Love Has a Color

Scarlett and the No Good Very Bad Day

So, embarrassing myself in front of the mysterious hot guy the other day did nothing for my already dwindling self-esteem. I tried to ignore Vi talking to me about "getting back out there" and "playing the dating game" the rest of the day. Then I slept through my Sunday and unfortunately I don't think I could afford another whole week out of the office. Which means here I am, digging through my closet trying to find some heels to match my blazer.

I really do not want to go to work. All I've been doing is thinking of every possible scenario. I know that not every person in the office went to that dreadful party, but I also know that word travels fast. I'm sure everyone there knows about it. I can't even imagine what they must think of me. I can just hear it now. "Oh my God, Karen. Did you hear what happened to our boss the other night? Her boyfriend cheated on her and she threw shrimp at him. She's crazy!" "Hey, Becky, did you hear about the huge scene that Miss Indigo caused last week? I told you she's insane. Seriously, certifiable!" Ugghh. Please don't make me go!

Obviously I had to drag myself to work. I pull up in front of the building and sigh to myself as I throw my head back against the seat. After taking a moment I lean forward and turn the car off. I look around to see if Violet happens to be getting here at the same time, but no luck. I reach across the seat to grab my stuff and accidentally drop my keys under the seat. I groan and roll my eyes at my clumsiness. I hop up onto my knees and reach down to search for them. Right as I get close to them I hear a loud bang outside. Startled, I whip my head up to see what it was. On my way up I slam my head on the open glove compartment door. How the hell did that get open? I hiss in pain and grab the top of my head. Then I slowly look around outside, and I realize what the sound was.

Thunder. It's raining. No, not just raining, it's pouring. Shit! Obviously I didn't bring an umbrella, why would I do that on such a sunny morning? To top it off I don't have a jacket, just my blazer, and I'm in heels. Wonderful. This day is already off to a great start.

I gather all of my things and peel off my blazer to wrap around them. I have to carry in my purse, laptop, and a stack of files that absolutely cannot get wet. I take one last deep breath and brace myself for the rain. I hop out of the car and dash towards the entrance with everything safely wrapped up in the jacket in my arms. As I make my way to the door I can barely see through the aggressive droplets falling, and I fail to notice a hole in the pavement. One of my heels seems to find it though, because I try to keep running but I don't get very far. I go straight down, face first, onto the ground.

I lift myself up before anyone can see what just happened and hurriedly grab my makeshift blazer bag. I finally make it in the door, safe from the weather. I spew some rainwater from my mouth and wipe more from my eyes. When I can see clearly I notice the crowd that must have formed during my little parking lot episode. Wonderful! As if this day couldn't get any better, not only am I now dripping wet but all of my stuff is drenched as well. I must've thrown the blazer and all of its contents into a puddle when I fell. Is it time to go home yet?

I slowly run my fingers through my wet hair to get it out of my face. I then make my way through the audience and to the elevator. I press the button and turn to face them. "In case you've forgotten, you are all here to work. I don't pay you to stand around. So, if you'd like to still have a job by the end of the day I'd suggest doing what you came here to do!" I spin back around just as I hear the ding, and I step into the elevator. I could have been a little nicer down there. Or I could have at least said something witty enough to make yelling at half of the office worth it.

As soon as I make it to my floor I slosh my way into my office. I cross my fingers, hoping I might have left some extra clothes in here at some point. Who knows, I leave a lot of stuff in a lot of places. I shut my office door behind me and lock the door. I move across the room to the closet, dropping my wet blazer, purse, files and laptop on the couch along the way. I open the door and find nothing but a small hoodie. Thank you Scarlett, leaving absolutely nothing useful! Just as I make my way back to the couch to begin my meltdown, there's a knock on the door.

I wipe the starting tears from my eyes and sniffle before I open it. "Oh, Violet! Thank God."

She shuffles into the room with a big bag on her shoulder. She locks the door behind her and walks right past me to the couch where she begins to empty the tote. "Okay, I was on the way here and someone called and told me what happened in the parking lot. So, I ran by your house on the way and grabbed you a few things. All new outfit, a towel, hair brush and hair dryer, and just in case I also swiped your makeup bag. Did I miss anything?"
She's still staring at the items she's just placed on the couch, checking to make sure that's everything. She then turns to look at me, who can't seem to hold back the tears from overflowing. "Oh no! Scar, come here," she coos. She reaches over and pulls me into a tight embrace.

I sniffle again and try to speak through my sobs. "V-Vi, you're g-gonna get all w-wet," I warn. She grabs my shoulders and pulls away to look at me.

"That is the least of my concerns. I know you keep telling me you're fine, but obviously you're not. You are my best friend Scarlett and I care about you. You need to talk about this, and we need to figure out what to do to help you. I need you to want to help yourself, though. And you can't do that by laying in bed or on the couch for a week watching movies and crying alone." She turns around and puts everything back in the bag to hand to me. "Now, before you even think about arguing about me, go get ready. I'll see if I can get another copy of those files and take your wet laptop over to the tech guys next door, ask if there's any way to salvage it. Also, you have that merger meeting at the end of this week. I emailed you the information but, since this," she holds up my dripping laptop. "Is wet, you'll have to use your desk top. If it even still turns on. You really gotta just bite the bullet and get a new one, buddy." Before I can say anything else she's out the door.

I forgot all about that meeting. What would I do without Violet? Well for starters, I'd be sitting here working out schedules and dealing with clients and other issues instead of figuring out what to do about that merger. I dry off and change into the new outfit Vi brought me, then go over to the little mirror on the closet door to finish with my hair and a little makeup. Then I go over and sit at my computer. I stare at the powered down monitor for a moment, then glance over at the little picture frame on my desk. The picture is from my fifth birthday. I'm dressed as a unicorn and I'm riding around on my father's back. We both have these insufferable smiles on our faces, our big green eyes staring right at the camera.

This is his company. Well, was, up until about a year ago. Unlike my older brother, Sawyer, I was very insistent on following in my dad's footsteps and becoming a lawyer. Sawyer was more insistent on doing whatever the exact opposite was. My parents got divorced when we were both old enough to understand what was going on. Being that we're only two years apart we were always really close, but that sort of drove everyone apart. Sawyer was way closer to our mom and I was always a daddy's girl.

After the divorce, my father decided to move to New York and open a new firm. The rest of us had our lives in Texas so we stayed there. Then, about five years ago, he started getting sick. I dropped everything and moved here. I got a job with another firm, but eventually started working for him. I lost him about two years ago. He asked for me to take over the company for him, so I did. I lost my best friend and father and gained a huge burden all at once. As much as I miss him, I'm glad he's not here right now. If he were to see the mess I am at this moment I know he'd be nothing but disappointed.

I sigh and click the power button on the computer. As I wait for it to boot up I start flipping through some of the pages on my desk, trying to focus and just stop thinking about everything. When the screen is loaded I open my email and sift through for the one Violet sent me. Okay, just relax and focus on this project Scar. You can do this.