perfectly made-up. Every time Jennie came into the coffee shop Lisa has wanted to mess the CEO up. She always wants to run her fingers through Jennie's hair and give her that freshly fucked look. Lisa thought about rubbing her lips across Jennie's neck, leaving a smudge of her dark lipstick there so she didn't look so perfect.
The first time the young CEO came in, she gave Lisa a half smile and ordered a plain black coffee. No cream or sugar. Not even a flavor. It seems to Lisa that's how Jennie likes everything. Every day she would come in and get her coffee and engage her in a little bit of conversation. The smile, the subtle touches and the flirting. The barista looked forward to seeing Jennie. She was different than the other customers who Lisa tagged as "suits". Most either treated the Thai like she could be a quick fuck for them (men, ugh!), or gave her a look of distaste (bitchy corporate-slaves women).
Then one day Jennie came in with another woman. Lisa had her back to them, but she could hear them talking. Taking a quick glance over her shoulder, the Thai could see the woman with her was also beautiful. She was elegant in a way she can never imagine herself being. It was someone who looks like she belongs in Jennie's league. The other woman said to Jennie, "She looks out of place. I'm shocked they let her work here looking like that." Jennie's only response was "I'm sure she would clean up nice if she actually tried." It had been a long time since Lisa had been hurt by someone's words and it pisses her off.
So, that day, the games began. Gone were her sweet smiles and her excitement at seeing Jennie. Lisa knows she look different. Lisa likes her multi-colored hair, her black nail polish, dark lip gloss and boots. It's her. She stopped trying to fit into other people's molds a long time ago. She didn't have to pretend to be anyone but her.
From then on, Lisa tried to make Jennie's life hell whenever she came into the shop after that. Maybe if the CEO was a big enough bitch she would stop coming. Lisa was mostly pissed that she let herself believe that Jennie actually likes her. Obviously, she was only deluding herself.
Glancing around Jennie's office, it's all so cold—glass and chrome. It makes goosebumps break out on Lisa's exposed skin. Everything in the office is perfectly in its place, just like the CEO herself. The Thai keep looking around, not wanting to meet Jennie's eyes yet.
"Well, Jennie, I didn't know you hired entertainment for the meeting," says the man sitting across from Ms. Kitty aka Jennie. She never gave Lisa her first name, but Lisa kind of like it. Only after Lisa got pissed off that she started calling her Ms. Kitty, did Jennie tell Lisa who she was.
They'd poked fun at the way she looked, and Lisa knows it was childish of her, but she wanted to do the same to Jennie. So, when the CEO asked why Lisa called her that, she told Jennie "Duh? Your eyes. And because you look like a tiny little kitten in business suits." That's when Jennie, who looks mildy irritated, informed Lisa with her hand on her waist, that she was Jennie Kim. When Lisa didn't respond, she added, "Jennie Kim as in Kim Enterprise, the woman who owns this whole goddamn building." This still got nothing more from Lisa than an eye roll.
