Chapter Text
“I can’t believe I have to write this again. For the third time.”
Clarke closed her eyes, trying really hard to find a reason not to give her job up for the hundredth time that week.
“The Commander sent back the article again?” Raven laughed at her, rolling her eyes “That bloody woman is never happy. Last week she said my article about aerospace engineering innovation was sloppy. Sloppy! I almost graduated in that, I know it better than her for sure…”
They were in their office, if two desks in the middle of the corridor right in front of your boss real big office were enough to qualify as that. It had been the laziest friday afternoon in history since Clarke had finished her article for the weekly insert of their newspaper earlier that morning, until the last mail from her boss had arrived.
“She’s so infuriating. Last time it was the thesis that was wrong, now -Your work could be more understandable if your vocabulary was wider. It seems like you keep repeating yourself, I suggest the use of a dictionary-. A fucking dictionary? I’m going to quit.”
Clarke almost got up from her chair before Raven started to tell her what they always repeated to each others during hard times “Clarke, there are only six months left. And then…” “Then everyone is going to want us in their editorial board. I know, I know. Sometimes I think it’s not worth it.”
She moved her blonde hair to the side, looking again at her article about the low budget the city of Polis decided to spend for their public care that year. It was good, she knew that. But her boss, the chief editor Lexa Woods seemed to disagree, as she did for every article she presented to her.
When she started the job Clarke only had one thing in mind: she wanted to be a famous reporter. National Geographic kind of famous. She wanted to travel the world and write about it. But of course it wasn’t easy, and she was fresh from college, with an esorbitable amount of debts to pay, so she had to find a job.
It was Raven’s idea to find a job in Polis Today, because, as she promised her, anyone that could resist a year with a boss like the Commander could easily find the job of their dreams after it. And Clarke could see why. Editorially speaking, Lexa Woods was a genius. She was still young, maybe nine or ten years older than Clarke, but some of her political inquiries forced more than one politician to resign, and she was well-known for her expertise in the journalistic sector.
But personally, and Clarke hated to say that, because her boss was like, super hot, as Raven described her more than once, Lexa Woods was a total bitch. Not that she knew her so well, but they way she wrote those bloody notes on her work was enough for her. Or the fact she made five interns quit since the beginning of the year, all of them in tears.
She and Raven were the last ones standing, still trying to reach the impossible standards of perfection that Lexa Woods seemed to have imposed on all of her employees.
“Earth to Clarke… Are you here?” Raven snapped her fingers in front of her a couple of times, and Clarke smiled “I’m here. And I’m going to rewrite this. Again. And while I do that I’m going to think about six months from now, when we’ll get so wasted after quitting this job that I won’t remember any of it.”
“Sounds like a plan. But maybe you’ll want to remember that…” Raven pointed at something behind her, and Clarke turned her head just in time to see Niylah, the cute editor that always smiled at her. The girl blushed when she looked at her in the eyes, and quickly walked away.
It was not the first time that Clarke noticed Niylah's gaze on her, and they had already established this routine for a while. Clarke responded to her gaze and Niylah vanished, as if an arrow had struck her.
Clarke had to admit that she felt flattered by those attentions, especially since Niylah was the kind of girl she had always found attractive: she was tall and elegant, with that intellectual spark in her that Clarke found terribly fascinating. Not to mention the model-like body.
Too bad Niylah was apparently too shy to make the first move and Clarke, unfortunately, was too busy with work to start anything else. Again, the Commander’s fault.
“You should ask her out. She’s been heart-eyeing you since we arrived!” Clarke looked a little conflicted “I’m not sure it’s a good idea. Relationships at work…” Raven rolled her eyes “You don’t have to marry her Clarke, just ask her out. It could be fun!” Clarke pondered the idea with a smile; it had been a while since her last date “I’ll think about it.”
“Good to know you girls are having a nice time. Maybe you could put whatever you’re talking about on your next article Reyes, it would make it slightly more interesting than your last one.”
They both jumped on their seats hearing the voice of their boss, and Clarke looked at her computer, trying to avoid the deep green eyes that were looking directly at her “And you Griffin, I thought you had an article to rewrite.”
The Commander herself had appeared behind them, the expression slightly annoyed by their behavior that matched perfectly with the hasty ways and the appearance of one who does not have a minute to lose in pleasantries. If her appearance was the one of a princess, with those huge green eyes and brown curls, her character had nothing to envy to that of a dictator.
“Yes Miss Woods, I’m on it.” Lexa eyes lingered on her for another second before turning again toward Raven “Reyes, I need you to call me as soon as you get the statistics from Nasa. I’ll text you my personal number, and call me immediately, it doesn’t matter the time.”
“Sure Miss Woods.” Lexa closed her jaws, highlighting the perfect sharp lines of her face that Clarke found, with much shame, terribly sexy. She walked away then, and Raven looked at her again “Of course she wants me to call her at any hour, the woman has no life.”
Clarke looked back at her computer, slightly nauseous at the idea of writing her work again. “Thank God it's friday.”
*
That evening, after a beer and four shots, Clarke was feeling definitely better. “Girlsss your boss sounds so terrible” Octavia, their college friend that luckily for her had found a job for a fashion magazine, far away from their own personal hell, was still laughing about the stories Raven told her. Clarke couldn’t help but feel happy: her work might be terrible, but her friends knew how to make it all better.
They were in their usual friday bar, not too far from work yet not too close to risk meeting any of their colleagues. not that they didn’t like them all, but a change of scenery was always a good thing after a week of work.
“Also O, Clarke is going to ask a girl out!” “Whattttt? Clarke this is great news! Who is she?”
“She’s a girl that works with us. And I’m not going to ask her out! She runs away everytime she sees me.”
Raven smiled “C’mon, she’s kind of cute.” “She is, but how am I supposed to ask her out if she literally runs away from me?”
Raven, that, if Clarke recalled, had drunk far more than her, looked at her like she just had the best idea of the century “You could text her! Murphy sent me her number the other day because I had to ask her something for my article.”
Clarke stilled for a moment, pondering the idea; it wasn’t ideal to ask a colleague out, but on the other side, with her new job, Clarke hadn’t go on a date for ages “I’m pretty drunk Raven, I’m not sure I’m supposed to make choices I could regret now.”
Raven took out her phone “It’s the perfect time! Here let me tell you the number, it’s in one of my last messages…”
Clarke wrote the number down on her phone, saving it just as “Niylah” because she couldn’t recall the girl last name, but still, she seemed unable to find the courage to do it.
“C’mon Griffin, at least try!”
“Oh fuck it!” Clarke took another shot before starting typing on her phone, trying her best not to write any absurdity.
*
Lexa woke up from her light sleep after her phone signaled her a new message. She pondered to let it go, because damn, it must have been two in the morning and she already stayed late at the office (too late, as usual). But then she thought about Reyes and that important deal for her article, and she reached for her phone in the dark.
Hey, this is Clarke. Sorry to bother you this late, but well...booze finally gave me the courage to do what I’ve been thinking about for a long time. I was wondering if you’d like to go on a date with me.
Lexa was suddenly incredibly awake. She read the message four time before actually sitting up on the bed and turn on the light; what the hell was that?
Who are you?
It was probably a mistake to reply, but Lexa was a little more than pissed of for being waked up in the middle of the night.
Clarke Griffin, from work? Wow I thought... Well I saw the way you were looking at me and I thought… that you were interested.
Lexa’s blood froze in her veins. Clarke Griffin? The talented but stubborn journalist that she scolded this morning was asking her out on a date? The way she was looking… How did she looked at her? Of course, the girl was pretty. More than pretty, if Lexa wanted to be honest with herself, and she had looked at her sometimes for… non professional reasons, but Lexa was always very subtle, she was sure of that.
She went to the kitchen to drink a glass of water, pondering what to reply the girl. She was shocked that Clarke actually thought to ask her on a date, she was her boss! Also with a message, that was like… so millennial. But she felt also kind of… flattered.
Clarke was indeed a beautiful woman, and Lexa hadn’t exactly been nice to her. She couldn't afford to be nice with her employees, so she was actually very surprised Clarke wrote to ask her…
Niylah I’m so sorry, I didn’t want to make it awkward. I thought you were just shy and I wanted to take the first step to make you feel more comfortable, so I asked Raven your number… Just pretend it never happened!
Lexa stilled for a moment. Niylah? Niylah the editor? Niylah that was actually so afraid of her Lexa saw her basically only at the christmas parties? Reyes… Lexa’s mind united the dots: she did give to Raven her private number. It must have been a mistake. Or a prank at Griffin’s expense, or at hers. She had to reply and stop this nonsense, telling Clarke to stop texting her and delete her number forever.
She was about to type the message when she realised she was indeed a little pissed off. But not for the prank. Was she really happy when she thought Clarke was asking her out on a date? And what she felt now, could it be jealousy?
And maybe it was that feeling oppressing her chest, or the fact it was night and she was completely tired, or maybe that she had felt so lonely lately she actually adopted a cat, which was in that moment looking at her from the counter with a judging look on his face, but Lexa did exactly the opposite of what she should have done.
No Clarke, it’s fine, you are right. But I have to think about it, can I text you tomorrow?