Redress (gxg)

Chapter 1 "The Meeting"

Prying my eyes open, I stared at the ceiling for a while, trying to erase the remnants of my recurring nightmare as I felt the numbness it brought me. Growing up, the nightmare of what happened that night had became part of my life, a constant reminder of my dark past that I didn't want to forget, as it was the only thing that kept me going, the purpose why I was still breathing to see another day.

Not a day went by that I stopped remembering what happened that tragic night. When I first had the nightmare, I was sleeping in the corner of an alley, alone and hungry. I was so scared that I cried for I didn't know how long, until I slowly fell back to sleep. I was mourning, yet the hunger and the fear of being alone, somehow outweighed the pain. It was difficult, I had no one to turn to but myself, as I struggled to survive each day. But as time went by, I learned how to fend for myself, and got used to the pain, that all I could feel was a numb ache on my chest.

Snapping out of my thoughts and shrugging the cover off, I slowly got off the bed and made my way to the bathroom to do my morning routine. After I was done, I went straight to the closet and grabbed the business clothes I could find. Putting on the white dress shirt, and tucking it in my black tight high-waist pencil skirt, I checked myself on the mirror. With my newly-dyed brown hair, I looked completely different, which was what I was aiming for, so people wouldn't recognize me that easily.

Fifteen minutes later, I was already out of the apartment building and got on my car. Turning the engine on, I promptly stepped on the gas and maneuvered to the highway with a small smile creeping on my lips, thinking about Rebecca's reaction if I suddenly showed up in her office, unannounced. It had been three months since we last saw each other as I decided to iron some things out, away, and I couldn't be more excited to see her again.

It didn't take long for me to reach her office building. After finding a parking spot, I eventually parked the car, and checked myself briefly on the mirror, before getting out of the vehicle. I strode towards the building, not wasting any more time. When I was in, I headed straight for the elevator and got in, pressing the button to the topmost floor, and waited patiently as I checked my reflection on the elevator's door. Everything was in place, except for one thing. Opening my bag, I fetched my eyeglasses, and wore it, before looking back to my reflection, nodding in contentment.

It didn't take long until the elevator dinged open. I promptly stepped out and walked down the hallway to her office, where I saw her secretary looking up from her computer, clearly surprised as she stared at me wide-eyed.

"Good morning...Ms. Kensington?" Mary, the brunette secretary, greeted with uncertainty as she frowned.

"Is Rebecca in?" I asked nonchalantly.

"Ah, yes, but--"

"Good, thank you," I interrupted before she could finish her sentence, and continued walking towards the door. Before she could even stop me, I was already pushing the door open to Rebecca's office, and found her skimming through some documents with a deep frown etching on her face.

"...She's busy," Mary slowly mumbled under her breath.

"I told you not to let anyone in, Mary!" Rebecca said with a hint of annoyance in her tone, her attention still glued to the documents.

"Not even me?" Hearing my voice, she looked up, and eventually, her eyes widened in surprise. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but closed it again when she couldn't find the words to say.

"How do I look, Becks?" I casually asked.

"Alex?" she finally mumbled, her gaze slowly traveled down and back up, examining me. I nodded in response as she stood up, rounding her desk, and walked in my direction, stopping in arms-length. "Alexandra?" she mumbled once again, making me chuckle.