Devil, My Boss

CHAPTER 1

I look at my reflection in the mirror; my light brown hair with it's tip barely reaching my chest is slightly wavy and I put on my favorite lip tint to make me look less pale, and also, less boring. I wear my white cropped top with simple white-washed straight jeans and checkered vans. Today, I get to sell one of my paintings to a seemingly big shot buyer. I can't stop smiling ever since I woke up this morning. Scratch that, I can't stop smiling ever since I got that mail from my potential buyer yesterday. I had set my alarm extra early last night because I don't want to be late for my meeting at Madden Café. And even though we have our meeting in the afternoon and still has one hour left, I am already about to head out.

"Heyyyy Pumpkin, I'm gonna buy you a delicious meal tonight", I said to my cat stroking it's soft fur in a loving way.

Pumpkin just yawned and stretched its body lazily, making me giggle.

It's been two years since I started living alone and exactly a year since I adopted Pumpkin. He was once a street cat with no shelter or food. I am so glad I found him when he needed help the most. He's good company and makes my life a little less boring.

I quickly grab my neatly-wrapped painting, my sling bag and my car keys and head towards the door.

As I walk towards my car that is parked outside my apartment, I keep thinking about how lucky I am, because I know how hard it is to sell my paintings these days. One, because I don't have the time to think of new ideas because I am too4 busy working on my final research paper, and two, I have a part-time job as a freelance graphics designer, but since it is a temporary position at a private company, I have to think of more ways to make passive income. I should learn how to be more grateful from now.

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I reached Madden Café 20 minutes later and parked my car in the parking area provided below the huge building. I am really surprised by the ambience that welcomes me as I enter. All the lights are dimly lit and everything from the atmosphere, sound, light and décor just screams modern minimal, but the hint of elegance behind it cannot go unnoticed. It's my first time here and I must say, this is definitely my new favorite Café. I have heard of it before but never had the time to visit. I am already engulfed by a soothing and relaxed sensation. 'TomokoM' clearly has a good taste in eateries, since she suggested we meet in this particular place to talk about my painting.

I look around to see if there's a good table for us to sit, you know, a table that will not make things too awkward for us.

"Are you here alone Miss?" a voice behind me spoke gently but made me jump a little. I quickly turned to see a petite blonde woman in a neat and minimal brown uniform with a name tag 'Cindy' embedded on her chest.

"Umm, no, I am here to meet someone", I replied, tucking my stray strand of hair behind my left ear.

"Oh! So I'm assuming you've made your reservation?" she inquired patiently.

"Actually, no, no reservations-"

"Great! Can I show you around a bit so you can choose your table? We also have an outdoor balcony if that's what makes you more comfortable", she added, stopping my answer mid-sentence.

I look around once more to see if we could sit in a place with no natural lighting. Why? Because no introverted people like a place with natural lighting to meet someone for the first time. Well, maybe it's just me.

"We'll take that", I quickly pointed at the table that is positioned perfectly in a dimly lit corner, a tiny sleek ceiling lamp above casting a warm, cozy light beneath. Perfect!

"Great! You can sit and make yourself comfortable while I go grab your menu", she said, trying to look and sound as friendly as possible.

"Sure" I said, sitting down and carefully placing my painting on the chair next to mine.

I can finally scan the Café again from a different angle. This time, I noticed all kinds of abstract paintings with wooden frames hanging on the walls, some very big and some not too big. I really love everything about this place. Brianna would've said "Totally my vibe".

The same waitress came back smiling brightly at me, with a glass of water and a fancy-looking menu booklet, asking me if I wanted anything else. I just shook my head lightly telling her that we are going to make our order when my 'buyer' arrives before I slowly take a sip from the glass of water that she had just given me.

Now I am wondering what kind of a person 'TomokoM' is. All I know is that she is a woman and that she likes my painting. I actually made this painting when I was reading a book called 'Christine' by Stephen King when I was in my first year of college. It's a picture of a naked woman covered in blood walking on a dark, empty road. I know 'Christine' is actually about a haunted car but I was just playing with my imagination and creativity back then. I was also more creative when I was younger. Now I am 25 and too busy working on my research paper and working part time. I never thought I would sell this particular painting because no one likes it except me. I stumbled upon a website called 'WebPaints' and posted a few of my paintings to sell. Hopefully, this may or may not be the first item I sell on the website. What if my potential buyer suddenly cancels her order at the last minute? And why did she ask to meet me in person?

I look through the menu booklet carefully and gasped internally at the price of their items. Should I just tell her that I already had my lunch and just wants a cup of coffee? I can just eat a burger or two after our meeting. Yes! I think that's a good idea.

Another 20 minutes passed, and the old couple sitting opposite of me are paying their bill and tipping the waitress, telling her how amazing the food is. They seem to know each other pretty well, so I'm guessing they are a regular here.

I look at the time on my watch and on my phone screen. It is exactly 3:25 p.m. The buyer and I decided we meet at 3:30 p.m. sharp. My palms are sweating profusely and I started shaking my legs. I always shake my legs when I am nervous.

Suddenly I can hear a commotion coming from the entrance of the Café. I squint my eyes trying to have a better look at what is going on and all I can see is the waiters bowing down and welcoming a certain person. I suddenly got a call from an unknown number and quickly swipe to answer it to check if my buyer has reached or not.

"Hello Alora, where are you?", asked a voice of an elderly woman on my phone, speaking in a tone almost condescending.

"Oh! Hi! Have you reached already? I am waiting for you in Table 13" I replied estatically. I simply cannot hide my excitement.

The voice simply said "Alright" and hung up.

Wait a minute! How did she know my name? My username on the website is 'Jo_444'. I clearly did not tell her my identity in our brief chat on the website yesterday. Also, the platform is made for anonymous sellers only. Maybe she did her little research by checking out my socials linked to my account? Wait, that's not possible. My smile slowly fades as I remember that I only link my i********: to 'WebPaints'. And I don't use my real name on i********:, plus I hardly post anything on it.

"You must be Alora" the same voice said calmly. But this time, the voice comes from a person standing in front of me.

I look up to see a beautiful elderly woman, probably in her 50s or 60s with Asian features, wearing a black trench coat and carrying a luxurious-looking red bag.

I quickly stood up to greet her. "Hi! Are you the--"

"Please sit, Miss Alora Jones", she cut me off before I ask her who she is and she simply pulled her chair out and sit in front of me, looking unbothered and confident while doing so.

"Uhm.. How do you..uhm.. know my name?", I asked her, curiously looking at her as I slowly sit on my chair, emulating her action.

"I know all about you, Miss Jones, your family, friends, where you live and what you do for a living, how's your cat by the way?", she said confidently, smirking a little and making me uncomfortable each passing second.

I just stare at her blankly, my mouth parted a little and my body froze, since I am too shocked to hear what she just told me. Am I in trouble? Is she really interested in buying my painting or is she just playing with me?

"I am here to offer you a job, Miss Jones. Actually, it's not an offer, it's an order".

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