4 Chapter Four
The stream of sunlight that flowed through her bedroom windows was what woke Ivy from her sleep. She looked around her bedroom, tiny in comparison to the suite she had stayed in Vegas, and even smaller when compared to the room she had shared with Dan at his mansion. She had moved in with him a month before their wedding, and now she was back at her apartment- a small but pretty and cosy studio apartment. She stared at the dainty golden clock that had woken her from her sleep
"It's time to get ready for work" she yawned
She hurried to get herself ready for work; forty-five minutes later, she was fully dressed for work; not only was it a Monday morning, it was also her first day at work since she got back from Vegas- She had her hair packed in a neat bun and had chosen to go for a power look in a brilliant yellow three-piece suit, paired with a pair of 4-inches high red open-toe sandals that showed off her perfectly pedicured toenails painted red.
As she prepared a cup of coffee in her kitchen, she took out her phone to dial her dad's number, as she hadn't spoken to him nor responded to his texts since he came back home from Vegas
"Oh, my baby! You finally decided to call me"
"Hi, dad, I'm sorry I didn't respond to your texts. I just couldn't bring myself to face you after everything" she said in a low voice
"You don't ever have to think of what to say to me, princess" her dad responded
"I'm sorry I disappointed you, dad," Ivy said fighting back the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes
"Aw! You could never disappoint me. You'll always be my little princess" her dad said
At that moment, Ivy was certain she would cry if she didn't end the call "talk to you later dad, I have to head out to the office" Ivy said, taking a sip of her coffee
"I love you, princess," her dad said, making a kissy sound as he hung up
As she made her way out of her apartment, she sent a text to her brother and sister, letting them know that she was okay- as they had threatened to come to tear down her doors if she didn't reply to their texts
Ivy felt different emotions as she walked into her office building. She was uncertain about how to behave- she knew for sure that people would want to talk about her failed wedding and she didn't quite know how to respond to them
"Hi, Ivy! Welcome back" she was sure she could hear the sympathy in Joan- the office receptionist's voice
"Thank you" Ivy replied with a polite smile, making her way to her office- shared office, rather
Everyone turned in her direction as she stepped into the open office she shared with about seven other people, each of them unsure of what to say to her
"Look who's back! It's the new Mrs in the house" it was Tasha, the office gossipmonger; everyone in the office hated her but most people didn't show it so as not to get in her bad books. She had a special dislike for Ivy because she had been envious of her relationship with Dan and had even made a move on him whilst they were still together
The room suddenly fell silent as every other person in the room gasped collectively
"I assume you have the files already, Tasha. We wouldn't want to keep the boss waiting now. Would we?" Lizzy said out loud enough for everyone in the room to hear while sending a scowl in Tasha's direction.
"Welcome, love," Lizzy, Ivy's office bestie said with a smile spreading on her face as she moved in to give her a warm hug. Lizzy was also a marketer at the company; she was the one person that made sharing an office space not so bad for Lizzy, and also the only person that could call Tasha out on her bullshit.
"T-thank you" Ivy stuttered, still trying to get over the shock of what Tasha had just done. She looked around the office space she shared with eight other people- the way everyone struggled to talk above the other person, the smell of sweat she had to endure, the broken air conditioning system they had complained about severally, the shared refrigerator where your lunch could get missing; she had always hated sharing an office with people. Apart from the lack of privacy, so many unbefitting jobs were given to them- despite their academic qualifications. Since the day Ivy stepped into her immediate boss's fully furnished and air-conditioned office, she had always dreamt of having her personal office space.
"Oh! You should see Joan, she says she has a package for you" Lizzy called out to her from her desk
"A package? What could it be" Ivy wondered out loud as she left her office for the reception
"Lizzy says you have a package for me," Ivy said moving toward Joan
"Yes, yes! I tried to inform you when you came in but you walked away so quickly" Joan replied handing out an envelope to her
"What's in it" Ivy wondered out loud
"I don't know darling! The boss said to make sure you receive it in person" Joan said in her cherry voice while smiling, causing Ivy to wonder how she never got tired of smiling despite the outrageous number of crazy people she had to welcome to the office building each day
"Thank you," Ivy said as she tore the envelope open
Ivy felt like she was starting at a word puzzle and the first words she saw were "congratulations" and "promotion". She immediately read through the letter and screamed when she saw that it was signed by the almighty Richard Stone
"Is everything alright?" Joan asked, her eyebrows furrowed in worry
"I just got promoted" Ivy screamed again, not bothered by the questioning looks she got from the people around.
