June 29th 2021

Brownsville, Brooklyn. 7:30AM.

"mom! We've talked about this." Alex sighed.

"I'm just saying, if you're going to throw your life away, then do it with dignity." Mrs Brown suggested.

"I love my job." Alex said blatantly.

"Yes mom, she loves her job." a voice came.

"shutup Kate." Alex yelled.

"mom!"

"Alex be nice to your sister."

"Are we done?" Alex said rolling her eyes.

" No. When are you bringing someone home? "

"oh no! Not this again." Alex groaned.

"yeah Alex when are you getting married?" Kate pushed.

"shouldn't you be in school?" Alex angrily asked.

"I knew something was off. Shouldn't you be in school?" Mrs Brown chided.

" I don't have classes today."

" then find something better to do and stop bothering me." Alex barked.

" Alex don't change the topic."

"Mom please, it's too early to have this discussion. " Alex groaned.

" What? I'm not saying anything wrong. It's high time you focus more on your life than work."

"I'm late for work. I'd see you later mom." Alex said picking up her purse from the sofa.

"Williams, talk to your daughter. She isn't getting any younger and so am I" Mrs Brown turned to face Alex's father who was halfway down the stairs.

"Count me out." Mr Brown raised his hands in surrender.

" Thanks daddy."Alex looked at him in appreciation.

" mom, if you don't mind, I'd be on my way now."

"what are you? The computer lady?" Mrs Brown called after Alex.

" it's called 'A receptionist' mom."

" I don't see the difference."

'Gosh you guys are so annoying.' Alex whispered between gritted teeth.

"I'd see you later mom. Bye" Alex said shutting the door. She breathed a sign of relief as she made her way to her car.

All Alex's mother ever spoke about after Alex's last relationship, was her marriage. She wasn't playing an understanding mother and it was frustrating Alex. She had bigger plans and marriage was not one of them. At least that's what she discovered after her breakup with Frank. She wasn't ready for another dramatic relationship. She needed to focus on her career now that her hands aren't tied.

              *********

"Good morning miss Brown." The personal Assistant of COOPER'S INTERNATIONAL greeted Alex as she made her way into the building. She had a warm welcoming smile on her face that Alex couldn't resist.

"Good morning to you Tracy." Alex smiled back at her as she approached her new office, which was a few feet away from the reception table which she once occupied until today.

" uhmm... Miss Brown?" Tracy called.

"Yes ma'am? "Alex replied turning to face Tracy. She was trying her best to stay calm. Following the discussion she had with her mother earlier that morning, Alex could not wait to get busy with work. It was the only way she could get rid of all her worries.

" You've been promoted..." Tracy announced.

"I know that, I was present, remember?"Turning the door knob, she pushed against her office door gently. But before she could step in, Tracy interrupted.

" This is COOPER'S INTERNATIONAL. You now work at COOPER'S CHOICE."tracy explained.

" COOPER'S CHOICE? on who's orders? "Alex asked, surprised.

" The boss's orders." Tracy smiled.

" I'm an estate manager and not a hotelier. Where's the boss? " Alex asked. She had always wished for this promotion and it was finally here. But she had never imagined it'd be somewhere else. It took her a while to adjust to this place and the view of her office was just perfect. She didn't want to leave.

" He left for urgent work."

Alex was pissed. Why would he leave her unattended to? What was the need changing her location?

Down town

Brownsville's street.

8:30AM

    It was a thirty minutes ride to COOPER'S CHOICE. Until then, Alex had had to drive just fifteen minutes to work. This new change was going to be extra work for her. She parked her black Mercedes Benz SUV in the parking lot of the big building that stood above her. She sighed, pushing her hairs behind her ears, she quickly turned off the ignition of the car and retrieved her purse and laptop bag from the passengers sit.

     Alex got out of her car and made her way to the building. Unlike her former office, Alex wasn't welcomed by the soothing aroma of caffeine . The reception table that was at the far end on her right, was empty. Everyone bustled about their business. She stood at the door taking in the view.

'what are they afraid of.' Alex thought.

     "Miss Alexa J Brown?" A voice called making Alex jump. She turned to find a woman in her mid twenties staring at her. Her blonde hair was held up in a bun and her sparkling coffee brown eyes, screamed excitement. The black suit she wore held onto her body exposing her perfect curves. Her pale white skin complemented her outfit.

     "Emma? Don't scare me like that." Alex said hitting Emma's shoulder softly.

      " I'm kind of your boss right now so respect me baby." Emma smiled giving Alex a pat on the cheek.

       Emma Norman was Alex's bestfriend. They'd been friends since they were kids and attended the same school their whole lives. While Emma was the quiet one who was always bullied, Alex was the exact opposite. She was always getting into fights. She was either beating someone or getting beaten by someone. Either ways, she always protected Emma.

      " Yes ma'am " Alex replied sarcastically.

    " Where's the boss though? Shouldn't I see him first?"

    " Absolutely not! The boss does not like that. I do the job for him." Emma said leading Alex up a couple of stairs and then to the elevator.

    " But that's not professional."Alex objected as they stopped at the twelfth floor of the building.

    " He's the boss. He does what he wants. It's his company, remember? " Emma and Alex walked past some offices and finally stopped in front of a door.

  " He seems arrogant. He shouldn't just toss professionalism out the window simply because he owns the place."

  " This is your office. And please stay off the boss's blacklist. I've got to get back to work. Later miss Brown" Emma blew Alex a kiss before walking away.

   Alex walked into her new office. It wasn't as perfect as she had imagined but it was manageable. It was well furnished and had an air-condition in it. She didn't waste much time accessing the place. She sat at her table, took out her laptop and began to work on the documents she had left over the previous day.

       Alex was typing away on her laptop when she heard a knock.

    'Can this day get any worse?' Alex thought. The sudden change of environment was stressing her out. She just couldn't wait for the day to come to an end.

  " Come in!" she called out.

Emma walked in with a stack of papers and gently placed them on Alex's table.

" The boss wants you to work on these."

  " Finally, something to busy myself with for the week. "  Alex said pulling the pile of papers closer to her to have a proper look at them.

Emma rubbed her forehead knowing fully well that what she was about to say would piss Alex off. " Yeah about that, the boss would be needing them tomorrow."

   " You must be kidding me right?" Alex said amidst laughter.

     " No I'm not." Emma said laughing along.

   " just go through them, summarize it and make it praiseworthy. The boss would use it for his presentation a day after tomorrow. And yes, you should be there as well. "

    " Your boss must be out of his mind. I just got here and I have a life too you know " Alex protested standing up from her sit.

    " I know it's hard for you and I know you'll adjust. Just give it time." Emma patted Alex's shoulder before leaving Alex to work.

     Alex sighed as she sat to work on the documents immediately Emma left. It was going to be a long day for her.