Her.

5

The following day Elsie was-

"Late again"

"Yes, thank you, very civil." Her sarcastic, sweet voice echoed through their large office space.

"Y'know you're the first face I have to see every morning, the least you can do is smile."

The comments had already started and Elsie hadn't even taken off her coat. Maybe she should just turn around and go back downstairs. The woman hadn't smoked in eight years but this situation made her want to stand out on the street and finish a pack of Richmonds.

"A man telling a woman to smile more, while she's minding her own business? Groundbreaking." Her sarcasm continued into the new conversation as she pulled off her coat and draped it along the back of her chair.

"I didn't mean it like that," He told her, trying to clear up he wasn't being a sexist pig but also not wanting to look like a stuttering idiot. "Sorry."

Elsie checked his face for any trace of a joke but he seemed legit.

"Since we haven't discussed any scripting, I thought I'd sketch some inspiration. I do a little storyboarding to help me write." She smiled brightly, pulling a book from her ragged backpack and passing it over to Joe.

Joe looked over the drawings.

"These are," He didn't know what to say. "Good."

"Thank you."

Elsie reached out her hand waiting for Joe to pass her the book back but he didn't even notice.

"No, really, these are really good." He moved his face closer to get a better look at one of the panels. The detail was brilliant. She could take up a career in this easily. Though he was yet to see her writing, this was an indicator that Elsie knew what she was doing.

"Thanks."

He noticed her hand and passed the drawings back as fast as he could.

"So did you start writing anything?" Elsie asked slowly, figuring he'd probably have half the script done since he was so desperate to have the job to himself.

"Uh no."

"Oh I thought that you'd have started-"

"And I would write the script, you'd get paid and we wouldn't have to see each other again." Nice Joe and his good mood had left the building, that was quick.

"No. Absolutely not. I was thrilled to get this job." Elsie was gutted that the man she'd been talking to not seconds ago was replaced with the one she'd come to expect.

"Right. Because you need the money."

"No, I-"

"You said it yourself. I'm just going by your own admission. Easy pay check for you. No more bus rides. Buy a car. Move out of your mom's house a-" Joe stopped himself but not in time to cover up mentioning her mother yet again.

Elsie didn't speak. She didn't want to argue. Instead opting to begin typing on her computer, refusing to look at Joe. Elsie figured the longer she didn't speak to him, the faster time would go and she could go home and everything would be okay. Well, as okay as it possibly could be at home anyway.

The notifications kept coming up on her silent phone and it didn't go unnoticed by Joe.

"Can you just turn the damn thing off?" Joe snapped. Elsie looked at him for a second, figured out he meant the phone and slipped it into her pocket. "What does he have to text you about 100 times a day anyway?"

His tone just got snappier by the word, if that was even possible.

"That's nothing to do with you." Her voice was quiet, as it always was when she mentioned him.

Joe studied her face and decided to drop the topic. But he was unsure of what to say next.

Maybe he ought to just leave her alone. She was already upset. Which was his fault. Every word that left him was rude and standoffish. Joe had managed to alienate the woman and had no idea how to backtrack. Instead, it seemed that he continued to worsen the situation.

"Don't go scripting anything without me knowing about it, got it?"

Elsie's hands smacked down on the table.

"So which is it? I would love to do my job, but I can't without your permission. You asked me to just let you write the whole thing, no? But if I do that, then I'm an undeserving freeloader because I'm being paid? Christ what do you want me to do? I cannot win."

Even though she was right, and he knew it, Joe just got pissed.

"Frustrating, right? This wouldn't be happening if they'd just given the job to me."

"Well they didn't! Get over it!" Elsie's voice echoed around the room. It was the second time she had raised it. Usually, her calm temperament was a staple to her personality. Joe had stomped all over that though.

"You think I'm just gonna get over having to share my job with someone's prissy little doormat of a girlfriend? I want nothing to do with you. You're difficult, you have no experience in film or tv and I can't stand being in the same room as you." Joe also got louder.

There was a silence of the two just staring at each other. Joe couldn't quite believe his own words but he'd said them now.

She was shaking. With anger or sadness, it wasn't really clear.

"Fine. You want this job so much? Have it. I'm done. It's not worth the money." Elsie ranted, packing up her belongings in a rush.

Elsie had recovered from a mental collapse before. She wasn't sure she could do it again. Was it worth it? Over a job that would end in a few months anyway? It wasn't like the money was life changing.

"You can't just-"

"Watch me. There you go. All yours."