One Day at a Time

Chapter 1 - A New Beginning... Sort of.

          The journey was long and boring - uneventful, to say the least. We were mainly just driving on hundreds of motorways; the view was all the same. Boring, grey roads coated in colourful cars, speeding desperately through the crowd to get to the destination. But, not all of them were speeding. We weren't - maybe because I wasn't desperate at all to get to my destination. Or, maybe it was because the driver didn't want to get a speeding ticket and lose his reputation as a Uber driver. Either way, I was grateful; I did not want to get there soon.

          I was glad I had managed to remember my earphones, amongst the suitcases and my backpack. I was staying there for a while, and couldn't afford to have to buy more things. My music kept me entertained; just the sound of it made me relax. My muscles were no longer tense and my face no longer had the expression of anxiousness pulled over the cheery smile my mother and brother were used to seeing. My father, though, not so much. I haven't seen him in sixteen years, he left my mother a few days after Cooper was born. He walked out of the door, unhesitatingly, less than a second after he said that if he stayed a minute longer his company would crumble to the ground. He left out of vain and selfishness, greedy for money and power, leaving my mother with nothing. When he walked out of that door, he walked out of my life, not sparing us a second glance; my mother with my baby brother cradled in her arms, me stood behind her legs, clutching on to her clothing. Even though I was only two years old, I remember that day vividly.

                                                                              +++

          It has been hours since I slammed the car door shut, waving goodbye to mother and Cooper through the window, not wanting to speak another word to them, afraid I was going to break. I didn't want their last memory of me for a few years to be me bawling my eyes out. I have kept in close contact with Cooper, sending him messages every now and again. I was definitely going to miss him. In the middle of replying to him, the driver's voice pulled me out of my personal bubble.

          "Miss, we have arrived at your destination." 

          I peered out of the window, longing to get out of the car, and saw the great building standing proudly in front of me, putting the ones next door to shame. It was so tall the the clouds had to manoeuvre through it to get passed; there was more glass than concrete, but even so, you could not see inside it because the glass reflected the sky, covering the building in a beautiful blue, with splodges of white every now and again. Stated proudly on the front of the building where the huge letters: 'Hawford Law Firm'.

         "Thank you," I muttered quietly, opening the door to stand up. I stretched my back and walked towards the boot of the car, throwing my backpack that was on the seat next to me over my shoulder. I pushed my phone into the depths of my hoodie pocket and the Uber driver got out and helped me gather my suitcases from the back. As he carried one out and placed it on the ground and reaching to get the other, I spoke louder and clearer than the last time, "How much do I owe you?"

          "Nothing, Miss, your generous father paid me after hearing you were coming to stay." He said, showing me on the app that a transaction had happened during the travelling after placing the suitcase down. "He paid me more than he needed to." 

          "Oh," I sighed. The driver had called him generous. Hearing the stories from my mother, growing up, he sounded anything but generous. "Well, thank you anyway."

          The driver nodded and climbed back into the car, and I waved him off as he drove away. I looked back up at the enormous building and pulled my two suitcases along behind me to the front door.

                                                                              +++  

          Even the door handles were glass. Pulling the grand front door open, I walked inside to the front desk, where a woman, with white-blonde hair pulled up in to a bun at the back of her head, and glassed halfway down her nose, sat, staring down at the computer placed in front to her. 

          "Yes?" She said without even looking up. she tapped a few letters into the keyboard. 

          "Uh.. My um-" 

          "Well?" She sighed rudely, looking up. When her eyes were looking directly at me, I could see the wrinkles lining her forehead. But, there were none by her her nose, spreading down to the corners of her mouth. She must not smile often. "This place is not a hotel, and it is not for people like you, either." She stated what she was thinking bluntly. I noticed she had looked me up and down, and seeing my jeans and hoodie she automatically thought that I didn't belong here, in the grand glass building.

          "Well, my-"

          "If you are here for the internship, I'm afraid you will have to turn back now." She cut me off cleanly again, like a knife slipping through butter.

          "I'm not here for the internship." I said, loudly, so she couldn't interrupt me again. "If you would just listen, I would've told you why I'm here minutes ago, and maybe you could've helped me and I would've been out of your way quicker." She started at me with an expression which made it look as though she was devouring me in her slate-grey eyes. "My father, Mr. James Hawford, runs this place. I would like to see him, now, please."

          Her expression stayed the same, but her eyes lit up with the information. "Right, okay," She said, a hint of disbelieve in her tone. "I'll call him up now."

          She dialled his number on the phone, and pressed it up to her ear, sitting up straighter and letting out a sigh. 

          "What do you want?" A voice, muffled by the phone, said. 

          "There's a girl here, claiming to be your daughter. sir. She says she wants to see you now." She replied.

          "What did she say her name was?"  I saw this as an opportunity to talk, so I pounced.

          "My name is Blaire. Blaire Hawford, although I do not bare the name with pride, as you do, father." I stated proudly. 

          "Send her up." He said, obviously affected by the comment. 

          The woman at the desk put the phone down and pointed at the elevator next to the desk. "The top floor."

          I nodded and dragged my suitcases behind me and stepped inside the elevator, pressing the button at the top. It drew up silently, the only sound was me, tapping my foot nervously on the floor. I haven't seen this man in sixteen years, nor have I spoken to him. After a few minutes, the doors opened revealing a beautiful office. 

          I gawped at the sight. There was an incredible view, casting light into the room. By the right wall, there was a huge, marble desk with a black leather boss chair behind it. The desk was scattered with books and files and reports, and there was a black desktop on the left corner. Opposite the desk, there was a marble fireplace, with a blazing, warm, fire. There stood two black leather chairs beside the fire. A huge carpet came to my attention in the middle of the floor. The flooring was just plain black wood, complemented by a clean, cream circular rug in the centre. 

          But, the thing that stood out the most was not an object, but a person. A person staring out into the city, not facing me in a black and white suit.

          My father.