The Second Chance Companion

Present Day— Arianne

I'm getting married to Michael Kings.

The boy who broke my heart.

The man who has ruined my life.

Last week, Mama decided that I need a job to appear as a responsible girl. Since the press will soon start flooding the house upon my recent re-arrival, I have to be ready. Since the week she freed me, I've been forced to undergo all kinds of treatments to make me look like their ideal bride would. My hair has been treated with all sots of things to make it look rich and healthy, not starved for three years.

I get up and shower earlier today because I know it's important. Mama had told me that she would give me a phone with the necessary information for the job- since she applied for it on my behalf.

The interview is by nine am, so by seven thirty, I'm seated in front of the dressing mirror, putting on my accessories.

As I fix my earrings, my mind drifts to Winter. Before I can get sucked into a world of shame and regret, the door to my room is slammed open.

“Are you ready?” Mama's voice snaps me out of my thoughts. My eyes drift to the reflection staring back at me. The witch requested I wear a while shirt and a black pencil skirt for professionalism. By ‘requested’ I mean it's the only clothing she's given me to wear, since she seized my suitcases.

I don't bother answering her- I've nothing left to say. So I simply nod my head and remember to keep my gaze low.

To anyone else, I don't look bad, with my green eyes staring back at me. But in my eyes, all I see is UGLY yelling at me in twenty seven different languages.

I truly commend my mental strength. Usually, people like me would have the jitters, panic attacks, or, just die, basically, but I didn’t feel any of it. It’s like I'm simply watching a movie where I'm the main character.

“Get up.” She orders, and I obey, slowly pushing the chair back. “Turn around, I want to see all of you.” I give her a small, slow twirl, and she sighs heavily in disappointment.

“It will have to be good enough for Adams Inc.” She hands me a black designer bag. “Hold this. It has a phone, makeup and all the things a lady would need.” She takes a step forward and grips my jaw, hard.

“Look here, Alexa. You will get this job. You will be the perfect wife. You will be of good behavior.” The sad thing is, I don’t feel the pain she’s inflicting. “And don’t even think about running away.” I can feel her spray spit on my face. “In fact…that's where my next gift comes in handy.” She pulls out a silver necklace from the bag I’m holding, then hands it over to me. “Put it on." I obey, moving my hair around to get the necklace on. It is more like a choker, because it has a butterfly in the middle that stops at the center of my neck. “This has a camera and audio device. If you even think about telling anyone what has happened, I’ll just press a little button I have in my room, and bye bye Arianne.”

I know she is lying, though. If she kills me, the money she's working so hard to get would be gone. All her effort, the people she’s killed. Will all be a waste. Yet I decide to humor her, to pretend like I wasn’t able to escape.

“Got it?” She asks me, and I nod my head. “Perfect. Now, you'll get breakfast when you get the job, so, run along. The driver is waiting for you downstairs.”

I rush down the stairs and out the door to meet Ethan, the driver. I don’t say anything as he opens the car’s door for me. We simply drive to the place without a word, and when we get there, he rushes to open the door again.

By 8:45, I'm standing at the doors of the most massive company I've seen in all of my life. It's made of glass, and I can see hundreds of employees rushing around to get things done. I take a deep breath of air.

This is my life now.

I walk through the automatic doors, up to the receptionist who’s smiling at me. “Hi! Do you have an appointment?”

“Uh, yes.” I say, my voice barely above a whisper. I pull out the phone Mama gave me with the information sent as a text. My eyes scan over the text and I look back up at her. “I’m Arianne Queen, here to apply for the P.A position.”

“Oh!” She gets up, leading me to an elevator a few feet away from her table. She’s blonde, I notice. And we’re wearing the same outfit, except she’s wearing silver heels while I’m wearing black. “He's on floor seven” I get inside and she pushes a button. Before the elevator can close, she steps forward, telling me in a hushed voice. “I will tell you though, Mr. Adams is a very short tempered man. If you don't get the job, don't take it personal. He's had like fifty seven applicants turned down already.”

I don't know what to say, so I nod my head. She moved back, letting the elevator close. I turned around, gazing at the world as the elevator took me higher. A soft chime came before the doors opened, telling me that the ride was over.

I walk into a a corridor, with another smiling receptionist. I walk up to her, and tell her I'm here for the job, and she leads me into a huge room. It's practically empty, almost bare. But there is a mahogany table further into it with papers scattered across it, and two swivel chairs. A trash can filled with empty cups of coffee, too.

“Mr Adams will be with you soon.” She says to me after I sit down on the seat in front of the desk. I hear the door close after she walks away. A few minutes later, I hear the door open again.

This time, I know it isn't the receptionist. The smell of Axe and peppermint fills my senses, and it reminds me of home.

My home, with Winter.

My gaze is low, and I stare at my feet, listening as he makes his way to the table and settles down.

“And you are…?” He picks up a file with my name on it, and pauses. There is nothing but silence for a while. If not for the soft ticking of a watch I see is his, I would believe I'd gone deaf. Then he whispers the last part out with a shaky voice. “Arianne Queen.”

I know that voice. I could recognize it even from the murky depths of hell. For the first time in three years, I look up to meet his gaze.