We walked out of the dungeon into a world that looked normal, just like Earth, but brighter and more beautiful. Their sky looked more purple than blue and although it was daytime, there was no sun up in the sky. It was a lot more colourful than I had imagined. I assumed it would be like the deepest depths of hell. All black and red.
"Here we are." We approached a tall glass building that looked like a hotel.
"A hotel?" I asked. Having so little information about the Underworld made me look like an idiot. It's not like I could read about it online. It wasn't publicized for the entire world to see. Imagine the chaos.
"No, this is one of my homes as well as work," Hayden replied with a smirk, walking inside.
"Wow, it's beautiful." I didn't know in which direction to turn my head. The inside of the building looked completely sheer, though from the outside you couldn't see inside.
"If you do choose to take this job, you will have to stay here with me." He said walking me through the house. Wow. I hadn't prepared to move all the way to the Underworld and leave my albeit boring and empty, but still life behind.
"For how long?" I asked, instantly reaching my grown-out nails to my mouth.
"As long as I need you." He replied with his dazzling smile. We stopped in a large foyer with a sky like ceiling. I felt shivers run down my spine, just at the thought of living in the Underworld. It would be a great story to tell in my future, but I was afraid.
"What does the job entail exactly?" I asked confused. Why me? Why out of all the people in our company would you pick me? I wanted to ask him out loud, but I didn't have the courage.
"Data entry, meetings, and anything else I need help with." He replied in his confident and strict manner. I didn't say a word. I carried on looking around and contemplating whether I was comfortable moving. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity, but could I handle it?
"Evelyn? Have you swallowed your tongue?" My uncle spoke, breaking the stare that Hayden imprisoned me with. I felt anxious just at the thought that I potentially looked ugly or unflattering and found myself posing to appeal to him more.
"No, sorry. It's just a lot to process." I could feel my uncle's harsh stare, dig into my skin. He would never let me live this down if I rejected Hayden's offer. I'm sure he worked hard to get me this job.
"Take a couple of days to think about it if you'd like." Hayden smiled. He was so polite and perfect. I was a klutz. I was only going to get in his way. I had never felt more self-conscious in my life.
"No, that's okay, when would you like me to start?" I smiled, giving into my uncle's stare.
"As soon as you can Miss Lockwood." My heart was beating heavy in my chest. So much had happened in a frame of ten minutes.
"Well, I need to go back home and pack, but…"
"That isn't a problem, we can get somebody to deliver your belongings here." He seemed thrilled that I had said yes, but my heart wasn't so sure.
"Thank you," I replied and carried on looking around and hide my worried expression. I had never lived away from my uncle. He and Max were the only family I had left, and I was afraid of leaving them behind.
"Let me show you to your room." Hayden proceeded and we began walking across the long hall. Each step made my heart echo louder and louder inside my chest.
"I shall leave you to it now Eve. I will come to check on you later in the week." My uncle didn't follow us. We both turned around and Hayden began to smile.
"Don't worry Dorian, I will take good care of her." They smiled at each other and my stomach filled with butterflies.
"Bye honey." He waved goodbye and left the building, leaving me behind.
We walked around for hours. Hayden showed me the town and around the house. He introduced me to the house staff; there were so many of them I couldn't keep count. Once my things were delivered, he walked me back to my room.
I didn't like asking for help. I didn't like being wrong. It made sense that I liked my job and would much rather prefer to stay with my uncle because I knew how to do the job. I knew my place; I knew what I was doing and after all that I loved working with my uncle. The opportunity was way too hard to reject, especially with my uncle recommending me and here I am in my room, in the Underworld.
My heart was trembling, but I was ready for work. I brought my laptop with me, though I doubted it would be much help down here and the two folders Hayden had given me the night before. He wanted me to have a look at the layout of the system and do a couple of tests. I placed my bag over my shoulder and walked to the elevator looking for any information on where I should be going. I took a couple of deep breaths entering the elevator and going down to the lower floors where the reception was. It was already 8 AM and I was running late. I came out of the elevator and walked into a large open space. The windows were bright, but nothing was visible outside. I walked over to the counter and queued in line behind two tall guys. They both signed a large book and walked away, sliding their badges through the door, before walking in.
"Hi. I'm supposed to be working with Mr. Hades. Do you perhaps know where I could find his office?" I asked the sweet lady behind the counter innocently.
"King Hades, you mean? And I don't think you will be personally working with him. What department did he put you in?" The lady asked, a lot more condescending and impolite than she had been to the other guys. I assumed humans weren't well respected in the Underworld.
"I'm fairly certain that he said I will be working with him personally." I smiled at the lady and she leaned over the counter as if to teach me something. Her light brown hair fell over the counter as she brushed it away.
"Hades has an assistant already and it's not a human." She squinted with a smile, looking over my head as another man approached us. He smiled as he leaned over to sign the book in front of me.
"Sorry, I don't mean to push in, I'm running late." He said smiling to the lady behind the counter and she smiled back tilting her head at me.
"She says she's been invited to work for Hades personally." She laughed and shook her head looking over at the man.
"Oh, you must be Miss Lockwood. It is a pleasure to meet you." He offered me his hand to shake. His long hair fell over his shoulders. His face was perfectly symmetrical, and his blond locks smelt of coconut.
"What? It's true?" The lady laughed it off assuming the man was just teasing me. I felt my heart fall into my stomach. I had never felt so unwelcome.
"Yeah, Hayden sacked his last assistant and he doesn't trust Underworlders anymore, so he hired Miss Lockwood." He smiled at me again. He was handsome. He wore a nice clean suit to match his bouncy blonde curls and sparkling eyes.
"But she's human?!" The lady seemed appalled.
"I know…" He stared at her confused. "My name is Sylver, let me show you to his office, Miss Lockwood." Sylver swiped his card and allowed me to walk through the door. "Sorry about her, some Underworlders aren't keen on mundane's living in their world." He seemed embarrassed by her behaviour, which gave me some hope of finding some friendly Underworlders.
"That's understandable, I guess. I'm sure humans would be shocked if they saw beasts like Mihai just walking around on Earth." We both laughed as we walked into the elevator.
"Hayden prefers working in the dark, so he's always on the last floor. Also, he doesn't like being called King Hades, so stick with Hayden. Also, you'll hear everyone talk about how difficult he is to work with, but just try to do what he asks as quickly as you can, and if you make a mistake tell him, don't ever hide it. Ask him for help if you need to, but leave him to do his work, he doesn't like chit chat. He's a workaholic so don't be afraid to remind him that you are human and need to sleep and eat." Sylver explained. He seemed to go on and on. I felt like taking out a note pad to note all those rules down. There were too many to remember off hand.
"Is that all?" I looked up at him with his words making rounds around my head in an attempt to embed inside my brain.
"You might also want to invest in some Underworld clothing. Other than that, that's everything. He's not as bad as you think." He smiled and we landed on the last floor.
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