Chapter 2 – The Impossible Boss
634 Words
Monday morning arrived far too quickly.
Amelia stood outside Blackwood International with a coffee in one hand and a notebook in the other. She stared up at the skyscraper that seemed to disappear into the clouds.
"Don't embarrass yourself on the first day."
Simple enough.
The receptionist greeted her with a sympathetic smile.
"Good luck."
Amelia frowned.
"That sounds... ominous."
The receptionist laughed nervously.
"You'll understand."
───
At exactly eight o'clock, Amelia stepped into the executive office.
Adrian Blackwood was already working.
Three computer monitors displayed financial reports. A stack of contracts rested neatly on one side of his desk. Without looking up, he spoke.
"You're thirty seconds early."
"I thought you'd approve."
"I do."
She smiled.
"So... that's good?"
No answer.
Instead, he slid a tablet across the desk.
"Today's schedule."
Amelia glanced at it.
Her smile disappeared.
Twenty-three meetings.
Six conference calls.
Lunch with investors.
A charity committee meeting.
Dinner with foreign executives.
And somewhere in between...
Review four hundred emails.
She looked up.
"This is today's schedule?"
"Yes."
"For... this week?"
"For today."
"Oh."
"You have a problem?"
"No."
"You hesitated."
"I was just wondering if you ever sleep."
"I schedule sleep."
She blinked.
"You... schedule sleep?"
"Four hours."
"Per night?"
"Efficient."
Amelia muttered under her breath.
"Terrifying."
"I heard that."
"I figured you would."
To her surprise, the corner of his mouth twitched.
───
By ten o'clock, Amelia had already learned three things.
First...
Adrian expected perfection.
Second...
Everyone in the company feared him.
Third...
Nobody dared argue with him.
Nobody except Amelia.
During a board meeting, one executive presented a proposal with obvious errors.
Adrian closed the folder.
"This projection is impossible."
The executive paled.
"I-I can revise it."
"No."
The room became painfully quiet.
Adrian's voice remained calm.
"Bring me facts, not guesses."
The executive hurried out.
As the meeting ended, Amelia gathered the papers.
"You embarrassed him."
"I corrected him."
"Publicly."
"He submitted poor work publicly."
She sighed.
"You know people work better when they're encouraged."
"They work better when expectations are clear."
"They're not machines."
"They're employees."
She crossed her arms.
"And you're impossible."
Silence.
Several employees froze.
One dropped a pen.
Adrian slowly looked at her.
"You've been here three hours."
"I know."
"And you've already called your employer impossible."
"I did."
Another long pause.
Then...
"Hm."
That was all he said before walking away.
The employees stared after him.
One whispered, "You're still alive."
───
That afternoon, Amelia carried a folder into Adrian's office.
She stopped.
He wasn't there.
His office door to the private balcony stood open.
Outside, Adrian stood alone, looking over the city.
For the first time since she'd met him, he didn't look intimidating.
He looked... tired.
Exhausted.
The weight of the world seemed to rest on his shoulders.
Without thinking, Amelia quietly set a fresh cup of coffee on the small table beside him.
She turned to leave.
"Miss Carter."
She stopped.
"You noticed."
"You looked like you needed a break."
"I don't take breaks."
"Maybe you should."
He looked at the coffee.
"Why?"
"Because even impossible bosses are human."
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then he picked up the cup.
"Twelve years."
She frowned.
"I'm sorry?"
"I've worked here for twelve years."
He looked out over the skyline again.
"No one has ever brought me coffee simply because they thought I looked tired."
Amelia smiled softly.
"There's a first time for everything."
He took a sip.
"It's exactly how I drink it."
"I guessed."
"You guessed correctly."
For the first time...
Adrian Blackwood smiled.
It wasn't the confident smile from magazine covers.
It wasn't a polite business smile.
It was small.
Real.
Gone almost as quickly as it appeared.
But Amelia had seen it.
And somehow...
She had a feeling almost no one else ever had.
- Writer
