Closed A New Beginning

[Holly Cromwell]

Holly didn't know what she was doing. She'd left Armin- she had to. He was a complete jerk, and getting pregnant had only made her realize that he wasn't the sort of man he'd ever want her baby around. She couldn't let him treat her baby like he treated her. But running to New York, four months pregnant and just starting to show- she really didn't know what she was doing. She'd scraped together all she had to get a somewhat decent apartment- small, one bedroom, but it was a start. She'd had splurge the last little bit on a good security system and a 24 pack of ramen, but it was enough.

Now, the next step on her list- finding a job. She'd gone to every company and shop between here and her house, and she was standing in the lobby of another one now. She was pleading with the receptionist, trying to get a job interview. "Look, ma'am, I know I don't have experience, but I'm loyal, and hard-working, I learn quickly. I'd put everything I have into this job, please just give me a chance."

 

[Logan Astor]

Logan was a bit late to his job, he knew he had to make the changes in the paper as it was going to be published in a few days and he had a lot of work before that was going to happen. But there was really no one that could control when he came or when he left and this time he was quite glad that he was a bit late. He got to listen to a woman convincing one of his employees to let her do a job interview. "Follow me, I will get that sorted out for you," he softly put a hand on her shoulder before motioning to her to follow him. Logan usually didn't get involved with taking new workers in or not, except when those were high standing positions but while listening, he noticed a little baby bump that the woman had and he just knew that he had to help.

 

[Holly Cromwell]

Holly almost jumped a bit when she heard the voice, turning wide eyed to the man. She hurried after him, swallowing hard. She tried to keep her back straight, brushing her hand over her shirt and resisting the urge to bite her lip. Her heart was beating fast in her chest, and she was doing her best to try and look as professional as she possibly could. She hurried along, looking around wide eyed at everything until he had stopped. "Thank you for the opportunity, sir," She managed, her voice gentle despite her trying to sound more like an adult.

 

[Logan Astor]

Logan smiled at her as she thanked him. "Oh, I believe in giving people chances more than my employees do. So there's nothing to be thankful about yet," he opened the door for her letting her go in first. He was confident that she was nervous and all that and he wasn't going to make it worse. She seemed too sweet to be messed around with like that. He easily led her to the chair, moving it a little to help her sit down politely. "So tell me first about yourself," he said with a smile as he approached his table finally. "Do you want tea? Maybe any other beverage? I have cookies if you want," he offered easily. He wasn't going to make a real interview, he had already set his mind on giving her a job, he just felt positive about her and intuition told him to help her.

 

[Holly Cromwell]

Holly swallowed nervously, folding her hands tightly in her lap and resisting the urge to bite her lip. "Yes, sir," She replied a bit bashfully, lowering her eyes to her feet. She was surprised when he pulled out her chair. She peeked up at him through her bangs, before sitting down carefully, trying not to appear as clumsy as she felt. She took a deep breath. "Just some water please," She thought it the safest option, not wanting to turn him down but not asking for the pop she really wanted either. She considered her question, wringing her hands a little.

"I- well, I-" She took a deep breath, trying to still the furious beating of her heart. "I just moved here from out of country, I needed a fresh start. I want to forget how things were, to be honest. But- well, I'm not- the smartest, honestly, but I'm loyal, and I might not be the best employee you ever had but I'll do my absolute best." She told him. "I'm eager to learn, I'll do my absolute best, just please, I need a job, I'll take anything." She took a deep breath to stop herself from pleading.

 

[Logan Astor]

Logan raised a brow but nodded. "Are you sure?" he decided to ask once more but then nodded once again. "Water it is," he stood up and went to the mini-fridge in the corner of his office. Logan was obsessed with different types of drinks so he had a wide choice of them. "Here you go," he gave her the bottle of water.

Logan listened to her patiently, nodding a little at her words, looking at her fascinated. She seemed absolutely genuine and sweet. "Have you ever worked as an assistant? What's your working experience?" he finally asked a question that mattered.

 

[Holly Cromwell]

Holly accepted the bottle of water with an almost shy smile, doing her best to stay professional. "Thank you," She offered gently, though she didn't take a sip of it. She hesitated at his question and shook her head. "Mostly I've only worked retail. I've worked as a waitress, and I spent some time in the hotel industry, and I've worked at a petrol station and an auto shop," She admitted. "I've been chased away from several jobs by bad management, but I've always stayed longer than I probably should have." She held tightly to the water bottle, trying to appear calm and grown up. "I haven't worked in a secretarial position before, but I promise I'll give it my best shot, I'll work late, I'll do whatever I can to learn," She promised him. This was the last place near her house, she had to put her best foot forward.

 

[Logan Astor]

Logan listened carefully to the woman, trying his best to decide on what to do and how to handle it more professionally. Scribbling down some notes, brainstorming a little while she talked. From time to time nodding to her monologue. And once she finished, Logan tapped a little with a pen on the table, letting it click a few times. "Okay… so," he clicked the pen on the paper once more before locking his fingers and finally settling down with his decision. "Okay, assistants position is yours. You're gonna start in two weeks but the papers are gonna be signed now. In these two weeks we're gonna offer you a class where you will learn to do this job properly, and yes, you're gonna be paid for this time too because your practice will be an actual work," Logan thought that this was gonna be the best way to sort this all out. "For three months you're gonna be on testing, like a test drive to you and us, after three months you're gonna receive a salary raise and receive a medical support," he tried his best to explain it all. Logan always left this sort of job to his employees who actually worked with interviewing new people and Logan was getting in between the job of other people. "How does this work to you? Do you have any questions?"

 

[Holly Cromwell]

Holly couldn't help the way her jaw dropped as the man spoke, or the tears that filled her eyes. She wasn't sure she'd even been really expecting his help. She shut her mouth quickly and swallowed hard, taking a quick sip of her drink. "Oh my gosh, I- wow, that is so amazing, I-" She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself. "I cannot thank you enough, sir." She told him, sincerely, her voice breaking a little bit. "I promise, I'll give this job everything I've got." She smoothed out her shirt, trying to sit up impossibly straighter and look more dignified. "That all sounds amazing, just tell me what you need me to do and I will do it," She promised. She took a little notebook out of her bag. "When do you need me and where?"

 

[Logan Astor]

Logan actually liked how the women was reacting, it felt nice that he even had a feeling of actually going something good, he could call it his inner voice that told him that he actually did a good deed and he was proud of himself. "Well, I hope you do," Logan leaned back in his chair, chuckling a little. "Actually, I will even offer, if you decide to study forward in this direction and take online classes, we will cover the expenses. Consider it investing it into the future of the journal," he wrote it down as well. It would be better if he remembered the things he said instead of making empty promises. He made a little phone call before giving the answer to the following questions and in a minute he had a contract on his desk. "You are starting in this building on Monday at 9 o'clock, I'm not sure where they will decide to take you to study though, so once you enter the lobby, go to the front desk and Maria will give you further instructions... I think it's Maria's day on Monday... Just anyone at the front desk will give you the answers," Logan shrugged his shoulders before signing the documents that he had on his desk. "Also, this is your job description and the contract, you don't have to sign them right now, take them home, read carefully and bring them back on Monday, alright?" he moved them from his side of the table to Holly's, smiling confidently.

 

[Holly Cromwell]

Holly was fighting tears, trying not to get emotional and wanting to wait until she'd made it back to her little apartment to break down. She nodded vigourously, pen flying as he spoke. This mans kindness knew no bounds, and she knew she'd devote herself to both this baby and this job. She took the pages he slid over to her, and nodded, slipping them into her bag. "Yes sir, thank you sir," She gave him her best smile. "I'll go over everything and be in Monday morning with all of the proper papers. Again, thank you so much, I promise you won't regret this."