The Virgin Vagabond

The heat was killing her that awful day, in the end of July. Kesia’s top was sticking to her back. All she wanted was to remove the blazer but she was just about to enter the building where the interview was, the one at the newspaper. Lately, she had started feeling unhappy at the office. So sick of her boss, the one with the transparent face who could never really keep his eyes where they belonged. It wasn’t hard to see straight into his brain. He was disgusting. Kesia felt nauseous just thinking about it. It made this interview even more important. She really wanted to get away. She needed to make a good impression. Her pulse quickened when she thought about it and she had to stop to wipe the sweat off her forehead.  ”Kesia!” The voice came from nowhere. She looked around but couldn’t see anyone who looked like they wanted to talk to her. Then, she heard it again. ”Kesia!” It came from an open window. Kesia carefully walked closer to discretely see why they called her name. Inside the building was an older lady, maybe in her 50’s who were wearing a white button-down skirt and a tight skirt. A cigarette was casually dangling from the corner of her mouth and her hair was pulled back in a high bun. ”f**k!” She exclaimed before her eyes fell upon Kesia. ”Who the hell are you?” ”I’m sorry, I…” Kesia tried to think of something good to say. ”I heard my name being called and I thought maybe you wanted something.”  She immediately felt like an i***t. ”Why would I want something with you? I don’t even know you.” ”No, but you called my name. Kesia is generally quite rare.” The woman looked at her in silence for a moment. ”You know what? I do want to talk to you. Come inside.” Kesia looked at her watch. She was supposed to be at the interview in just five minutes. She didn’t have time for this. ”Ehm, I have an interview…” ”Never mind about that! Just come inside.” Kesia couldn't bring herself to say no to this woman. It was something about her that made her feel inferior. "Ok" she mumbled and entered the building through the heavy gate next to the window. Inside, there was a hallway that must have been the mother of all other hallways. It  was spacious and completely made from marble. She marveled at it and looked up where she saw a beautifully painted ceiling and decorations. The walls was covered in paintings and mirrors. All of a sudden a door opened and a man came out. He gestured for her to enter through the door and Kesia followed his instructions obediently. Inside the apartment, the scary woman waited for her. Without saying anything she pointed Kesia towards an armchair in which she sat down. "My name is Cornelia von Arnold" the woman said and sat down in an armchair across from Kesia, "and I have a job for you" she pointed at Kesia with the cigarette which she had now removed from the corner of her mouth.  "How is that possible? We don't know each other at all. Don't you want to know more about me before you hire me?" "All I need to know is that your name is Kesia. It's a pretty rare name and I simply don't have tome to find another. The job starts tomorrow." "Why does my name matter?" "It's the name of Jobs second daughter, in the Old Testament." "And why is that relevant?" "Don't worry about that, that is my concern." Kesia chose to let it go. For now. "What kind of job is it that you have for me?" Cornelia looked at Kesia and inhaled a smoke from her cigarette. "As my personal assistent. Your assignment is to keep my private life in order. Everything from my calendar and my meetings to what I should eat, where and when. I also need to update my wardrobe so you will be doing some shopping as well." Kesia leaned back in the soft armchair. She looked around for a few seconds while thinking about all this. This could be her new workplace. An upperclass apartment in the center of the city. Her eyes swept across the velvet drapes that reminded her of Gone with the wind and then she saw the fireplace with mantelpiece that looked a lot like the one in Netherfield Park.  "When do you need an answer?" she asked and looked at Cornelia again, who was just about to light up a new cigarette.  "Now would be great" "Now? But I have another interview, just around the corner. I'm actually a little late..." she said and started getting up. "No, no, sweetheart, we cancelled it. This job will suit you much better." "Cancelled? How could you have cancelled it?" Cornelia laughed a little and shook her head. "I'm sorry, I keep forgetting we don't know each other all that well yet. I own all the buildings in this block and I rent out to the companies that reside in them. It just took a minute for Conrad here (she made a sweeping gesture in the direction of the man in the doorway) to find out where you were headed." Kesia felt slightly violated. She had only known Cornelia for five minutes and already she had taken control of her whole life. Cornelia landed forward in her armchair.  "I can promise you that you will earn more money with me than you would ever do on that magazine." Kesia raised her eyebrows. "Really? Well then, where do I sign?" "Why didn't you tell her the whole truth?" Conrad asked as soon as Kesia had left the apartment. "Because I need to get to know her first, we need to build a trustworthy relationship before I tell her." "I see. Just remember we have a limited amount of time. It starts next week and you still don't have a female player." "I'm very well aware, Conrad. Don't worry, she's the right person for the job" said Cornelia and inhaled one last smoke before she put the cigarette out in the ashtray on the windowsill. "It's really remarkable that her name is Kesia and she happened to pass my window at this specific moment. I just couldn't pass on that opportunity." "Isn't it a bit risky to have a player who's name and codename collide? I mean, what the point of having a codename if it's the same as your real name?" Cornelia smiled and looked at her butler. "Because it's the last thing anyone will think. Everyone will assume that her real name is something completely different, no one will believe it's the same." There was a lot of people at The Daisies that night. Kesia could totally see why people were drawn there. It had everything you could want from a quaint little pub and then some. It was small. Check. It was old. Check. It had live music every Friday. Check. They had the best drinks in town. Check. It was a charmin old riverboat. Check. Kesia took a sip from her drink. A classic Cosmo. It was her go-to drink. Whenever she didn't really know what she wanted she ordered a Cosmo. She was never disappointed. "What a crazy thing" Matilda said. "I wish it had been me" she added and took a large sip from her Staropramen. "I know. I can't shake the feeling that I'm being set up. Like, drawn into something really strange. I mean, who does that?" Matilda shrugged. "Rich people. But you said she chose you based on your name? Why?" "She didn't really answer that. I didn't really ask. She just said it was because it was the name of Jobs second daughter, which I already knew of course." "Weird... and she didn't explain more than that?" "No, but I'm going to ask her tomorrow. I'm supposed to be there at 8am." Matilda raised her glass. "Cheers to crazy old ladies!" she said and Kesia also raised her glass. "And the daughters of Job!" she added before touching Matildas glass with her own. The next morning seemed to predict similar weather as the day before. Kesia stood in her walk-in-closet and realized that she had not been given any instruction regarding clothes. What did a personal assistent wear? What did Cornelia expect? After considering her options, she eventually chose a short-sleeved white blouse and a grey pen skirt. The straight dark hair was easily braided and for the lips she chose a light pink color. A quick glance in the mirror was enough to ensure that she was happy with her own appearance. Before she left her apartment she chose a small, black handbag and a pair of matching, high-heeled shoes. Walking down the street she had som time to think of what her first day would be like. Cornelia had told her what her assignments would be but she had not said anything about where to start. Or if she would be given an office, or at least a desk. When she arrived at Cornelias apartment she was again struck by the enormous entrance hall, the mother of all hallways. She smiled a little when she realized that she would walk through this hallway every morning from now on. And then she would be welcomed by Conrad, her new colleague who she couldn't really figure out yet. "Kesia! Welcome!" Cornelia exclaimed when she saw her. Kesia smiled carefully when she realized that Cornelia had not yet been dressed or gotten ready at all. Cornelia herself didn't seem embarrassed at all. "This is your first assignment! Help me get ready. I have a meeting at 8.30 with a tenant and then I'm going straight to the University to hold a lecture. You are of course coming with me. Come on!"  She went into the next room with light steps and Kesia followed her obediently. They came to a dining room with another fireplace and a chandelier like nothing Kesia had ever seen before but she didn't have time to stop and look at it since Cornelia was already moving through a corridor and then turned and entered one of the rooms.  "This is my bedroom" Cornelia said, "we will spend some time in here together since this is where I get ready and prepare myself for lectures, meetings and travels. Your room is right next to this one but we can look at that later." "My room?" "Focus, Kesia! The task at hand is to find suitable clothes for me in there." She pointed to a door which Kesia assumed was the closet. She opened it and realized immediately that it would be a challenge to find anything at all in there.  "And what do you have in mind?" "I have told you what is on my schedule for today, surely you can find something suitable?" Kesia realized that it wasn't just her first assignment but also a test. Slightly hesitantly, she stepped into the closet and tried not to step on anything. The shirts seemed to be to the right and next to them, short-sleeved tops. The temperature outside was still warm so the short-sleeved tops seemed to be the right way to go. Cornelia seemed like a colorful person so Kesia picked out two different alternatives, one light pink and one with blue flowers on it. She showed them both to Cornelia who was sitting on the bed, waiting.  "The one with blue flowers" she said almost immediately.  Kesia hung the blue-flowered one on the closet door and went back into the mess to find something to match it with. After looking around for a few seconds, she assessed that the skirts probably would hang next to the dresses, straight ahead. She looked through the hangers and eventually found a marine blue pen skirt that she brought forward and hung next to the top. "Very good!" Cornelia commented and got up from the bed. She took off her robe and hung it on a hook bu the door eta the bathroom. Kesia wondered if she was expected to help her get dressed as well but it turned out that Cornelia handled that part herself. "What do you think we should do with my hair?" Cornelia asked while inspecting herself in a mirror.  "I think you should wear it down. It makes you look young." Cornelia smiled contently and nodded. "I like the way you think" she said and drew her fingers through her own hair. She turned to Kesia. "Come" she said, "I'll show you your room". She got up and walked out in the corridor again. Kesia hurried after. They went into the room next door and Kesia was immediately struck by how bright it was. The walls were white and the curtains were light green velvet. On the small table next to the window there was a bouquet of roses and in the corner a cute little cupboard. There was also a desk, a couch and a door that Kesia assumed led to a bathroom.  "This room is meant to be your space. In here, you can do your other duties and welcome guests, if it is necessary. On the desk is your new work phone and behind that door is your bathroom. The couch can be turned into a bed, if you ever need to spend the night. Hurry now, we must get to our first meeting."  Kesia followed Cornelia through the corridor again. She felt a little dizzy from all the information and the beautiful room that was hers. She realized that Cornelia had not said anything about what she was supposed to do at the meeting.  "The first meeting was with a tenant, right?" "Exactly, one of the companies who rent the space around the corner. We are going to negotiate a new contract." "And what exactly do you want me to do?" "Take notes" she answered shortly. By the entrance Conrad waited with Cornelias purse and a folder of papers. Kesia was also given an iPad on which she assumed she was supposed to take the notes. After the meeting with the tenant, which had turned out to be one of Kesias favorite restaurants, a black town car came and picked up Cornelia and Kesia. The chauffeur came out from the drivers' seat and went around the car to open the door for both of them. "Good morning, ma'm" he said to Cornelia and then directed his attention to Kesia. "And you must be the new assistent?" Kesia nodded slightly and the chauffeur nodded back politely. "His name is Luke and he is not just my chauffeur, he is also my go-to guy" Cornelia said when they had sat down in the backseat of the car. She took out a small compact and inspected her own face in the tiny mirror to make sure her appearance was acceptable.  "You two will work a lot together so you will have time to get to know each other later" she added while she put the compact away. Kesias eyes met Lukes' in the rearview mirror, she quickly looked away and turned to Cornelia.  "So, what is the lecture about?"  "Being an entrepreneur" Cornelia answered shortly. "What do you want me to do?" "I want you to listen and give me straightforward feedback afterwords."  Kesia nodded. It seemed like an easy enough job for her. Luke slowed down and stopped by the curb right outside the university's building. He quickly jumped out of the car and came around to open their door again.  "Good luck, ma'm. I'll wait for you right here." "Thank you, Lucas" said Cornelia without looking at him. After the lecture Luke drove them to a restaurant where they seemed to know exactly who Cornelia was and where she wanted to sit. A waiter led them to a secluded table in the far end of the restaurant.  "So, what did you think?" Cornelia asked and took a sip of the water that the waiter had just poured into her glass.  "About the lecture? I think the content was interesting and to the point. I learned a lot of new things." "Good to hear but what can I do better?" "You can use the board more, or maybe have a presentation to sort of give the students somewhere to look. When they take notes it's kind of hard for them to know what to put down out of everything you say. A clear structure is essential if you want the listeners to remember certain things. In the end, you had this summary which was good but you can write on the board or include it in a presentation. That way, the students would be reminded of the important things and it would also serve as a sort of 'anchor' to them. It would round up your lecture nicely." Cornelia nodded thoughtfully.  "Anything else?" "Yes, you opened up for questions in the end but if you want to make it more interactive and interesting you could let the students answer each others questions. That way, you would gain a broader perspective and a way for the students to process the new knowledge. You could sort of just contribute with your answer to their questions in the end. They still want to hear your answer of course." Cornelia tapped her lower lip with her index finger while thinking about what Kesia had just said. After a while she inhaled and looked at her new, brutally honest, assistant. She smiled a little. "I'm not used to getting such extensive feedback on my accomplishments. My impression is that people generally don't have the balls to say what they really think. Your feedback will help me a lot. Thank you, Kesia." Kesia felt relieved. She had been worried about Cornelias reaction to the feedback but at the same time she had decided to be completely honest with her. Besides, she was anxious to do a good job. She took a sip of water and played around a little with the cutlery.  "This is a very nice place" she commented, "but why haven't they given us any menus?" "They already know what we want. I always eat the same thing when I'm here and my guest always eat the same thing as I do." "But what if I'm vegan? Or have some kind of allergies?" "You're not. And you don't." She was right. Kesia didn't even ask how she knew that about her. Instead, she decided to change the subject. "So, what exactly is it that Luke does for you besides driving you around? The word 'go-to guy' is quite vague." Cornelia smiled.