My bizarre thoughts and confused mindset was shaken when Emma pulled me,
"It's for the CEO and other higher-ups. You just had to run into CEO Marc out of all people."
"What?CEO Marc?" I blinked at Emma with confusion.
"Yes, that man is the CEO of our company. Avoid him as much as you can. He's very difficult and rigid." She pushed back her glasses and I could see her red freckles.
"And that rigid man chose me for the job? Am I that qualified? Or does he have an ulterior motive?" My head couldn't stop thinking about it until I reached my office and saw the employees.
"Hello! I'm Irene Hensley. I'm looking forward to work with you." I said as I slightly bowed in front of the new faces.
"Oh! You're the new employee. I'm Sophia. Nice to meet you!" An Edgy looking girl stood up with a warm smile and walked closer to me. Her coffee like wavy hair strands were resting on her shoulder.
"Come with me! Your desk is over there. Ah! Let me get the team leader." She left me in front of my desk to call the team leader.
Everyone seemed nice yet I still felt cold gazes behind my back.
I stood up and personally prepared to greet the team leader when I saw Sophia coming in.
My eyes were generally wide open to the fullest extent as I saw that same blond hair and appealing face from the cafe.
"So M-" He froze after glancing at my face and blinked twice to continue, "Ah! Ms Hensley, good to have you here. Please ask me if you need any help." His silky golden hair strand moved to his brows as he nodded. His gaze was requesting me to act like I didn't know him.
"Thank you, sir! I'll be in your care from today." Giving a slight bow, I went along with him. Half of my time went by knowing the company's workflows and policies. I lost track of time while getting engaged with the new environment and soon the sun bid it's farewell.
________
There was a dim street light on the road, making it look more gloomy as everyone left a while ago. I stared at the vending machine, waiting for my drinks to come out when I felt a cold touch on my neck. A jolt went down my back as I touched my neck and cringed back to see That cafe guy smiling with a can in his hand.
"Ah! The bar- I mean team leader."
"It's fine! You don't have to be formal when we're alone." He handed me the can and went for another drink.
"Looks like it's my second treat from you. That was quite a surprise." My hands felt cold from touching the can.
"I'm sorry I had to act like that. It-"
I cut him off saying, "No, it was all over your face. It must've been a secret." The can made a hiss as I popped it open while sitting on a bench with him.
"Not particularly. That cafe belongs to my older brother. I only help out sometimes when he's not around. And you happened to see me on a day like that." He softly chuckled.
"Since you're the team leader now, may I know your name?"
"Noah! Noah Adam." The dimple in his right cheek was clearly visible since I was sitting beside him.
"Irene, nice to meet you!" I offered him my palm for a handshake and saw him accepting it.
"You must be really qualified to become a team leader at this young age!"
"I'm 33. What do you mean young?" He scoffed.
I swung my head at him in shock, "What? You're my senior and I was being informal, thinking you were younger than me. You look like you're in your 20s"
"You don't have to be formal with me. Let me guess, you're 25?"
"No! I'm 29. Sorry to disappoint you." My mind suddenly got lost in thoughts while talking about age.
"Umm...I was thinking, what's the name of our CEO?"
"Everyone calls him CEO Marc. I'm not aware of his full identity but I heard he took this position at a very early age. What's with the sudden question?" He stared at me with curiosity.
"I ran into him when I got here so, he just came to mind." I stretched out my hands as I checked my phone to see it was 12.00 past.
"Oh god! It's late. I'm sorry I also kept you here with me until this late." I stood up in hurry and glanced around to see if there was any taxi.
"It's not a problem for me. But can you go home alone? Should I call a taxi?" His eyes looked at me with concern.
"No, I live nearby so I'll be fine. See you tomorrow, team leader." I politely walked away without troubling him further.
The road was quiet as no taxis were in sight. As I was walking, a black Mercedes stopped right beside me while making me twitch from panic. When I was about to rush off the window slid down, exposing the slicked-back hair and that cold gaze from the elevator. It was the CEO.
"If you are that energetic on your first day, you should've used it to work instead of wasting 2 hours gossiping with others." The deep cold voice gave me goosebumps all over my body.
"I-I'm sorry, sir! There was a lot to know so we lost track of time." I held back my urge to argue and spoke politely since he was the CEO and I didn't want to lose my job on the first day.
"Maybe your team leader has too much free time on his hand. I will make sure to take care of it."
"Excuse me!" I frowned when His lips curled into a smirk as he closed the windows and drove away, leaving me in vexation.
Not so long after he left, a Taxi stopped by to ask, "Ms do you need a ride?"
"Yes, to XXX street, please."
________
Tiny water drops fell on the floor as I stared at the mirror after taking a cold shower. I slowly moved closer to the mirror to place my fingers on the glass,
"Did he call the Taxi for me? But why? Is he Ethan? But their last names don't match and that cold gaze. The Ethan I knew never looked at people like that. He wasn't that tall either."
A long sigh came out of my mouth while thinking about all the disconnected points as I slipped inside my blanket.
"I can't let this slide. I need proof. " I squeezed my eyes shut with the thoughts of investigating this 'CEO Marc' From tomorrow to ease my curiosity.