Ruby always had a gentle temperament, and with her good looks, she appeared easy to get along with without any sense of distance. As she entered the company as an intern suddenly, for colleagues who were outgoing and enjoyed socializing, it was natural to want to get to know her better by asking questions like where she was from, her educational background, and any awards she might have won.
During lunchtime, everyone went to the company's cafeteria to eat. Jasper was afraid that Ruby wouldn't be accustomed to the food there. So, he had already ordered lunch from Grand Manor for her, put it in a box without a logo, and had it delivered to her hands.
At the moment, Ruby was texting her sweet boyfriend, [I'm used to what I eat. You don't have to go through all this trouble.]
Jasper replied, [Okay, just let me know what you want to eat, and I'll arrange for it to be delivered.]
'Having such a thoughtful boyfriend, how can I not be moved?' Ruby thought while replying with a happy smile on her face, [Okay, thank you. My sweet boyfriend.]
After reading the message, Jasper raised his lips and replied, [Okay. Is your assistant starting work tomorrow?]
Winnie, the assistant, was supposed to come to work today, but she caught a cold. Ruby told her to take care of herself and come back once she was well. There was no rush for just a couple of days. She replied, [She's sick, so I'm planning to let her rest for a few days.]
Jasper wasn't particularly concerned about when the assistant would start, so he didn't ask when he brought Ruby to the office in the morning. Now, considering that Ruby wanted to be an intern, this was the reason he wanted the assistant to start working sooner.
Jasper agreed in the text, [Okay.]
"You have a boyfriend?" A female voice suddenly sounded from above, not too loudly. The comer was a recent graduate who joined the company four months earlier. She was competent, worked diligently, and had an outgoing personality, but she was also quite competitive.
Ruby put away her phone, turning off the screen. Not waiting for the question to be answered, the comer reached out for a handshake and introduced herself, "Paula Collier. I've been here four months earlier than you. Let's team up and take care of each other."
Ruby, not a fan of small talk, smiled gently and politely introduced herself, "Hello, I'm Ruby Blackwell."
With many common surnames, there were also many people with the same name. The surname Blackwell naturally wouldn't make anyone immediately think of the four great families in Athana, especially since Hackett would never allow his daughter to trend on social media. Besides, Ruby still had the word "Intern" hanging around her neck.
Paula had a gossipy personality and liked to inquire about things. Her colleagues gave her the nickname "Babbler." She asked, "So, you have a boyfriend. Where are you from?"
Ruby didn't like this type of conversation, so she gave a simple answer. "Athana."
"You're from Athana too?" Paula, seeing that Ruby was willing to answer, pulled up a chair and sat down.
"Yeah," Ruby replied.
"That's good. I'm not from here; I'm from the outskirts of Athana. Do you have an apartment here?" Paula asked.
"Yes, I do." Half of the neighborhoods in Athana were built by the Blackwells, but Ruby kept a low profile, just giving a simple answer, saying, "I have one." She added in her mind, 'It's a house though.'
Paula couldn't stop talking, continuously chattering away without any intention of stopping, "Well, that's good too. The rent here is too expensive; half of my monthly salary goes to rent. Renting farther away is inconvenient, and our job often involves overtime and revising drafts, not suitable for living in the suburbs. Plus, it's not safe at night there."
Ruby stood up, took her lunchbox, and went to the pantry room. She thought Paula would return to her office desk, but instead, Paula followed her to the pantry room, evidently ready to continue chatting. Seeing Ruby open her lunchbox, Paula curiously asked, "Wow, which restaurant did you order from? It looks tasty."
Ruby decided not to lie anymore. If she randomly named a restaurant, it would be exposed. She explained softly, "Homemade, by my family."
"Ah, that's a pity. I thought you ordered takeout." Paula was disappointed as she planned to try it tomorrow initially.
While Ruby leisurely enjoyed her lunch, Paula shared information about the design department. "Let me tell you, our design department's director is Priscilla Benson. Don't be fooled by her seemingly gentle name; she's not gentle at all. Always giving us difficult tasks. Once, she asked us to purchase a specific fabric, divided us interns into three groups, and made it a competition to see who could find the correct fabric in the shortest time. The ones who failed would be eliminated from the team. Not gentle at all." Paula shuddered playfully, pretending to be scared, and continued, "Yesterday, oh no, it was the day before, during the meeting, Ms. Benson announced that starting from tomorrow, we don't need to wear work uniforms anymore. She wants to enhance everyone's styling skills, so we can freely dress from now on, look beautiful and all."
Paula talked as long as Ruby ate. She covered everything from her first day at the company to now. If it weren't for the end of lunch break, she would probably keep talking. Ruby commented inwardly, 'This one is definitely the most talkative I've ever met, aside from Rose and Mom.' During a meal and a lunch break, Ruby covered everything about the company, including who had been punished, what incidents occurred, and how many times someone was late. She thoroughly understood everyone's personalities and histories. She couldn't help but think her decision to start as an intern was the right one. If she appeared today in a leadership role, Paula would not share these things with her.
When it was time to leave the office, Jasper arrived on time to pick Ruby up. He parked the car across the street, and Ruby crossed the road discreetly, getting into the front passenger seat and urging, "Let's go, let's go."
Seeing Ruby's anxious expression, as if they couldn't be seen together, gave Jasper a feeling of being caught in an affair. "Why so nervous?"
Instead of starting the car, he turned around and, as if performing magic, presented a bouquet of roses to Ruby. "For you."
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