Strong For Too Long Trilogy ✔️

07. The Double Date

CHAPTER 7: The Double Date

The second I slip from my unconscious mind to conscious being, I sit up in a cold sweat, rubbing my blurry eyes as my tremors slow back to a still and the realisation that the scenes behind my haunted eyes was indeed a nightmare, I promise myself to breathe some fresh air before class begins.

A voice sounds on my desk, "What were you dreaming about?" Pierce asks, looking through one of the folders he'd given me and I see he's opened my curtains as well.

I grunt, wincing as I block my eyes and sit up, "What a nice surprise? Are you here to lecture me or something?"

"Why were you frustrated after the mission? I got a report after the crew all sat down and had their own silent discussion on the lecture you gave them. Even I underestimated you, young lady. Now, talk to me. Why were you stressed afterwards?" He asks softly, turning to face me now as I stare straightforward in my night clothes.

I shake my head, hesitating, "It was my first mission. They didn't trust me." I slide more in my head as he sighs, standing to take a seat next to me as he leans his arms on his knees, his large firm, towering mine.

"You know trust needs to be earned." He murmurs, looking at me now and I glance up at him.

"Or you take a leap of faith, trust someone until they give you a reason to not anymore." I mutter, he smiles, raising a hand to my hair, which I always keep down in my sleep.

"You're very smart for your age." He says and I grunt, moving out of his hand as I stand out of bed.

"That's another thing, I'm too young and therefore not competent enough to successfully guide them through a mission. I got shit from them on that one."

He doesn't say anything but rather smiles down at his hands, "You did really well, out of all my years working here, I've never come across anyone as good as you and your age does come into it, young lady. The way you lectured them, it even made Aaron silent, he's astounded by your clear nature of leadership, as am I."

I snap my head to him, eyes blank, emotion removed, "I don't want to be a leader."

"You still don't know what you want, Olivine." He murmurs, standing now as he regards me, with an indescribable look, once more.

"The money has been transferred. Prepare yourself and the team for the next mission." He instructs, walk-in towards the door as I groan in annoyance,

"Why can't you prepare them?!"

He chuckles, "Because you're so much better at that than I am."

"But, you tolerate them more than I do." I mutter, angrily. He continues to shake with laughter and I give him a weirded out look.

He taps my doorframe, "I have a feeling they'll listen more clearly to you now."

"Well, I think you're wrong."

"You're being stubborn." He sings out with a smile, before closing the door now. I sigh, turning towards my laptop, using the same algorithm for research, I cross reference Aster Pierce, but I hold a simulation to avoid him reading into my ideas, or the fact I'm keeping an eye on the bastard. He has files upon files, ones that will take me a few weeks to run through.

An email pops up on screen notifications and I open it, an email from Aaron, apparently.

"You may have given us an upgrade on this team, pipsqueak, but, you have no idea who you're dealing with when it comes to me. Working with Pierce, is not something a teenager like you should be handling, given you act as his favourite daughter, I'd say you're as much of a suck up as the next girl attempting to impress him. You ever give tips to my crew again, or pull a stunt like you did in the van, I will be on you like white on rice. You're a mere contractor with skills you don't even know how to control. Next mission; I will be in charge and I don't want to hear a peep out of you when that time comes. Ps, don't ever talk to me like you did in the Van, I'll make you pay for that the next time we have confrontation." He ends the message there.