It did not take long for Chloe to doze off after barely beginning to unpack her belongings- she was much too overwhelmed and exhausted. She had curled up on her bed and was just about to enter a strange dream where her supposed friend Damian turned out to be a terrorist when something woke her up. She yawned, sat up, and stared blearily around the room and at the clothes that she had left scattered across the floor. Then there is was again- a gentle knocking on the door.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, rising immediately and rushing toward a nearby mirror to straighten her hair. No matter what she did in this spur of the moment, it still resembled something like a bird’s nest. Groaning, she plastered a smile onto her face- it was the least she could do now- and then pulled open the door to come face to face directly with the man from downstairs- the doorman.
“Good morning, miss,” he greeted politely, quite obviously attempting to ignore the chaos that resided behind Chloe. “Here is a message from Damian- I have already informed him of your arrival. He was very interested in meeting you today, at 10 o’clock sharp in the main lobby.
“Yes, that will be fine, Mister…” Chloe paused questioningly, expecting him to fill in her blank and add on his name. When he did not, she attempted to brush off the awkwardness of the moment and continued smoothly to another very vital question: “But could you be so kind to tell me what time it is now?”
The doorman did not need a watch to provide the answer: it was exactly a quarter to ten, and he had been trying to reach her for several hours now. Blushing profusely, Chloe responded in French that she had been very tired and that she would try to get ready for the meeting of Damian as soon as she could. After this, she promptly closed the door and began attempting to find a better outfit to wear. Unable to do this fast enough, she ended up simply combing her hair in a hurry and then leaving her room without locking the door.
She dashed down the stairs and flew across the hallway to where she presumed was the main lobby. She was right with her intuition- the main lobby was right across from the front desk, where the doorman stood calmly and composedly.
Chloe entered the main lobby and peered around curiously. It was decorated with the same sense of style as her bedroom, but even on a grander scale, which extended to include the lavish ceiling ornate ceiling and the marble polished floors.
In the center of the room was a collection of soft leather black couches and it was by these that a group of people had gathered. They all wore expensive but simple garments that radiated a formal kind of aura and straight white teeth flashed as they talked. While they seemed to stand together, there were several separate groups of two to three individuals, both men and women. They were all rather young- mostly in their twenties. However, while there did not seem to be any particular difference between any of them, there did seem to be one person who stood out the most.
This one person stood more or less in the middle of the group and wore a broad, attractive smile. Chloe could not tell whether it was real or fake from this distance, but most of the people were paying close attention whenever that smile shifted to form a string of words. The man was blond and likely a few years older than Chloe, which immediately intimidated her. He held himself with an open but very obvious sense of authority, and in this way easily dominated over the others who gathered about him.
Chloe approached timidly. While others saw her, they did their best to ignore her. It was the man in the center- the tall blond individual, who actually addressed her once he spotted her.
“Are you Chloe Woodsmith?” he questioned in French. He did this is a very formal, neutral manner- it was neither threatening nor welcoming. In fact, it was so neutral, that with his undeterminable smile and otherwise hostile acquaintances, Chloe had absolutely no clue as to his intentions. She could only nod dumbly, since Chloe was her name after all. But she could say nothing in response to his sudden change in demeanor.
His smile, if that were possible, actually became even broader, gaining not only shine but also an attractive kind of quality. The female characters around him seemed to melt a little bit at this smile, but it was not directed towards them in any way whatsoever. In fact, its shining beam of beauty was directed precisely at the remarkable Chloe, who could only offer a feeble wave in return.
“Welcome!” he boomed and quickly approached her. He had a welcoming stroll, one that would suggest a desire for embrace. Chloe stood stock still, frozen in an uncomfortable situation. Here was a man whom she had never met before in her life- and he was greeting her and welcoming her as though she was his long lost girlfriend. While this was not necessarily a bad thing in theory, in reality it felt awkward and unexpected. She had no way of knowing what to say or what to do, since she had no idea why she was being treated with such a strange kindness despite being no one in this country.
He seemed to sense her surprise, however, and slowed his rapid footsteps. His face remained friendly and open, but Chloe could also sense the presence of an obvious business aura that every businessman possessed. This meant that no matter how happy this man might be at the moment, he will still only do whatever benefitted him and him only- not anyone else, not even his new “acquaintance”.
“These are my other colleagues,” he explained, gesturing behind himself at the other young people. “They are all here for the same reason as you are- to try and gain a better work position here, in France, than they could in their home country. Of course, some of them already work here and have great careers- and these are the people with whom I correspond today in order to provide others, like you, a better opportunity. You see, it is the goal of my company to expand and to include people of all backgrounds and from various places- talented, capable people.”
Chloe nodded that she understood, as he had spoken in rapid fire French and she did not wish for him to think of her as “incapable” right from the start. From this he moved on to describe his company further.
“In my company,” he said, “the people of high position are the guides who will lead others through the process of gaining financial power here. If you listen to your guide, and do all that he requires, you will be able to move along and create a wonderful place for yourself, even while still a student. Not only will your guide provide you with the proper tools to do this, he will also be able to give you support whenever you need it and can advise you on anything.”
“Who will be my guide?” Chloe managed to interrupt. She did not see anyone who looked as lost or as pair-less as she was herself.
“Why, your guide will be I, certainly. That is why I am greeting you in such a friendly manner. I am very excited to be cooperating with you one on one, and since I am the head of the company, you should be able to get yourself situated quite well here, in France.”
“Oh. Well, that’s very reassuring,” Chloe responded. She felt genuine relief as well as a trickle of excitement. Could this really be true? Could she really build up her life here, far from her home, where she could not even earn enough money for food if she had gone to look for a job?
“I’m sure it is,” he replied, looking rather interested himself. “In any case, I hope to see you at our group dinner tonight at Maison de la Bête, just across the street. It will be a nice way for you to meet everyone and to get a little settled in. I am also very interested in getting to know you a little better, Chloe. Just for the sake of our company.”
The way he said the last part did not sound very convincing, but the rest of the message was quite clear, focused and genuinely enthusiastic in a business-like fashion. In any case, Chloe understood what was expected of her bright as day- she would need to be Maison de la Bête tonight if she wanted any further positive attention from anyone. She nodded eagerly.
“I will be there,” she promised.
“Good,” he moved on to say. “See you there at 7 o’clock, on the dot. Enjoy the rest of your day today. There are many sights to see. Richmond should be able to provide you with a map.”
Within a few seconds, the group had evaporated, leaving Chloe all alone next to the cozy couches across from the homey fireplace. It took her a few moments to realize that she did not know who Richmond was, but when the doorman approached her from behind, startling the wits out of her, she realized that he must have been referring to the doorman.
“Would you like to take your map, miss?” It was more of a stamen than a question, and when Chloe turned around, she was handed a neatly folded piece of paper, with the picture of the university printed on the front.
“Thanks,” she uttered, promptly stomping back up the stairs to clean up her things. She would enjoy the rest of her day once her room stopped looking as though it had survived a vicious tornado. Because that was the kind of person that Chloe was.