10 The Lioness Found Her Prey

Sabrina straightened the pleats on her slit skirt, as she examined her image inside the elevator. She closed her black blazer just below her chest and pulled up her white tube top and the strapless bra to prevent the two Papayas from sagging.

After two and a half months of a dull routine, Sabrina was transferred to a separate department. Although she enjoyed pissing customers who called for their minor technical problems, she thought that making coffees for someone would be a better job.

She plucked her lips in front of the mirror and grinned, as she saw her cherry-red lipstick almost reached her nose. Her emerald-green eyeshadow, matched with the angel-wings her violet eyeliner drew, boosted her confidence even more.

'Gosh! I'm so pretty! Those make-up tutorials I saw on Youtube were very reliable. My look will surely brighten up the mood of my new boss,' she thought.

While she was combing her hair using her fingers, the elevator halted and the doors parted upon reaching the twelfth floor.

A white-collared man, twiddling his phone entered his one foot inside when he looked up and saw Sabrina smiling at him. He flinched at sight and stepped back finding the right words to spit out.

'I don't remember hiring a clown for a birthday party,' the man pondered.

"You go ahead." He forced a smile.

In an attempt to make a good impression on all employees in the company, Sabrina declined the offer and cleared her throat.

"There's more than enough space for the two of us. Please join me and thank you for the chivalry," Sabrina insisted. Waiting for the man to enter, she held the open button while maintaining the crinkles in her eyes.

The man warily looked at his watch and nodded. "Okay, thank you. The twenty-eighth floor, please." He walked inside and stood beside Sabrina. He looked up and rocked his feet, while he placed his hands inside his pocket.

In Sabrina's peripheral view, the man was as tall as her with a height of five feet and seven inches. His messy curly hair looked like a bird's nest with no eggs on it, and the round eyeglasses he wore accentuated the freckles on his cheeks. She suddenly felt hungry as she associated the dark circles under the man's eyes with her favorite Oreo cookies.

Feeling the awkward silence that hummed as they ascend, she tightened her grip on the handbag in front of her skirt and pushed the thoughts of biscuits floating away on her mind.

The man's phone vibrated. As he looked down to get the phone from his pocket, he saw Sabrina's scarf hanging out from her bag. He turned his head and took a good look at it for ten seconds, before finally deciding to call the woman's attention.

He was lifting his hand to point out the issue when the lioness slapped him on his face.

"How dare you look at my boobs like that?" Sabrina snapped.

"Whoa! Hold your horses. I'm not looking at your boobs. I'm looking at the scarf falling from your bag!" The man retracted his hand to his face as he stepped away and bared his teeth in pain.

The beast had marked its prey.

Sabrina immediately checked her bag and secured her scarf inside it.

"You should've told me directly. No need to stare at it like a maniac!" She walked out, dragging her bag firmly as she heard the doors opened.

She was trotting along the building's corridors, trying to regain calmness, when she spotted the number 'twenty-eight' embedded on the wall.

'That man spells bad luck!' She scrunched her face, clenched her fists and released a groan. She miraculously found a stair and rushed her way up to the thirtieth floor.

As she looked at her watch, her strides widened, and she felt her throat closing up. 'Three minutes and I'm fucking dead.'

Her lungs were about to explode when she finally saw the light of her exact destination.

"I'm here!" She slammed the door open and panted on her knees.

She was greeted by a stern expression of an old woman sitting on a rolling chair, as the aroma of a strong black coffee meandered through her nose. The woman's desk was filled with stacks of papers, personal items, and knickknacks. The wastebasket below her table was littered with all the colors of sticky notes and a few water bottles.

"You're almost late, and you show up with that kind of face? I'll give you one minute to fix yourself!" The old woman criticized as she stood from her chair and placed her hands on her hips.

"I'm so sorry!" Sabrina turned around, grabbed a tissue from her bag and wiped her whole facial features drenched with sweat.

'If it was not for him!' She grunted as she replayed the scene earlier on her mind.

"Lady! Are you crazy? Are you trying to create an abstract painting on your face?" The old woman yelled and hurried in front of her.

'My goodness! My makeup!' Sabrina quickly drew the small mirror from her bag, and the two of them screamed upon seeing the horrifying situation — the make-up smeared both her face and reputation.

"You're an abstract that only costs ten yuan," a man joined the uproar.

Sabrina turned around and saw the same man she met earlier, crossing his arms and smirking at her.

Leaning on his quarter's door, the man rectified himself and shuffled to their position.

"Renzo, she'll be working on our team from now on," the old woman explained.

"I know, Mrs. Zhang. It just happened that I don't like her. We can find someone more talented than her, I believe." Renzo looked at Sabrina from head to toe and laughed.

"Wa-wait. You are my boss?" Sabrina waved her hand.

"You both know each other?" Mrs. Zhang interrupted.

"Hell, I do!" Sabrina and Renzo yelled at the same time.

They both glared at each other for five seconds and twisted their heads to the opposite direction.

Mrs. Zhang cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry, Renzo, but we are short of human resources. The board only approved one additional personnel to work on our team."

"But why does it have to be her?"

"Did you read her resume? There you can find the answer."

"I was about to get it from the H.R below, but this woman... Never mind."

"This woman what? Well, did you enjoy the scenery earlier?" Sabrina flared up.

Renzo openly stared at Mrs. Zhang and sighed helplessly.

"If you don't like me, then I don't like you even more! I quit!" Sabrina gestured an "S" on the air with her hand and trampled her heels walking away.

"That's better!" Renzo retorted.

"Ms. Sabrina Chen, I hope you remembered the contract you signed. Unless you're willing to pay us Five-hundred thousand Yuan before the year ends, then you can go without any problem," Mrs. Zhang gently reminded.

At the sound of 'Five-hundred thousand Yuan' entering her ears, Sabrina trailed her way back to her previous standpoint.

Sabrina gulped her saliva. "Well, I can make amends."

"Oh! Surely you can with that face," Renzo mocked.

"Renzo," Mrs. Zhang smiled at him with her fists curled shaking.

Renzo fell silent.

Mrs. Zhang exhaled sharply and clapped her hands. "Good! It's settled then!"

"Following the project's first phase, we will gather the data needed starting tomorrow," Mrs. Zhang chanted while her eyes gleamed.

"Where?" Sabrina asked ensuring that a certain distance was kept between her and Renzo.

"At the first day of class of Qing Hai International School."