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“Come on, man, she just started two hours ago. She had no work yet to even apply any ethics. All I’m saying is, you were a little harsh. It was a tough morning and I think you let it get the best of you with Olivia.”
I looked at him in confusion and shook my head as the elevator continued its ascent to the top floor. Eric was the only one in this building who could push back. We went way back and had earned each other’s trust a long time ago. And as much as it pained me to admit, Eric was really good at his job. The best, really. He also had great business sense. And great people sense. But he had this habit of trying to get under my skin when we talked. He did it in a way where I didn’t even know what he was talking about sometimes.
“What on earth are you talking about?”
The elevator door slid open on our floor, and he followed me to my office.
“You know what I mean,” he said, dropping down onto the charcoal couch in front of the large bank of windows. I walked to my chair and sat down behind the large blonde wood desk, certain I had no idea what he meant. “Olivia didn’t have a chance to show you what she can do yet. I mean, yeah, she could havetriedto do something during the crisis but—”
“Nobuts, Eric. You know that,” I cut him off as I spun in my chair to face him, leaning forward with my elbows on my thighs. “That was Olivia’s perfect time to show me what she can do. And I wasn’t asking her to actually fix anything. She just started, I’m not an idiot, I know there are limitations. But she could have acted like a team player. She could have asked if there was anything she could do to help, instead of shrinking into the corner. I mean, hell, I expected Lucy to know the company’s motto, but Olivia could have even answered that question. That’s something she should know. I’m just asking for basic things here, really.”
Eric sighed, and mirrored my body language before dropping his head.
“I still think you were a little harsh,” he finally said, looking up at me. “I think you should loosen up a bit more. Take it easy on the staff. Good reporters don’t grow on trees, you know.”
He stood to leave, but as his hand was on the handle, he turned back toward me.
“Also, it wouldn’t kill you to have some fun once in a while, you know?”
I couldn’t stop the smile from turning up the corner of my lips.
“Oh, believe me, I am.” He looked confused and shook his head, but I chose not to elaborate.
He huffed out a light chuckle as he walked out the door, shutting it and finally leaving me in the quiet. I shuffled through my desk and found a bottle of painkillers, popping a couple in my mouth and washing them down with cold coffee.
I allowed myself a few minutes of a break as I walked to look out the window and down at the busy street below. I briefly closed my eyes and saw copper hair and hazel eyes burning back at me.
Chapter 2
Olivia
Ineverlikedbeingthe new girl.
I didn’t like it in high school, not in college, and definitely not at work. When you were the new girl, there were a lot of eyes on you. Whispers floated around you. Rumors started. It was just a whole thing, really.
But sometimes, you have to be the new girl. I was just going to have to suck it up. Like today.
I felt a little crumpled after my conversation, if you could call it that, with Ben Oviatt. A deep sigh escaped my lips as his harsh words about my lack of participation swirled around in my head. I tried to empty my body of all of its oxygen. I needed a full replacement. That little experience wasn’t easy, and I needed a reset to move forward.
Barely a moment later, Lucy was standing in front of me. She looked like the most cool and collected woman. I bet she didn’t try to hide in corners of busy rooms. And you know what? Neither did I. Anymore. There was definitely no hiding now. Every other pair of eyeballs in the room was staring at me. Some eyes looked kind and sympathetic. Some looked at me like I was just as useless as Ben said.
“Hey there, Olivia. I was expecting you today, but I’m so sorry about your, uh, welcoming party.” Lucy swept her arm across the newsroom, which was still reeling from the presence of Ben Oviatt. I saw people starting to visibly ease and catch their breath as the numbers that were still splashed across the monitors started to improve. It wasn't easy to maintain a news source’s reputation, but Ben Oviatt truly handled the situation.
“What a shitty first day. I wish we could have welcomed you under better circumstances,” Lucy added, expressing a sheepish look as she signaled me to follow her around the newsroom. Keeping up with her was a challenge. She was tall, her legs were long and her strides chewed up the ground. Lucy also seemed effortlessly chic in that cool girl newsroom way. Her black skinny jeans were the perfect amount of faded. I noticed the green flats she wore were surprisingly expensive for a news reporter. Her green and white striped short sleeve sweater was the perfect balance between casual and professional and perfectly highlighted her long dark brown hair and olive skin. As she confidently strode around the newsroom, I realized that I pretty much wanted to be Lucy. She was clearly respected, both by her peers and Ben.
She stopped abruptly and turned toward me. Oh shit, she had said something to me, didn’t she? Right, she was saying that today was terrible.
I shook my head, and she turned to start walking again.
“No, I get it. I’m sure there are more tough days than easy ones here. I expect it.” I didn’t want to be a burden to anyone. There were still plenty of stressed-out expressions on people’s faces.
The newsroom floor was huge. Way bigger than where I worked last. Beyond the main area, where Ben Oviatt had saved the day, there were editing rooms, production areas, and multiple studio sets. There were some offices that were mostly separated by glass walls. Probably an ode to transparency, or something like that. Ben Oviatt didn’t seem like a person who did anything without a solid reason. He was poetic, to say the least.
“That’s the thing, though, about today, Olivia. Wecouldhave had a normal day if we all got to fact check that story.” After she showed me the dressing room, she walked us to a room that was a little tamer than the last one. It had spaced-out desks with low partitions.
“And here’s your station,” she said, extending her hand. I was a little shocked. The area was actually spacious, clean, and decently lit, with a bank of windows on one side. “I sit over there.” Lucy pointed to a desk on the other side of the room and perched on my desk.
“I’ve never really had my own space like this before at work. I’ve always been crammed in some dusty corner,” I confessed, sinking into the really nice office chair and spinning to look at the even nicer twin monitors on the desk. I had been totally thrown off my game after the whole Ben Oviatt situation earlier, but I was brought back to reality. I remembered that this gig was something I had wanted for a long time.
