Rats to Riches

Chapter 4

To say he was distracted was an understatement. Normally the diligent young Cardinal could throw himself into his work with gusto, finishing and filing paper after paper from his never ending pile in record time. Today, however, his thoughts continued to wander and he would catch himself smiling fondly as images of bright blue and green eyes shining at him, or hearing the melodic tone of her laugh.

'How had I not known she existed before now?' He found himself asking as he raked through his memories. True there was a large number of siblings, and when he walked the crowded halls he typically kept his eyes down in front of him, but surely at some point they had to have crossed paths before. Right?

He shakes his head and refocuses on his work, groaning lightly when he sees his pen had been pressed against the paper in front of him bleeding ink into a giant splotch. Setting the nub in the inkwell he crumples the stained sheet, tossing it into his waste bin before grabbing a blank copy from a left side drawer. This couldn't keep happening. He was so behind as it was. If he was ever to have any free time these mistakes needed to stop.

Grasping his pen once more he set back to the task at hand, now fully focused on his work in a rush to get through as much as he could before lunch. He sighs as he writes but refuses to let his mind wander, once more getting into a steady rhythm- Grab, read, write, sign, pile, repeat.

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Copia sits back with a wide yawn, looking to his mostly cleared desk with satisfaction. He was impressed he got so much done so soon. No, that didn't feel right. His brows furrow as he flicks up his sleeve glancing at his watch with a groan, shoulders slumping. 7:42 pm.

'Well, that explains why I am so hungry,' he thinks to himself, rubbing his face before sliding his fingers back through his hair. Yet another day he got too focused and worked completely through meals.

'Maybe I can splurge a little, order something for delivery?' His train of thought continued as he set his desk up for the next day. As he rounded the front of it he caught a glimpse of two envelopes that had been slid under his door. Brow quirked with curiosity he stoops down to pick them up. Instantly he smiles seeing the familiar script addressing them to him. He opts to open the one on the bottom first, as it would have been the first to be slid under the door.

'My dearest Cardinal,
  I hope this day finds you well and not too overwhelmed in your work. As requested I have enclosed a copy of my current schedule-

I hope this helps you with any future planning.

-Irene'

He glanced over the schedule with slight envy. She indeed had classes Monday through Thursday until 2pm, with a class every other Friday afternoon. The rest of her schedule was free unless she took extra classes. He placed that letter atop his desk so he could look at it later when he hopefully could rearrange his own schedule to accommodate outings with her.

With her schedule safely tucked away he turned to the second letter and unfolded it, his smile widening further still as he read it.

'My sweet Copia,
My earlier words must have been wrong and you indeed were quite busy today as I didn't see you once in the halls, and even as I write this at just past 7 I see your light still on under your office door. I do hope your work wasn't too strenuous and that you are able to finish it soon.

That also means I know you probably didn't eat much today, if you took time to eat at all. You really must be careful to ensure that you don't skip meals, hun. So I've gone ahead and arranged with my kitchen friends a late dinner. I'll be waiting with it in your little sanctuary if you're interested.  It looks and smells quite yummy so I do hope you join me soon. It's supposed to be a beautiful night to sit under the stars.