The Parallel Reality

Part 1

A door slammed shut and Gabby awoke with a start. She sat up straight in her chair, took a deep breath and brushed her thick, curly, hazelnut coloured hair back. She stood up suddenly taking her bearings and not realizing where she was then siting back down on her chair although, clearly the movements she made did not go unnoticed as a group of girls sitting nearby Gabby snickered at the clumsy movement. She sighed and stood up to order another cup of coffee at the cashier counter, she ordered a pumpkin spice latte and slumped back down on her chair and deeply inhaled the latte she was holding, she allowed herself to smile and enjoy the morning as the Christmas carols played on the nearby radio.

A vibration startled her out of her thoughts. It was her phone and it was from her boss saying that she wanted to talk to her about something urgent. 'Oh! Snucks', she exclaimed and rose up pushed the door of the café open and proceeded outside. It was a crisp and snowy Christmas Eve morning in New York as Gabby walked down the five foot way whilst having a conversation with her boss, Emily Tanger, 'I want you in my office immediately!', her boss bellowed on the top of her lungs, 'Yes ma'am', Gabby replied shakily. Clutching her latte and shivering in the cold even though she had a thick and cozy windbreaker jacket, Gabby still shivered in the cold. She stopped in front of her building, "The People's News" a top of the list newspaper company, in which she worked as a private assistant there to her boss. She slipped inside the building, entered the elevator and proceeded to the 112 floor of the cloud piercing building. She entered her boss's personal workspace meekly and that's when her day started to go downward.

'Miss Gabby Hunt, where the blue blithering blazes is my report?' , Emily asked calmly. Gabby was taken back for a moment as she was surprised that her boss did not yell. 'Uh well...' Gabby started uncertainly and her boss's eyebrows achieved orbit, 'Well', Gabby continued, 'It's almost done', Gabby said. Her boss took off her glasses and dropped it on the smoothly polished oak wood table, the sound of the dropping of the glasses seemed to have an effect, as Gabby was suddenly anxious. 'Miss Gabby, how long have you known me?', asked Emily Tanger but before Gabby could answer her boss continued on 'You would know that I hate to wait for reports', 'Yes Miss Emily', answered back Gabby ' And after today any reports will not be late I promise', Emily stood up, slammed her hand on the table and yelled 'There will not be any more reports for you to hand up after today!', 'What do you mean?' Gabby asked but already fearing the answer to that question. Miss Emily sighed, sat back down and pointed to a small box at the side of her office. 'See that?', she asked, 'That is all your personal items take them out you're fired'. Gabby's world started to collapse around her. 'Miss Gabby?', Miss Emily asked and shook Gabby put of her depressing moment 'Please see yourself out of this door, thanks', and Miss Emily turned back to her computer screen and started to type. 'But Ma'am', Gabby started with 'It's Christmas Eve'. Her ex-boss looked up from the computer screen 'Well all the better then!' she retorted. Gabby gritted her teeth, took up the box of her personal belongings and headed to the elevator to escape the building.

Just as the sun was setting and turning the dark and gloomy sky to a beautiful orange colour as she unlocked the door to her corner unit flat, took her fur boots off walked towards the couch and collapsed onto it. She was just too tired and sad. She grabbed her favourite pillow and blanket and cried herself to sleep. It was just too much for a person to handle, she thought, it was just not fair. She cried deep into the night till sleep overpowered her and allowed her to escape the harsh reality she was facing. She awoke groggily and almost rushed to get dressed until she remembered that she was fired. She arose from her couch and carried on to jump on her bed and laid there lazily. There was a loud buzz from her phone and she took it in her hand and switched it on and saw the notification was from a bank saying that since it was Christmas morning she would get an on the house treat from them for a two person meal at a fancy place downtown. Then Gabby noticed something else on the voucher it wrote there that a very good singer would be there. That got Gabby's attention, she had always liked singers and hearing people sing, it was one of her hobbies. The next few hours went by in a flash as she went around finding and looking for the dress she desired and makeup that she had. Nightfall came too quickly as she barely finished her outfit, she hurried to the living room, where the full length mirror was, she looked at herself, her beautiful caramel coloured skin, petite shaped body, completed with her favourite dress which was given to her by a good friend, a dress which was patterned with tribal like patterns. She had brushed her hair back nicely and was ready to go. She took her one of her smaller handbags for the occasion and exited her apartment. She hailed a taxi and swung into the backseat of the car and told the driver the coordinates of the place, '775 Washington street', she said. As she lived a fair bit from lower Manhattan the ride would kill a good lot of time, knowing this she fished out her earplugs and plugged it into the phone, selected one of her most played playlist and sat back and nodded her head to the beat of the music in the back of the car.