It's Just Business

Chapter 25

The next two months go by like a blur. Sam avoiding me. Me avoiding Sam. Bianca has helped me through must of it though. I called her that day when I sent Sam back, she stayed the night bringing lots of ice cream and a bunch of movies. I thought I was okay but I spent the next two weeks breaking down. She ended up staying at my place to ensure I was okay.

Sam's spent the past two months piling up work for me to do, more than humanly possible and somehow I always prove to him by completing all the work. He makes me go on coffee errands and fetch his lunch like a hundred times a day and half the time I see him toss it in the bin like it's all a game to him.

I don't tell him though, that he is bothering me, that I'm starting to get angry and fed up because that's exactly what he wants. He never looks at me or even pays me attention.

Sam calls me into the his other office located in level ten. It's a round shaped room with window cuttings and below it are cubicles. I always hate this room because somehow I imagine falling from the window panels the size a human that could slip through and that I'd break my back or something by landing on the cubicles below.

This room which i didn't even know existing was apparently Sam's office prior to me getting the job and somehow he'd jump back and forth between the two rooms. Sam's office hovers with a single spiral stair climbing up to it, it has clear windows below it allowing you to see the cubicles below. Sam has spent most of the past two months here. It's a great spot to just look down and keep an eye on all the employees.

When I'm by the glass door, Sam indicates for me to come in with the swipe of his two fingers.

He walks up to one of the glass panels and suggests I follow him, looking through the panels he points at a room.

"Over there, there are a bunch of men who will be modelling for our new clothing launch. You're in charge to ensure everyone is in the correct clothing and that the photographer takes the photos as I have requested. All the information is in this document, what they they need to wear and how to pose report back to me when you're done."

He slams a folder into my hand and with his hand indicates for me to leave.

I feel like slamming the folder back in his hand and telling him off but I need this job.

I turn and walk out, down the stairs and into the room he pointed at. My mouth drops open when I notice about forty men waiting. This is going to take forever.

I call up the first three people in the folder and instruct them on what to wear. They take their clothes off in front of me, standing in their boxers.

I quickly turn and close my eyes. I can't do this. They're more naked then I've ever seen.

I know Sam knows I'm not comfortable with this kind of stuff. He is trying to push my buttons and get me to react.

"Is everything okay?" One of the men behind me says.

"Yea it is." Though truth be told, it's not. I silently turn, my eyes still closed and when I pop them open, they're all staring at me like I have some kind of disease.

"So what now?" The same guy asks.

I cough trying to adjust my voice. "Umm, you stay behind the white backdrop," I say pointing at the corner of the room. "The photographer will take your photo."

I walk over to the photographer and instruct him on how to take the photos.

I cringe when the next guy walks up to me and I point him to his outfit. Without caring, he strips off his clothes and begins changing in front of me. I feel like I'm going to faint.

The next guy comes up and watches me carefully

He laughs. "You don't do this often, do you?"

I shake my head.

He laughs louder. "Don't worry, I have it covered." He whistles over to a few guys and they walk over. He takes the document from me and hands everyone their own sheets that tells them what to wear. "Get yourself ready and remember your positions for the poses."

He winks my direction and I almost blush. "How about you print the photos and place them in the folder when they get taken."

He smiles. "Everyone looks busy, you can at least help me out."

He grabs my hand and pulls it to his throat as I help tie the bow. I shiver when my skin gets in contact with his but I try to play it off cool.

I snap out of it and look down at the folder, noting that Sam requires twenty photos per person. I get them printed and insert them into the folder.

After about thirty minutes, I grab the folder and head to Sam's new office.

I knock three times before he even bothers to look up. His face goes back to his laptop and with his hand waves me in.

I slam the folder although not too hard on his desk. If I hit it any harder he could tell I would be frustrated.

His head springs up. "Finished already?"

Lifting my head up high, confidently I say "yes."

He looks surprised. He grabs the folder, reads through it and gets off his chair. "Good job, although, it seems that one of the outfits do not match what I requested."

I look down at the page he holds out for me there it is, one of the men are wearing the wrong outfit.

"How did that happen?" Sam asks with a smirk on his face.

"There were a lot of men, by the end of it I got tired. Must've been a silly mistake."

He walks closer to me. Until I'm leaning against one of the glass panels. I look down and almost get scared. Don't look down I tell myself.

"You know I don't have time for this," his voice rising. "I don't tolerate this kind of rubbish."

I get angry and burst out to him. "I'm allowed one mistake, okay. You've really been pushing me and I haven't said a word."

He raises his eyebrow and leans in closer. "I've never been spoken to like that."

At that, I lean further back and the glass panel opens and I fall back. I close my eyes because I'm pretty sure I'm about to die.

Suddenly a hand grabs mine. When I open my eyes, I see Sam has hold of my hand.

"Should I pull you up or let go of your hand for being so disrespectful."

I cringe. Now I'm really mad. "You may as well let go," I say.

He looks down out the glass panel then smiles. "Okay, if that's what you want," and with that he lets my hand go.

I fall and it feels like I'm falling from a twenty level building. I soon hit something, I'm shocked more for the fact that I don't feel a single bit of pain. Suddenly something splatters all over my face, I open my eyes in shock and notice it's paint.

I've knocked the ladder, and the bucket of paint that was sitting on top of it down as I fell. I look around and realise I've fell on foam underneath where the ladder was. The one from where they were repainting his office.

When I look up I can see Sam watching me. Did he know I was going to fall on the foams. He turns around and walks out of sight.