Battle Scars

Chapter 1 || Monsieur?

"Sir?" the timid old man began as he spoke through the door frame, to afraid to step inside the dark office. "She will be arriving at 3:45pm to take the tour today, and will be starting her work day tomorrow at 8am. Will we be expecting your presence, Sir?"

"Mr. Johnson, I thought it was clear to only come to my office for important matters?" a cold voice presumed, with the sound of shifting papers following after. "No. You will not be expecting me to come this afternoon. Now leave."

The command didn't take too long to settle in as Mr. Johnson had already shut the office door and was halfway down the hallway. Getting as far away as he could from the office that held a man darker than the depths of night.

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I looked at the glass door and tapped my foot, looking down at my new light grey watch. Only 3:44pm, one minute to go. Looking at my reflection in the mirror and comparing it to other femmes who walked in and out of the building, I hoped my clothing wasn't too inappropriate from an american workplace. 

Long black pants, with a slightly fitting black top, covered with a light grey jacket and a warm knit grey scarf loosely draped around my neck. Most femmes were wearing knee-length dresses or skirts and some form of heel, almost completely different from my own attire. It was strange to see these femmes wearing such bare legs in March, especially in New York. I kept hearing how chilled the weather it was from my conseillers in Lyon, France. 

"Monsieur?" I called out to the front desk as I entered. "Je suis Anne Calla, Je suis ici pour-" I started as I walked towards the man at the front desk before I saw the look of confusion on his face. "Oh, I apologise Monsieur, I am Anne Calla, I'm here to take the tour..." I corrected myself, understanding he probably didn't speak french.

"Oh yes, we've been expecting you Ms.Calla. I'm Mr.Johnson," he introduced, holding his hand out. I place my hand in his, giving him a polite smile. "I'll be the one showing you around the office for today." He gave my hand a firm shake before turning around and heading toward the elevators. 

How is this old man moving at such a fast pace? I'm not even that fast... 

I picked up my pace a followed behind him. "You, Ms.Calla, will be working on the 58th floor," he started pulling out a key and placing it in the keyhole beside the 58th button and turned it. Enfer! That's high! "Outside Mr.Kingst  office, is where your desk is located." he continued as the elevator started moving up at an alarmingly fast rate. "On floor 36 is the break room where you can store your lunch and get Mr. Kingst's  coffee." he was talking so fast that soon I couldn't decipher what he was saying. He hastily stated where everything was with quick jerking movements of his hand.

When the elevator stopped, he started power walking down the hallway  and opened up one of the two doors. Which was weird, why was there only two doors on this floor? I looked between each other them, one of the doors very far down the hallway was a dark grey and almost blended in with the wall.

The door Mr.Johnson opened had large glass windows down the sides that let in sunlight and a thick metal frame. Walking through the doorway, I saw what I wasn't really expecting. This wasn't a normal, tiny secretary's office. No this was more like a miniature library for files and cabinets.

"Woah Monsieur..." my eyes raked the room for signs of anything out of place and saw that everything was perfectly in order. My new desk was near the door, with tall filing cabinets beside it and two pieces of paper. I walked over to the desk and looked down at the papers. 

"That, Ms.Calla, is your daily schedule," he informed as I skimmed the sheet.

8:00am - Morning drink || Black Coffee

9:30am - Coffee refill

10:00am - Dust files

11:30am - 12:00pm - Lunch

12:30pm - Coffee refill

2:00pm - Coffee refill

3:30pm - 4:00pm - Break

5:00pm - Afternoon drink || Bottle of Vodka and a Sprite

9:00pm - End of workday

I laughed to myself a little as I read the schedule. Why does he need so much coffee?

"While you await for file orders from Mr.Kingst this is the schedule you will follow." Mr.Johnson finished, placing his hands in the pockets of his trousers. "The other sheet of paper is the layout of the building, on who's on which floor. Incase Mr.Kingst sends you on a run."

Nodding, I looked toward the only other door in the room. "Ce qui est derrière cette porte, Monsieur?" before realizing my mistake again. "I mean, What is behind that door, Monsieur?"  

"That is Mr.Kingst's office, you can only go in there when the light is green." Mr, Johnson informed, unfazed by my speaking.

When the light is... what? "What light, Monsieur?" I asked, looking around the room.

"The lights on your desk." he pointed out, and I looked over to see that indeed that there were three coloured light bulbs at the edge of the desk. One shining jaune as the other two were dark.

"What does jaune mean?" I questioned, looking at them curiously. "Oh I mean, um err y-yellow, what does the yellow light mean?"

"Yellow light means he is taking calls, and red means do not disturb him under any circumstance." His voice got a lot deeper at the end. I guess it means he was serious about not disturbing him.

"Will I be seeing Mr.Kingst today?" I asked, looking at him.

"Sadly Mr.Kingst is being held up by work and couldn't come to meet you." Mr.Johnson mumbled, "But surely you will see him sometime during your work day."

I nodded, holding the two papers in my hands as we left the 58th floor and went back down to the entrance of the building.

"Here are your keys," he went behind his desk and pulled out two keys "This one is to the elevator and this one is to your office door." He held out his hand and placed the keys into mine "I look forward to working with you."

"As do I Monsieur," I smiled once more and left. Walking five blocks away to my new apartment.

A/N || All words in French will be italicized 

As Well, I made her work day longer than usual but it will work out in the end!

Also In the comments please criticize! I appreciate it!

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