𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗮 ᵖʰⁱˡ ᶠᵒᵈᵉⁿ

𝟬𝟭𝟬

𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟬
𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥
𝘧𝘶𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘧𝘧, 𝘣𝘰𝘺𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥

———

THE NEXT MORNING, daylight crept through the windows of Maeve's apartment. She had fallen asleep on her couch the night before while watching a movie. The girl's sleep was disrupted by the unexpected appearance of daylight.

She forced herself up into a sitting position, having slept on too many couches in the previous few nights, her back was beginning to ache. Maeve assumed it was still early in the morning based on the view out the window.

She hoped for a calm morning before the dark-haired girl arrived for her dreaded appointment. When Maeve reached for her phone to ensure an actual time, her expectations of a peaceful morning left when she read the time.

10:36

Maeve was running late, exceptionally late.  She got off the couch and dashed around the kitchen, attempting to prepare a cup of coffee. She hurried to her bedroom to find something to wear as the coffee maker brewed.

She had no idea what was going on at this meeting, but she didn't have time to think about it just now. She picked up a pair of blue jeans from the floor and slid them up her legs.

She threw on both a white tank top and a blue shirt. She hurried back through her flat and poured the coffee into a mug; after the first sip, she doubted if it was clean.

She scrubbed her teeth and tied her hair up at the same time. She decided to pour the rest of the coffee down the sink because the mug had ruined it. She dashed out of her apartment complex while still tying her shoes.

It was eleven o'clock by the time Maeve arrived at her car. The building she was trying to get to was close, but London traffic was not on her side this morning.

No car would let her out on the road, and she seemed to run into every red light possible. She cursed every pedestrian who opted to cross the street as she drove by, and she honked her horn at every automobile that moved slowly.

To top it all off, she couldn't find a parking spot for ten minutes after arriving at her location. She sped inside the building after parking and collided with everyone in her path.

Maeve started tapping the bottom for the elevator, and when it didn't come, she started punching it out of fury. A short man with glasses and a briefcase delicately tapped her on the shoulder.

"What?" she yelled as she turned around quickly.  "The lift is broken. Everyone has to use the stairs." He pointed to the stairs that led to all forty or so levels of this skyscraper. "Seriously?" Maeve expressed her disbelief. "Of course, it's just my luck." She moved away from the man and toward the reception counter.

She checked the clock again while she waited for the receptionist to hang up the phone. She was aware that she was running late and would be lucky to arrive to the meeting by midday.

11:19

"Is everything okay?" the receptionist asked from her seat behind the desk. "I have a meeting with Sabrina Shields, like now." Give or take thirty minutes.