SCARLET MEETS MILA

5

Harlow turns the corner and folds her arms as she enters Scarlet's office. "Seriously?" She gasps. "What is wrong with you?"

Scarlet rolls her eyes and places her pen down with a frustrated "What?"

"You're turning her away?" She questions angrily, "I think you should reconsider. That kind of passion hasn't been seen in this place for a long time!"

Scarlet raises her brows and scoffs. "What is it with people telling me I'm wrong today?" She snaps, "I know what I'm doing, Harlow! Mila's passion doesn't compensate for her lack of knowledge."

"So, teach her?" Harlow sneers. "You've done it before?"

"You were a fashion major and held prestigious honours in university. Mila dropped out of college and laboured in a coffee shop!" Her shoulders broaden. "I saw potential in you. I see nothing in her."

"You've taken risks before?"

"Calculated, informed risks!" Scarlett corrects, "I'm not a teacher! I'm a businesswoman who wishes to stay in business for a long time. Giving charity to a needy little home bird won't assist me in doing that."

Harlow shakes her head and neatens her brows before sighing a breath of irritation. "You're not gonna budge, are you?"

Scarlett returns her eyes to the documents below and shakes her head. "I will not sacrifice the integrity of my brand for the sake of sentimentality."

The woman out front looks up at the ceiling in thought with pursed lips. "What about running?" she questions peacefully. "Fox is about ready to explode with those models out there. He's forever ordering coffee and folding garments. He could use the help?"

Scarlett huffs, "I'm busy, Harlow."

"Just hear me out!" She begs, "Mila can run for coffee and fold clothes. She can clean workstations, take out the trash and shred your stack of old files." Scarlett looks up briefly, inviting Harlow to continue, "Fox is a designer, not a runner. Right now, he's doing both. It would free him up to focus on the runway."

Scarlet swallows hard and closes her eyes briefly. "I don't want her getting in the way."

"She won't!" Harlow defends, "I'll make sure she's doing what she's supposed to do, no questions asked!"

"Why are you so hell-bent on giving this girl a job right now?" asks Scarlet with an interrogating tone. "I mean, it's unlike you to bias the disadvantaged."

Harlow sighs and shrugs her shoulders. "I can see that she needs this", she answers. "Not just that, but I feel like we need someone who cares more about working than being on the front cover of your next magazine."

Scarlet cocks a brow, and for a second, she looks to be deep in thought. "Fine." she huffs. "But if she makes even one little mistake."

"She's out", Harlow concludes. "I know."

"Who's out?" Fox enters with a confident tone of voice, tugging at the collar of his black and gold suit jacket while chewing on a piece of candy. "I'm placing bets on Harlow."

"I'm trying to help you", Harlow taunts. "Play nice"

"You're helping me?" Fox grumbles in disbelief, turning towards a nearby mirror to fix his already immaculate hair. "What's the catch?"

Harlow rolls her eyes. "No catch" she huffs. "I've hired you a runner."

Fox's eyes kindle with delight. "An assistant?"

"A helping hand", Scarlett interjects. "She will take on the duties that restrict you from doing what I pay you to do. No more, no less"

Fox smirks, tightening the knot of his tie. "Well, aren't you a bundle of joy today?" he teases, winking at Scarlet, now rolling her emerald eyes. "May I ask, what have I done to merit this?"

"You may not", Scarlet moans, sifting through the documents below her with a busy demeanour. "Can I have some peace now, please?"

"You may not", Fox mocks. "You're the first one to call out an undying independence. Now, suddenly, you're giving me a little elf to take the slack?"

Scarlett slams her pen down and looks at Fox with a frustrated yet cold gaze. "I didn't have much of a choice. Your little princess in silver over there insisted I give her a job." her tone boils, but Fox is almost too happy to care. "I'd leave before I change my mind. I'm more than happy for you to go without."

Fox lifts his palms defensively. "I'm gone, Scar, over and out!"

Harlow giggles under her breath, shaking her head as she follows the classy designer out of the room.

"So, what are you up to?" Fox turns to Harlow with folded arms as they approach her smaller but equally grand office.

Harlow huffs. "I'm being nice. Accept it!"

"You're not nice?" The man chuckles. "You'd sooner launch me out of your window than help me willingly, so what's going on?"

Harlow sits at her desk and lifts a stone-cold cup of coffee towards her lips. "Her name is Mila, and she needs a job."

Fox hesitates, screwing up his brows with a perplexed expression. "Right?" He laughs. "So do most people in America?"

"She's different." Harlow sighs. "I'm adamant that Scarlet will warm to her, too," she explains passionately. "I just know that this is the right thing to do. She's exhausted, overworked and needs someone she can dump on."

Fox pouts his lips and tilts his head to one side. "So, this isn't an assistant for me. It's an assistant for Scarlet?" His eyes roll towards the wall. "I knew it."

"Oh, quit your whining", Harlow sneers. "She'll be running around after you for the most part. But when Scarlet needs to offload some of her work, Mila will be there to take it."

"So you plan to subject that young girl to the Queen of dominance?" Fox inserts, "Isn't that a little harsh?"

The woman shakes her head. "She's desperate?" Her question resonates within the room. "I'm sure she'll cope if it means keeping food on the table for her little sister."

"I give her a day", Fox notes. "Scarlet will have her racing home in tears within the week."

"Be optimistic," Harlow smirks. "She's got the fight!"