Aurora
I wake up at 4am and get ready for my morning shift at the post office, this job isn’t as exhausting as the one at the library, but after what happened yesterday at the bar, I don’t feel like moving an inch, my whole body is aching and sore. ‘You need the money Aurora’, I remind myself and sigh in frustration. After Michael left yesterday, I cleaned the blood on my lips and applied some ointment for my bruises, they weren’t exactly bad and I would be able to cover them with some light makeup but it still physically hurt to move. Then I made my way to mom’s room and cried, she wasn’t awake though and that was for the best. If she knew I was hurting, she’d be sad and it would take a toll on her health.
I sluggishly drag myself out of the bed and brush my teeth lazily looking at myself in the mirror, the girl that looks back at me, is the one I don’t recognize. All the life has left my eyes and my body feels just as useless, it’s like my life is gone into autopilot, all I do is work all day. No socializing, no phone calls, no fucking ‘life’. I rinse my mouth in frustration and take a bath. I get dressed in my ragged uniform of eight years, and wait for Amelia to arrive. Exactly at 5am she opens the door with the spare keys I gave her and smiles up at me, “Hey, good morning” I give her a soft smile “good morning, I won’t be going to the bar tonight. So, you can leave early” she looks at me for a beat, and I know she has questions but she doesn’t voice them, “okay” she replies and I leave.
My shift at the post office starts at 5:30am, I am a postal assistant here and my job is pretty easy, make a list of all the letters that have been delivered, write the senders and recipients names and address, then pass it to the sealing counter next to me, I look up at the clock. I have to be at the library at 7am, typically I wouldn’t be this restless but Mrs. Hemmingway warned me to be there on time and I don’t want to lose my second job in a span of twenty-four hours. I return to my work and write as quickly as I possibly can, my fingers hurt by the time I finish and release an exhausted sigh. I look at the time, its 6:30am, ‘I can grab some quick breakfast and then head for the library’. I pick up my bag and open it to find my granola bar, I am about to take it out when the white business card catches my attention. I haven’t decided if I want to call him yet, the only time I’m free now is in the evenings, the library takes most of my time in the morning and afternoon and pays well enough for my time. I can’t exactly quit a job if the salary isn’t enough for paying off my medical bills.
I walk out of the postal office and make my way to the only breakfast place in the town, “The Jimmy’s” even though the place is way out of my budget, I have a little deal with the shop owner. Every month, when the library throws away the books that aren’t sold, I give them to old uncle Enrico and in return he saves a croissant and a pastry, for me. It isn’t a fair deal by a long shot and I know Enrico is doing it more out of the kindness of his heart, it’s people like him that make me believe that the world isn’t all that bad and there is always hope for a better future.
“Good morning my darling!” Enrico exclaims as I enter inside the little breakfast corner, he is a man in his early seventies but has the energy of a teenager. With his white beard and thick white hair, Enrico is like the grandfather I never had the chance to meet. I smile widely at him, “Good morning Rico, how come you get always get younger with time?” I ask and he smirks at me and winks “ones you find true happiness, it takes a toll on your health” Rico says and hands me my breakfast. “Thank you, Rico for everything” I say and he shakes his head, “Don’t mention it, bella” (translation: beautiful) I smile at him and turn to leave. I walk out with a sense of positivity and renewed contempt. Because even if Nash
Its currently 12:30pm and I am pacing back and forth in the library. I got here five minutes before it was 7am and Mrs. Hemmingway was pretty pleased with me. I counted the box, unloaded the books and placed them at their respective shelves and now I’m waiting for customers. Even during the age of internet, the library does great, and me being the only employee here, I don’t exactly have to spilt money, I get all of it. 12:40pm and I still haven’t made a decision yet, I stare at the white card in my hand and bite down on my lip, what if he offers me a job of the cleanup crew? Shit! That’d be so humiliating. I shake my head, Michael is many this, but cruel, isn’t one of them.
“What’s going on Aurora? I’ve been watching you since morning, you look stressed” I shriek as Mrs. Hemmingway makes her way towards me. “Oh my God! You scared me” I tell her and release a sigh of relief, “It’s nothing, I just got a job offer and I am contemplating if I should take it” Mrs. Hemmingway frowns, “don’t you already have, like… three jobs?” she asks with a raised eyebrow.
I hesitate, “Ahh… I quit the one at the bar” my gaze slides down at the floor, “Oh! Thank god!” she says, clearly pleased, my eyes snap back to her and I raise my eyebrows in question, “That bar wasn’t the right place for you anyway” she says nonchalantly and waves her hand in the air.
“I wanted to tell you that earlier but you needed the money, so I didn’t bring it up” she shrugs “anyway, if it has nothing to do with a bar, then you should definitely take a look at what they have to offer”. I blink at her, is she for real? That is probably the sweetest thing Mrs. Hemmingway has said so far, this day keeps getting better at better, maybe I should call him.
I look at the clock again, 12:59pm, it’s now or never, “Do you mind if I go into your office for some privacy?” I ask hopefully, “Sure, go ahead, I’ll be right here”. I nod and open the back- office doors, I gently close them behind me and take a deep breath, okay… here goes nothing. I copy the number from the card quickly and press the call button, it rings ones, twice and then a sweet voice drifts through the phone, “Michael Calloway’s office, how can I help you?” the lady on the other end asks, “Hi, this is Aurora Sinclair, Mr. Calloway had a job proposition for me” I tell her.
“Hold on a second” the line goes on hold and my nerves kick in, what if he changed his mind? What if he thinks I’m not worth the trouble? As I wait for the call to reconnect, questions of uncertainty plague my mind and my self-esteem shrinks. “Hello miss, are you still there?” the sweet voice says and I relax. “Yes, yes” I say quickly, “Okay, Mr. Calloway is busy right now in a business meeting. But he says, he’d like to meet you personally to discuss the offer. Are you free this evening at around 5:30pm?” I frown, a personal meeting? Why? I was already dreading this phone call as it is. I would probably have a panic attack if I see him again, ‘my mother’s pale face comes into view’ and I gulp.
“Yes, I’m free” I say because I’m not doing this for me, I’m doing this for my mother, for the one person who’s fighting death, just so I wouldn’t be left alone. “Great!” the woman says enthusiastically, “I’ll send the address of the building on your phone number” “alright” I speak in a low voice and she disconnects the phone. What have I gotten myself into?
Aurora I change into a pair of black jeans and a plane white boat neck shirt with my denim jacket and converse shoes. It’s been a while since I bought something for myself, I never really had a chance to go outside anyway, so I never bothered to upgrade my wardrobe. Now, as I stand in front of Michael’s office building, doubt creeps in, the whole building looks like the epitome of elegance. Without even entering inside, I know I’m going to stick out like a sour thumb. I take a deep breath and mutter to myself, “you can do this” with renewed confidence, I make my way to the glass doors of the building, they automatically slide open at my arrival and I stride inside. My jaw drops to the floor as I take in my surroundings, well… damn! This place is even more futuristic than I thought before. The floors and ceilings are all covered in white glistening marble, while the receptionist office and the couches scattered around are all plane black, there are modern steel chande
Michael I see as the shock leaves her face and she compose herself, closing her mouth and bringing her eyes to meet mine, “Don’t you think that is a bit too much money for an assistant?” she asks warily, she’s right. It is too much money for a woman who has no experience what so ever, but I saw her house yesterday and every single bone in my body doesn’t want to leave her alone in a situation like that. It looked horrible, empty and soulless not like the girl I left behind at all. Besides, I know Aurora, for all the bullshit things she did to me, she has always been a smart girl, a quick learner and a great organizer. It pains me to say that I still care about her wellbeing even after all these years and after all the lies she spewed at me, but this time around, I won’t make the same mistake, I will never keep my heart in line for her. “I will be expecting great results from you miss Sinclair, so no, I don’t think the money exceeds the amount of workload I’ll be putt
Aurora To say his words weren’t humiliating was the understatement of the year, I knew my outfit wasn’t exactly work friendly but he didn’t have to point that out. I needed new clothes, asap. So, after I left his office, I went to the nearest thrift store and bought some cheap work clothes, they weren’t tattered or faded, in fact they were better than anything I owned right now. I also had to do something about my job at the library, of course I wouldn’t continue there, I had to quit but without a two-week notice, I am not sure if Mrs. Hemmingway would be happy. I sighed, I kind of have to face the music sooner rather than later, why bother? I walked to the library because I couldn’t afford to waste money on a cab, now that I finally had ‘work appropriate’ attire to wear. When I got back, Mrs. Hemmingway was stacking up the last of books and was getting ready to close the shutter, I went up to her and she asked “how did the interview go?” without looking up, li
Aurora The next day I woke up with renewed excitement rather than dread, since my job at the post office was on alternate days, I didn’t have to get up earlier than necessary. The reporting time for ‘Calloway Constructions’ was at 8am, so I got up exactly at 6:30am and went about my business. I was standing in front of the floor length mirror at 7am with only my bra and panties thinking about what I should wear today. I wanted him to take me seriously and know that I was just as serious about this job, so I picked up a crisp white shirt and folded its sleeves to end right below my forearm. I paired it with knee length black skirt and the only black pumps I owned, to give it an all business look I wore simple pearl earrings and styled my hair into sleek high ponytail. Nothing too flashy, simple in a regal manner, I winked at my reflection in the mirror and gave the woman a thumps up, I applied light makeup to cover up my freckles and painted my lips cherry red. Well…
Michael‘It wasn’t a lie’, what wasn’t a lie? Our friendship? Our bond? Or her love for me? Because from where I am standing, all I see is lies and deceit. But maybe… I grit my teeth, no! she’s playing games with me again, but this time around, I know what kind of a woman she is and I’ll damned if I let her walk all over me, again. I open my hidden liquor cabinet from the bottom of my desk and remove a bottle of vintage bourbon, filling my glass I walk towards the couch on the far left of my office. I close my eyes, take a long sip of my bourbon and release a shuddering breath,“Where are you taking me?” she asked, sitting behind me on my ‘Royal Enfield Bullet 350’, “somewhere special” I reply as I maneuver my way through the curvy path. Aurora has her delicate arms wrapped around my waist and her front is pressed up against my behind. Over the last six months Aurora and I
Aurora A week had passed since I joined ‘Calloway Constructions’ and everything seemed to have settled down, I was able to maneuver my way through the system smoothly, the emails were on point, I took proper notes during meetings and in addition to all of that, I even delivered Michael his coffee, lunch and went to collect his laundry on Wednesday. Michael refused to speak more than two words with me and I was glad for the reprieve, I couldn’t handle him being an asshole to me 24/7. Monday morning, Michael asked me to be there for one of his site visits at 7am, I had to put in an emergency leave at the post office to make that happen. Michael also asked me to wear comfortable footwear because apparently ‘the conditions there aren’t favorable’ I rolled my eyes at the email he sent me. This is what he’s been doing all week, sending me lengthy emails with so many details, it’s hard to remember every single word from it, this man frustrates me. I reach at the giv
Michael Red hot rage, those are the only words that can describe my current mood, Ryker should not have touched what was always meant to be mine. He is my best friend, he should have known better, and ‘beautiful’? who gave him the right to call her that? If I didn’t respect him as an individual, I would have killed him on the spot but I respect his work ethic too much to damage his image. So, I let it slide, just this ones. The whole day went by with me barking orders and throwing tantrum at my staff, I couldn’t help it, she fucks up my mind to no end. At some point, there is a knock on my door and I groan in frustration, “Come in!” I shout and in comes my beauty with her red hair tied in a bun, navy blue skirt that ends just above her knees and cream-colored long sleeve see through shirt that shows off her ample breasts. I haven’t seen a single women who carries professional wear as graciously as Aurora does, everything about her screams ‘here for business’ and it p
AuroraThat went horribly, I never wanted to yap about my issues to him and I certainly didn’t want to look like a mess in front of him, the only reason I went there, was because I didn’t want Michael to do anything irrational about the whole ‘Cole Ryker’ fiasco. Instead, I ended up having a therapy session with the last person I thought that would give a damn about my mental health, but the truth is, I needed to vent, I needed to talk, I needed someone to listen to me for ones, not for sympathy but just for the sake of being there for me. I couldn’t hold it back any longer than I already did, it felt good to just… let go.I went home that day to find Amelia sitting beside my mother’s frail body, rubbing some ointment on her forehead, when I stood near the door Amelia looked up and gave me a sad smile. I immediately knew, mom wasn’t doing well today, actually she isn’t doing well for the last entire year, but now,