The Devil Lives In New York 

PART I: "The beginning of all stories is always destined to bloom" *** I looked around the room feeling satisfied for the first time. After almost five hours of unpacking boxes and organizing things, I could finally collapse exhausted on the small sofa in my living room. After arriving in New York a week ago, I had finally finished unpacking all my stuff. I took out my phone and turned it on for the first time since arriving in this big city. As expected, I had nearly ten missed calls from Mom and five from Dad. I checked some of the messages Dad had sent me and immediately regretted it. Most of his messages were insulting me for running away from home and breaking off my engagement with Erick. Two years ago, my dad inherited all his properties and money to my stupid older brother, Ivan, his favorite. Months after all the properties were in Ivan's name, he sold them, including the house we lived in, and ran away with all of Dad's money. The most ironic part of all this is that my parents didn't end up hating him, but instead, hating me more. I still remember the nights when my father would go out for walks every night, hoping that his ungrateful son would come back home remorseful, but that never happened. After Ivan sold our house, we had to move to a much smaller house. Mom got sick and developed hypertension over time, and now she has to take medication every day. Dad tried to find a job to pay for the expenses, but no one wanted to hire him because of his age, so I had to get a job and put my plans of going to university on hold. The Wilson family, lifelong friends of my parents, realized our situation and planned that it would be a good idea to arrange a marriage between their son Erick and me, and they would support us financially. I had never gotten along well with Erick, but after our engagement became official, I had to spend more time with him. For my parents, everything was perfect - I would marry the son of a wealthy family, and Erick would support me and I could give them a life of comfort like we used to have. It didn't take long for me to realize that Erick was a jerk. He had a child with another girl whom he had abandoned, and after we got married, we would pretend that the child was ours. Literally, Erick's parents were looking for a nanny for their son and grandchild. My parents forced me to accept the engagement with Erick, but when I had the first chance to escape, I took it. I took all the money I had saved for university and left Nashville, moving to New York with my own money. Now, not only do I have to support my parents, but I also have a wedding to pay for. Erick's parents spent at least $50,000 on the wedding preparations, and now they want me to repay all that money. I connected to the building's Wi-Fi network and started checking my email. I sent my resume to different companies a week ago and none of them had responded to confirm the interview. "Please," I said, biting my lower lip as I logged into my email. In my inbox, I had a reply from a company. "Yes!" I screamed excitedly. I have a job interview for tomorrow at 8:00 am. I ran to the small closet in my tiny apartment, looked for the clothes I would wear tomorrow, and hung them behind my bedroom door. I glanced with disgust at the floor in the living room - there was a large puddle of dirty water from a leak that I hadn't even noticed until now. I cleaned the living room floor, took a shower before going to bed to sleep. I set the alarm for 6:00 am. I was afraid of being late for my interview. I preferred to arrive an hour early rather than thirty minutes late. I was about to fall asleep when a thought in my head woke me up. I wrote a message to Mom and Dad to let them know I was okay, and then I fell asleep. It was exactly 6:50 am when I left my apartment to take a taxi that would take me to my job interview. When I finally arrived at my destination, I paid for the taxi and stopped in front of a big building. "I wish I could be the owner of this big building," I said, sighing. The big building had "Spinter Enterprises" in big letters. I have heard of this company since I was in Nashville. It is one of the most well-known companies in the car import and rental business. There were quite a few car rental locations of this same company in Nashville, but this is the company headquarters. I entered the company and walked towards the receptionist. I stood in front of her, but she didn't even look at me until I cleared my throat. "Good morning, how can I help you?" a woman said, smiling at me. "I'm Olivia Baldinelli, and I'm here for a job interview," I said. "Alright, let me look you up," she said while she continued to look at her computer screen. I looked at all the women entering the company, they were all wearing skirts or pants and blazers, and they all looked very formal. I looked at myself and felt a little embarrassed. The clothes I was wearing were the closest thing I had that was "formal." "Go up to the top floor of the building. You will find another receptionist there, and she will tell you where to wait. Take this credential," she said, handing me a credential that said "Job Interview." I started walking towards the elevator and went up to the top floor. Some people entered the elevator with me and when they saw the floor I was going to, they looked a little surprised. They all stayed on different floors, but no one went up to the top floor with me. When I stepped out of the elevator, I saw the receptionist who smiled at me and walked towards me. She was a very beautiful woman, probably around 25 years old. Her body and face looked like those of a model. "You must be Olivia Baldinelli," she said, and I nodded. "I am Miss Smith, please follow me," she said, walking towards an office. "Welcome to Spinter Enterprises, we are a leading company in the import and rental of new cars…" She continued talking about the company, and I listened attentively. I noticed that she discreetly looked at my clothes from time to time, and on one of those occasions, she hid a smile. I swear that as soon as I have enough money, I will buy new clothes. "The working hours are very flexible and may depend on your boss. You must be here before 9:00 am. Your boss will arrive at 9:00 am, but you should have organized his folders, computer, and office before that time. Ten minutes before his arrival, you will need to buy him coffee. It doesn’t matter if he doesn't come to the office, you must always have that coffee on his desk ten minutes earlier. In this company, we have a hierarchy, but you will have an exception in your position. You will only obey the CEO's orders." "CEO? Would I be the CEO's personal assistant in this company?" I was so desperate for a job in the past few days that I hadn't even realized that I had applied to be the assistant of the CEO. "Excuse me, did you say CEO?" I asked, surprised. "Yes," said Miss Smith. "Is there any problem?" "No," I quickly said. "I was just a little surprised, sorry," I whispered. "You will have to go wherever he goes, and your workday will end when his workday ends. If there are any changes, he will let you know. This is the card you will use to make reservations for restaurants or flights, and with this same card, you will buy the things your boss asks for. Welcome to Spinter Enterprises. Any questions?" She said as I looked at her, surprised by everything she had just said. "Am I hired?" I said, surprised. I thought I was coming for an interview and that they would ask me many questions, not just tell me what I would have to do. "Yes, you start your work day tomorrow," she said, smiling at me. "Thank you very much," I said, excited. "Your boss will come tomorrow, so be very punctual." I asked all the questions that came to my mind to Ms. Smith, who answered each of them kindly. I would receive my payments weekly, which would be perfect, so that I could send money to my parents as soon as possible to pay for the house expenses and mom's medication before the end of the month. After saying goodbye to Ms. Smith, I took the elevator to get to the main floor. When I entered the elevator, the typical elevator music was playing. Once the doors closed, I couldn't help but move the tip of my left foot to the rhythm of the music. When I got to the company, the sky was a bit sunny, but for some strange reason, it was raining. Due to the rain on the ground, it seemed like it had been raining for a while. I didn't worry too much about the rain because it wasn't raining that much. I walked without worry through the streets of New York. As I walked further, the rain became more intense. When the raindrops increased, I ran towards the first store I found. Right at the entrance, there were umbrellas. I bought one and then left the store. New York is a very beautiful city. Even when it is raining, its beautiful view is not ruined. Although it is even more beautiful, especially at night, it looks like a big light show. I sighed a little sadly. I would have loved for my parents to understand the reasons I ran away, and for a moment, stop and think that I am their daughter, not a charity prize. I kept walking on the edge of the pavement while looking around with great excitement. Was I really in New York? Right now, I am living the dream of many people. Since high school, I have heard many classmates say, "After graduating, I'll leave this damn city as fast as I can and go to New York." They idealized the idea of living here so much that we weren't even aware that time had passed, and now we are just adults trying to find stability in our lives. My thoughts were soaring so high that they almost touched the sky's clouds. My thoughts were interrupted when I felt my whole body getting wet. I widened my eyes in surprise and a red Audi had just passed by the sidewalk, and it splashed me with all the water from the puddle. "Damn lunatic!" I shouted angrily, watching the red car drive away as if nothing had happened. I could swear that the stupid driver of that car was looking at me through the rearview mirror and laughing out loud. I managed to see the license plates of the red Audi, and I opened my eyes in surprise. The plate number was L666. Surely, it was some arrogant New York millionaire. "Damn devil worshiper," I snorted angrily. Now, more than anything, I wished to have that red Audi in front of me and scratch its entire side. All the people who had seen the scene were looking at me a little surprised and with a bit of pity. I didn't even bother holding the umbrella over myself anymore. I was completely soaked, so it made no sense to keep holding it to avoid getting wet. The whole way back home was summed up in mental insults towards the driver of that car.