BREAK THE RULES

CHAPTER TWO

ISLA

I don't have time to go to the office today, so I head straight to the hall. I'm happy that it's empty. I can have a few minutes for myself, and it's so good because I'm out of breath. While I drink water, Henry enters the room. When he gets closer, I can clearly see that he is upset.

"Good morning Henry. How are you?" I ask while taking out my small notebook, which is good for me because I have the most essential things from the folder, which is currently in my locker.

"Why didn't you tell me that I didn't introduce you to any of my group of students?"

Oh wow. Didn't expect something like this.

"I just didn't think it's important to do so."

"I'm very sorry, Isla. I will make sure to do it today."

"There's no need. Really." I see that he is sceptical about this. "Henry, don't worry about this. They know that I'm your assistant, and that's what is important."

"I'm not quite sure about that."

Of course, Henry didn't want to let it go, so here I am three minutes later, standing next to him.

"Students, I want you to make sure that you know who is that wonderful person next to me. Say something about yourself."

Oh man, I swear that I can feel every pair of eyes in this hall on my person.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Isla Mitchell, and I'm Henry's assistant. I want you to know that you can come to me anytime with any question, especially when Mr Matthews is busy or hard to find. I can pass any paperwork to him or get information for you much quicker than waiting for his email, and trust me, I know what I say."

A short laugh goes across the room.

"Okay, okay." Henry smiles. "Thank you, Isla."

The girl in the first row raises her hand.

"Yes?" Matthews gives the girl the right to speak out loud.

"How can we contact your assistant? "

"On the break, I'll email all of you with her email address."

Two minutes later, Henry shows a very colourful diagram while I sit next to his desk, looking at students. My eyes meet with the eyes of the guy who smirked yesterday. He sits today in the third row and looks straight at me while his friend whispers something to him. He wears today a black t-shirt. It's surprising because the weather isn't the best. It's windy and just started raining. I'm the one who looks away. I pick up a pen and open my notebook. I draw some flowers while listening to how Henry speaks about marketing strategies. I don't know why I'm curious if he is still looking, but I decide not to check that.

Day at university is passing by very quickly. It's my lunch break, and I don't know what to eat for the first time in a very long time. I don't want to go to the subway again, so I'm sitting in the office scrolling through my phone.

Bridget enters the room.

"Are you not going to have lunch?" She asks and turns on a coffee machine.

"I don't know what to eat, so I'm guessing I'm not that hungry." I say. "In fifteen minutes, I have the last lecture with Henry, and then I will probably do something at home, but thank you for asking."

"I'm so jealous." She admits. "Thursdays are the longest days for me. I finish at eight."

"Oh, bless you."