***Cindy***
Kyle?
"Do you have a problem with the CEO?" Olivia asked as she turned in my direction. "Wh..what..uhh..uhh..I don't understand, Mrs. Preston," I stuttered. Olivia looked at me with disgust as she asked what it was that I didn't understand.
"I was on the phone with Kyle Preston, the CEO, and you said 'Kyle?' as if you were shocked to hear his name, so that brings me to my question again. Do you have a problem with the CEO?" I stood there as confused as ever. I had said my thoughts out loud, and now I didn't know how to defend myself.
I was shocked when Olivia mentioned the name Kyle, the same name as my one-nighter, and it shook me a little. Who would have known that the same name I had left behind in Beverly Hills would follow me to New York City, let alone be the name of the CEO of KP Fashion? What a coincidence!
Surely it cannot be the same person I met back at home. I remembered the face I had seen as the boss of KP Fashion when I had read about the company. It was Olivia's face that had been shown all over the internet, but here I was, hearing that I had another boss who was the CEO, someone with the same name as the person that had taken my virginity. How funny!
I quickly snapped back to reality as I remembered that I had not responded to Olivia. "No Mrs. Preston, I have no problem with the CEO."
"Good to know that. I take it you have been briefed already and have met the team of experts you will be working with?" Olivia asked.
"Yes, I have. They are all friendly and…" I responded before she cut me short. "Great! You can head back to your work studio. If there is anything, I will send for you."
How rude! I wondered if that was how she spoke to every one of her employees. I turned to leave her office but somehow, I missed a step and crashed her set of coffee mugs. My eyes widened with shock at how everything came crashing on the floor. "How can you be so clumsy, Cindy?" I asked myself.
I looked to see Olivia's eyes fixed on me as her face turned red with anger. "Are you blind or something? Did you not see my expensive mugs before you clumsily bumped into them?" she asked furiously, "I..uhmm…I….I'm…so..sorry," I stuttered again. What is wrong with me? It's my first day at work and I seemed to have entered Olivia's black book.
"You had better be sorry for yourself as well," she retorted. She called for the services of the maintenance staff to clean the mess I had created, as I walked out of her office hurriedly. I went back to the studio where Amelia was waiting for me. "How did it go!" She asked eagerly upon seeing me. "It did not go so well," I replied, feeling a bit concerned.
"What happened?" She asked again. I told her everything that transpired between the Managing Director, Olivia, and me. I told her how clumsy I acted and how I wished for the floor to open and swallow me. Amelia tried her best to calm me down, and we proceeded to start the work for the day.
KP Fashion Week was fast approaching and there wasn't ample time to get the designs that would be used ready. I shared my ideas with the team, and they were all pleased to work with them. My sketches were beautiful and creative, and I couldn't have been more proud of myself.
Amelia explained that before any sketch is designed it must have been approved by her, who was the creative director, and the managing director, Oliva. Since she had approved of the sketches I created, she asked that I seek Olivia's approval. I couldn't bring myself to face Olivia again, so I asked one of my team members to go in my stead.
It wasn't long before I was called into Olivia's office by her assistant. "Not again," I muttered. I composed myself as I got to the door of her office before opening. "This is not why you were employed, Miss Baker," Olivia started leaving me confused. What have I done this time? I was pretty sure I didn't break any of her coffee mugs again.
"I'm confused, Mrs Preston. What are you talking about?" I asked, seeking clarity. "You seem to be always confused," she retorted before slamming my sketches on the table. "Can you explain what these are?" They were my sketches, obviously, but she looked as if she needed to hear them from my mouth directly.
"These are the sketches I and my team members came up with for the fashion week," I replied boldly. Olivia looked at me like I had gone mad. "You are the senior fashion illustrator and every illustration and sketch for designs has to be duly supervised before bringing them to me, but you want me to teach you your damn job!"
"This is not fit for the coming fashion, Miss Baker. I would expect you and your team to come up with something more befitting before the end of today," Oliva said angrily. What? Something more befitting? What was wrong with the sketches? I wanted to ask her to be more specific about the changes she wanted me to make, or to at least give me an idea of what her expectations were, but seeing her so furious made me voice out an 'Okay Mrs. Preston' before leaving her office in a hurry.
I knew I was going to have a long day in the studio and I had better get to work already. I got back and told Amelia of the new development. Her face fell and I knew something was wrong. "What is going on, Amelia?" I asked, wearing a worried look on my face.
"It's Mrs. Preston. She's a hard nut to crack," Amelia answered, and I knew in my heart that I was in for a 'not-so-smooth' ride in KP Fashion.