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“I’ll go.” I rise on wobbly legs that could give out at any second. Rowan looks up at me with his usual empty gaze before nodding. His dark eyes remind me of space—infinite, dangerous, and something I can get lost in.
I set up my PowerPoint with shaky hands. My stage fright has slightly improved since my first presentation, but the jitters still hit me, especially at the beginning. Rowan’s gaze sends tiny pricks of something down my spine. I end up clicking the wrong file twice before I’m able to get control of myself. It takes a couple deep breaths to finally steady my heart rate.
The entire time I present, I ignore Rowan. That’s what he gets for treating me the way he did in front of everyone.
The Creators clap as I wrap up my last sentence, and I feel slightly better about everything that happened earlier.
“It could be better,” Rowan calls out.
“How so?” I clench my fists against my dress.
“What if we changed the entire layout of the ride.”
“Theentirelayout?”Deep breaths, Zahra.
“Instead of having the roller coaster carts created to represent the dragon flying, let’s have the dragon be a part of the ride. We will keep your mountain idea, but I want the coaster to dive into the dark caves as if riders are escaping the dragon. I want fire, special effects, animatronics, and backward tracks.”
I’m not sure what throws me off more. The fact that Rowan’s idea makes mine pale in comparison or the burst of passion in his voice that I haven’t heard before. It’s like someone plugged him in and turned on his consciousness. His previous scowl is gone, replaced by the smallest smirk on his face as he stares up at the projector. The brightness in his eyes brings out a beautiful shade of honey brown I’d yet to see.
“Backward?We’ve never had a ride like that before.”
“Obviously.” He states in a flat tone that makes me feel like I have the IQ of a pea. “Your idea is a good starting point, but we need to up the stakes. Next.” He dismisses me with nothing but a wave of his hand.
I want to be angry at Rowan for completely hacking away at my idea until it became a completely different concept but I can’t find it in me to be anything but excited. I never even considered a backward roller coaster before.
He wants me to raise the stakes? Fine. But he might need a ladder to reach the levels I’m willing to go.
I raise my chin and retake my seat beside Rowan. I’m stuck sitting closer to him than before and I can only blame the Creator next to me for shoving my chair as far from him as possible. It’s not as if my presentation failure was contagious.
I clutch onto my pen in a death grip throughout the entire meeting. Every time Rowan readjusts his leg, sparks shoot up my body straight to my heart. I’m tempted to go snag someone else’s seat during our bathroom break but that would be ridiculously immature of me. It’s only his leg after all.
Then why do you blush every time his body grazes yours?
My pen stabs through multiple pages of my notebook.
The other presenters go up one by one, discussing a broad range of topics from a couple new rides to a new hotel based on a Dreamland movie. I’m thankful that I went first because with each presentation, Rowan’s frown deepens. He furiously writes notes and treats each presenter like they’re on the stand with his line of questioning. The feedback he gave me pales in comparison to his other severe comments.
There’s a collective sigh of relief as the last person finishes their closing statement.
“The presentations were subpar at best.” Rowan’s voice carries more bite than usual. He stands and buttons the front of his suit. “I want you all to stop wasting my time and come prepared with ground-breaking ideas that leave me wowed. If I continue to find your proposals lacking, then I’ll be forced to find people willing to get the job done right the first time. Consider this your first and last warning.”
The Creator next to me swallows loudly. I glance over at him to find a sheen of sweat dripping down his forehead. I’m somewhat thankful I’m seated farther away from him based on the smell coming off him.
“Until further notice, employees will be expected to work twelve-hour days to increase productivity and creativity.”
“Will we receive a pay raise?” someone in the back pipes up.
Rowan’s blank stare sends a chill down my spine. “Am I supposed to reward you all for being average?”
Oh my freaking God. Did he really say that?
Rowan’s frustration, although slightly understandable, isn’t justified. The Creators aren’t used to coming up with ideas at such a fast pace. To present every Friday on a new concept is tough. I’m even struggling, not that I’ll admit it to anyone.
“Raises are earned, not given.” Rowan leaves the conference room without a goodbye.
We all sink into our chairs.
Jenny clears her throat. “So that was a lot to unwrap. Are there any questions?”
