Between the Lines

Chapter 1 A Collision

"What do u mean no?"
Her polished finger nails tapped against the desk at a frantic rhythm, the other hand clutching the phone to her left ear in a death grip. "I scheduled this meeting three months ahead and our parties mutually agreed to-" she was cut off at the sound of his voice.
She shut her eyes and grimaced. Her mouth ready to take on a life of its own, but she paused, forcing her muscles to go lax. Maybe threatening the EIC (*editor in chief) of the nation's leading press wouldn't be the wisest career move she admitted begrudgingly. Still, she had a strong suspicion that even logic and reasoning couldn't answer the serious rage this prick drew from her.
She'd worked her ass off to get this source and now they were pulling the plug because the witness was in cuffs?! Damn if things ever went her way.
Mid sentence, Ben chuckled half-sure that Haley had stopped listening
"Look I'll extend your deadline til next week so you can revise some bits of the piece, and still get your story on the top fold." He said.
"I would've had it by Sunday if you had just let this slide." She grumbled.
"What?"
"Nothing..nothing that's fine," Resigned, she rubbed her face and the muscles that had held themselves in a scorn all day." I'll have it up and ready by Monday."
"Okay then. That's three days, see? Plenty of time. May the odds be ever in your favor." He teased.
Her eyes simply rolled, and without a retort she hung up, promptly beginning to type out the words for her latest research.
"Hey Jacky?" She called out to the cubical beside her, her voice easily reaching over the paper thin divisions. They seemed to serve more as decor than actual privacy, but that just made communication easier in the office she guessed.
"Yeah?" a small voice rang in response.
"Where's the intern? The freckled boy that twitches."
Jacky giggled, aware that the boys 'spasms' were, in fact, flinches in the face of the force of nature that was Haley. " He's out with the chicken pox or something."
"Chicken eh?"
" Yup." She lilted
Despite her amusement, now she would be the one to get her own lunch today. Great. Though maybe she needed to stretch her legs
and get some sun. Ben hadn't exactly made this week a breeze.
"Im heading to Rico's bistro then, want anything?"
" Two potato balls!" She said, peering around the dividers with a easy smile and two fingers held up in what looked like a peace sign.
    "Alright then. I'll be back."
   "You better hurry."
   After returning a grin and a mock solute her mission began. She would have to scour through the rough terrain, the mean concrete jungle that was Manhattan. Okay, so maybe she wasn't in danger of getting pounced on by a tiger or mulled by bear but she did have get herself to a side walk to hail a cab in stilettos. Yes, being a woman could be tuff. Especially, when you had a thing against flats.

****

Exiting the vehicle, she couldn't help but notice the obvious visitors of the city, the ones who hailed cabs awkwardly from the safety of the side walk and gathered around street performers like flies to honey.
There was a nip in the air and enough patches on the side walk to worry about face planting into the city's concrete sidewalk. Which was why she was more than exasperated to meet a large mass blocking the Bistro's entrance.
   She huffed. The cops would be there soon to dismantle the group. The crowd had already started blocking the sidewalk and that always started problems, but she couldn't wait that long.
   With a small nudge here and a not so subtle subtle nudge there, she eventually made it into the shop, though not without receiving a couple of glares. A small price to pay for the heat of the bistro's interior and the air of fresh coffee that stoke her nose like a kitten's paw.
For the next seven and a half minutes she glanced at the watch attached to her wrist; her finger tips rubbing slowly against one another as the long hand of the clock edged closer towards the thirty minute mark. Ever so slowly the line moved as well. Her boss Ben, after months of poor attendance and tardiness among office employees, started getting anal about everyone at the office being punctual at all times. And if she was a couple minutes late he'd surely be up her ass for this one. She began to regret her rash decision, all for coffee she thought bitterly.
"Next please," Relief flooded her body and she walked over to the counter, "Hello what'll you have today?"
"Um, can I get a number 4 breakfast croissant and a double shot of expresso." She said "Oh- and two potato balls."
    The cashier smiled kindly and began punching in buttons. Hailey dug through her purse in the meantime, frantically searching for her phone and debit card in the midst of all her receipts and pens.
***
"Excuse me!"
For crying out loud.
The performer's audience had grown significantly in her absence, and pressed against the shop's entrance. From here, she could either cut though the hoard or walk around and waste an extra 5 minutes. Bracing herself, she dived into the fray.
   She felt the reciprocated shoves in every direction and had to work on not pushing back, harder.
"Seriously?"
New York, she thought, was full of entertainers so how was this performance different? She began to listen in, but despite her slight curiosity, her phone's alarm raised hell in her pocket. Her attention snapped to the device. It was The Big Boss, calling her. The only man she knew who stood over Ben. Shit. Shit. Shit.
     She flicked her wrist and unlocked the screen. "Hello?"
"Hey, Haley I need you tomorrow." The voice over the phone said matter-a-factly. "Now I know this is last minute, but I have pull you from your work to hold interviews. John is out of the office for the next week. The bastard broke his arm -leg?-something."
Like hell.
   As she received a small shove against her shoulder she thought of a better response. She was, after all, not in the office... where she was supposed to be. You're an idiot Haley.
"I have a deadline on Monday sir." She gritted her teeth in annoyance after another shove, this time to her back. "How much time will this take?"
   "Ah. No idea. Talk to John and get it done." he said, "Please."
     The last part was out of courtesy. Smoothing over a command was not in Jerold 's nature, and despite her pissy mood she smiled. He had a ruff way with words, but there was no doubt he had a soft spot for her, little as it may have been it was there.
    The moment of softness was gone however when she realized she was stuck with an additional task, she sighed. "Alright then."
    "Choose a good one Pyke"
    "You got it, Wade."  And the conversation was over.
      Finally, she'd nudged her way out of the pandemonium, staring down as she pocketed her phone into one of the compartments of her mustard colored parka. And she could feel herself break from the crowd and into open air, relief setting through her limbs.
       That feeling too was short lived, cut by a flurry of events that occurred in an order she wasn't ever sure she'd ever know. A yelp of surprise sounded off within the crowd, her body forcefully collided into a surface with a series of cracks and a loud pop, and the sound of a cuss escaped a man's lips at her ear.
        She could only gape dumbly as she fell, taking herself and the obstacle down to the ground. As her body took its second impact at the floor, Haley and the thing beneath her groaned. Definitely not concrete, but still solid enough to hurt like hell. She felt the ground shift, her eyes fluttering open now that the worse of it was over.
"Oh shit."
In an instant she was face to face with a pair of caramel brown eyes, eyes that might have looked incredibly sexy if they weren't darting daggers at her. Framing those expressive eyes were a thick set brows pulling to gather in angry look, high proud checks bones that gave the man beneath her a classically handsome look, and not to mention the light stubble lining his jaw. His nose was straight as an arrow and as she trailed down its length she met a pair of light shaded lips that held themselves in a scorn. Staring. She was staring. In front of a crowd none the less.
"Oh shit is right."
She shook her head as though she could physically shake out her thoughts. People finally began rushing over and so she began to pull herself off this handsome stranger as though he were on fire. He was hot.
"Great, this is really great. All for a motherf*cking coffee." She muttered to herself
Her hands flew into her hair as she took at the the scene she had created. A fuming man laying on the ground with a squashed guitar draped across his stomach, the wood of the instrument splintered and bent well beyond repair. You could still see where her body impacted the instrument
As she registered his glare she remembered to consider his welfare.
"Oh man, look kid I'm sorry."
"Kid?" He seethed now getting up with difficulty, she thought of offering her help but thought better it. She didn't exactly make the best first impression
"I'm probably older than you." Stunned, she registered her mistake. Yeah, call the guy you think is hot a kid. Way to go.!Her inner voice deadpanned.
"Look I'm running late and if I could just write you-"
"A check?" He grunted
"Yes a check." Haley pulled the fingers through her hair in a brushing motion to smooth them down from her tugging, and stood before him, feigning calmness. A part of her remembered the importance of staying collected under stressful situations. Another part wondered if the check would bounce, the guitar didn't look worth much.
"I suppose u have six grand lying around then?"
    Despite herself she grimaced.
Fuck me.

* * * * * * *
Hi there friends :)
     If you are interested in this story PLEASE like and comment, it would mean so much this humble writer. I've just started writing and would appreciate any feedback so do support. How are my characters so far? Where do you think the plot's going??
~ the Churro