The Art of Falling

Chapter Four

"Ava, I understand that I've had a concussion but could you please stop mollycoddling me? I'm fine. No. Do not look at me like that. How would you feel if I kept following you around, offering to do x, y and z. Hmm? Exactly. So please. Can I have some space and freedom?"

I blinked at Ellie.

"Cool. I'm going to the -"

"But the doctor said you have to relax for at least a day before you can do anything too strenuous? Is that how you say it?"

"Yes. And screw the doctors. I want to go out to the gym."

"But..."

"What did I say about the mollycoddling hmm?"

"I shan't do it from tomorrow. Now, you're going back into your bedroom and resting," I snapped, trying to push her back into her bedroom. Key word being trying. I wasn't strong enough to push her.

"God sake Ava. Okay, okay. I'll go and rest. Can I get something to eat before I do?"

"What do you want to eat?"

"I don't know yet. I'll pick once I'm in the kitchen."

I stepped away from her and ran to the bowl which held the house keys.

"Damn it," Ellie muttered.

"I'm not your best friend for nothing," I shot back, rolling my eyes. Although I knew that it could be tiring to be mollycoddled, I was slightly hurt that Ellie was annoyed at me for doing it. I just didn't want her to have to go back to the hospital again. One heart attack was enough to last me a lifetime.

* * *

I arrived at the Knight's building with time to spare, half an hour to be exact. I was proud of myself for not being late, for once. After the close call last time, I decided to be prepared. Since I had some time to kill, I decided to go to the quaint coffee shop I had noticed on my way here. If I remembered correctly, it was on the next street.

I placed my hand on the door to open it when it swung wide open. I fell into them. The impact dissipated across my body as I crashed into a hard wall of muscle. Again? Hands appeared at my sides to balance me. I looked up.

"I'm so sorry."

The person looked down at me and opened his mouth to speak, when his face paled.

"No worries."

He rushed past me, the crowd swallowing him up. What the...I spun around in the spot, searching for something which may have led to the guy having to run away. Nothing. Weird. I turned back to the door and stepped inside.

Pictures hung on the ash coloured walls while tables and chairs had been randomly set out about the room. To the far back, there was a large granite counter which was spread across the length of the wall. Fancy-looking machines rested against it and a few cake stands stood on the counter, displaying mouthwatering treats. I maneuvered around the tables and stopped in front of the cake stands. They were exhibiting a few blueberry muffins, slices of cake and what looked like rocky roads.

Coffee Inc. was similar to how I had envisioned my dream cafe. Mine would have also had a mini library on the second floor where people could swap books in and out and a staircase leading up to the roof terrace where people would have been able to eat and drink.

"Hello. What can I get you today?"

"Hi. Can I get err..." I scanned the drinks menu on the wall. "A blueberry muffin and an affogato to go please." I was going to regret buying this amount of sugar and caffeine but I'd cross that bridge when I came to it.

"Sure. That'll be £6.99. Name?"

"Thank you..." I scanned for a name tag but didn't find one.

"Sam," he offered, smiling.

"Thank you, Sam."

I swiped my card and stood to the side, allowing the next customer to order.

When I saw a paper bag and a paper cup appear on the counter, I went to collect it. On it, was my name:

Ava :)

- +44 1632 960481

I smiled. Checking the time, I saw I had ten minutes to go. I waved to Sam, who waved back, accidentally hitting one of his colleagues on the head. The colleague turned around and glared at him before turning away. I chuckled and made my way out of the shop. I took a bite of the muffin. Mmmm. This muffin was to die for. I'm definitely going to have to go back to get some more. Taking a sip from my water bottle, I walked into the Knight's building and up to the main desk.

"Hi. How can I help you?"

"Hi. Um, I'm here for an interview for the job as an assistant to Mr. Knight. "

"Name?"

"Ava Connor."

"Ah yes. Unfortunately, the last interviewee was half an hour late, so you will have to wait an extra 15 minutes. Is that okay with you?"

"That's fine."

"Thank you," she said, clearly relieved, "Take the elevator to the 10th floor. Someone will collect you once the interview is over."

"Okay. Thank you."

I followed her instructions and arrived on the 10th floor. I sat on the sofa and took out my phone.

Ellie: Good Luck. Ik ur gonna do amazing

Ava: :) Thx

I pulled up my contacts and added Sam's number to my phone.

Ava: Hey Sam! This is Ava, the girl who wrote your number on her muffin paper bag. Is the muffin recipe allowed to be shared? They're really good

Minutes later, a message came in.

Sam: Oh hey Ava. i'm glad you like the muffin! However the muffin's recipe is top secret only Darcy knows - its a family secret recipe

Ava: aw...thats okay. Was worth a try.

I pulled up Candy Crush and decided to play a couple of levels to pass the time. I was currently beating Poppy by five levels. They were at level 507 while I was at level 512. Occasionally, I would take the odd sip of my drink, the ice cream was nearly half melted. I was already feeling a bit sticky on the inside from eating too much sugar. However, it was worth it - the affogato was simply indescribable. Minutes passed and soon enough, I had finished my drink and had reached level 516. I went over to trash it. Just as I finished putting it in the bin, a middle-aged woman entered.

"Miss...Connor?" she asked, checking her clipboard.

I smiled at her.

"Hi?"

"Good afternoon. If you could follow me please, that would be wonderful. Mr. Knight is waiting for you."

Wait what?! If I remember correctly, Mr. Knight was the CEO of the company. Why am I being interviewed by him?

"I thought I would be interviewed by Mr. Anderson?" I asked, hurrying to catch up with her, who had, at this point, already left the room.

"Mr. Anderson is busy right now. Therefore, Mr. Knight will be conducting the interview," she replied. Okay then. I nodded.

The woman knocked on the door which had a nameplate on. Inscribed was, no surprise, Mr Ethan Knight. Below, in small lettering, the acronym CEO.

"Come in," a voice said.

She opened the door and I stepped in. Nodding her head to me, she left.

"Close the door," he said.

I did so. Turning around, I let out a small squeak of surprise. The person I bumped into...was no other than the CEO of this company, Mr. Ethan Knight.

Great. My life is turning into a cliché story, next, we'll have me falling in love with him, get married and have a happily ever after. Ha. No thank you. I don't want to be a walking cliche. I could see the headlines: ' Personal Assistant falls in love with her boss and they get married' or something along those lines. The journalists would probably make it sound more catchy.

It's not that I had anything against clichés, I found them cute to be honest but that didn't mean I wanted to be one. Besides, despite loving Disney movies and how everyone had a happy ever after, it just wasn't that realistic. It doesn't take a minute to fall in love and then a week to get married, unlike Cinderella. No siree. I'd like to get to know my partner beforehand, thank you very much.