Piercing Hatred | ✔️

11

~Flora's POV~

Though the rest of Friday passed by with some awkwardness between Knox and I, mostly on my part, I didn't let that stop me from waking up early on Saturday morning to get ready for work. Part of me had considered calling out today, but I reminded myself that there was no point. Knox would still be there no matter what when I went back, and he lived right across the fucking hall. I'd definitely see him eventually, even away from work.

After I woke up, I took a quick shower, not needing to shave since I had done it just yesterday after work ended. I did my makeup once I got out and then headed into my closet to find something to wear, leaving my hair down in its natural state as it dried.

I first pulled on a cropped white shirt that said 'Fort Worth' on the front in a peachy-orange font and had a man riding a horse just beside it, a shirt which I had gotten from my mom when I was seventeen. Next, I tugged a high-waisted skirt up over my hips that was white and had a black leopard print on it, throwing a black leather coat over my shirt. It was a little bit long on me, so it fell to around where the bottom of my skirt stopped. Lastly, I slid my feet into a pair of black heeled boots and grabbed a small black, over the body purse.

Now dressed, I left my apartment and headed off to Interstellar, my stomach already churning anxiously at the thought of seeing Knox again.

**

Later that day, I was eating lunch in the break room when I heard the door open, causing me to glance up and look over my shoulder to see who entered, as I had been eating alone for the past ten minutes or so.

Knox walked through the door, his frame almost looking too big when he passed through, and I quickly swallowed the soup I had in my mouth. I stared at him for a second before I turned back around in my seat, feeling his eyes on the back of my head. It was tense and uncomfortable, but I quickly remembered what I'd promised Odette. Making an effort to get along with him, or at least pretending to while at work, was now a necessity. There was no choice.

He seemed to hesitate in the doorway for a second before he joined me silently at the table, sitting one chair away from me with a bag of food and some sort of drink from McDonald's. I didn't say anything, feeling a little bit nervous, and instead just kept eating my soup for the time being. Until, of course, Knox decided to speak to me first, his voice coming out in a low murmur. "For someone who promised to try to get along, you sure have been avoiding me since yesterday." He mentioned, causing my gaze to flick over to him.

My eyes met his brown ones and then flicked to his mouth, which was wrapped around the straw in his cup. I caught myself before I could stare, something which I almost always found myself doing, and shrugged as I stared down into my bowl. "Well, this is weird for me. I get why Odette is enforcing this rule or whatever, but I don't know how to play along. I've hated you for so long." I grumbled in embarrassment.

I could feel him staring at the side of my face still, but I refused to look his way. "Well, being able to actually look at me when you're talking is probably a good place to start, hm?" He hummed in response, not rude but rather teasing.

Though I didn't like it, I knew that he was right, so I let my gaze flick back to him again so our eyes would meet once more. "I suppose so." I admitted reluctantly, chewing on the inside of my lip in contemplation. My body felt stiff and tense, as if it knew how un-natural our civil conversation was, and I wasn't sure what to make of it. My brows twitched slightly as they furrowed.

The more the seconds ticked by, the more I found my heartbeat was increasing in pace, especially with neither of us saying anything when he was still staring into my eyes. I felt uncomfortable in this tense silence for once, instead of relishing in it. It was me that broke the quiet this time. "You modeling is something I never thought I'd see, you know. It's almost...weird to think about." I mentioned, looking away to scoop the last of my soup into my mouth. My eyes seemed to find his again on their own.

A smirk tugged at the edges of his lips as he set his seemingly half-empty cup on the table and leaned towards me a little. "Weird? Am I not handsome enough to model, doll face?" He asked, the sudden question causing my eyebrows to shoot up in surprise. Heat crept up my neck as he stared at me expectantly, cocking up a dark brow.

Unsure how to respond, I just stared at him with a stunned look on my face, and after a few seconds I opened my mouth to say the first thing that came to mind. Unfortunately, the first thing that came to mind was an insult, and I quickly found myself snapping my mouth shut before I could speak. We're supposed to be getting along, I reminded myself, shaking my head to clear my thoughts. "That's not what I said." I huffed quietly and pushed a strand of my hair behind my ear, crossing one leg over the other as I turned towards him more. "It's just a little surprising, that's all."

I hesitated for a second, flicking my eyes up to his again. "Can you tell me what exactly will be expected of me, when I'm helping you at this...photoshoot thing?" I asked, unable to deny the fact that I needed him to guide me a little in this. This was something I hadn't done, and I didn't know what I even was supposed to do.

Knox hummed in thought and peered down at me closely for a while, his dark eyes focused on my face so intently that I couldn't help how embarrassed I felt. "Well, your position will likely be a little different than what Odette did. I'd imagine you'll be picking up what she did, like making sure that we have the clothes and shit they want me to wear, just basic shit, really. Maybe you'll be asked to do the occasional lunch run or something, but nothing else. It's pretty simple." He explained in a murmur, and I couldn't help but to be both relieved and surprised at the simplicity of what was expected. That didn't seem very hard at all.

Okay, I thought to myself with a smile. Piece of cake.