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"Yes, Mr. Iceburg, I'll bring them right away." Robin hung up the phone and opened the drawer to the right of her. Her fingers skimmed across the tops of the files that were inside, only stopping until she found the forms she needed. Deftly, she pulled them out, closed the drawer, and began the journey to the boss's office. Her pumps were muffled as she strode down the long, carpeted hallways, weaving her way through the first floor of the building. Standing before her was an elegant mahogany door with a sleek metal name plate simply reading, "Iceburg". Robin knocked lightly.
"Come in," a voice said from inside. Robin opened the door and stepped into the room. Iceburg sat behind his desk, hand raised to pet the mouse he kept in his shirt pocket. As usual, his hair was neatly combed and slicked, his clothes were crisp and stylish, and his workspace was neat and organized. One thing, however, was very unusual. A stranger sat across from Iceburg, clearly in a meeting with him that Robin didn't remember scheduling. The man had an insane blue pompadour, a tacky tropical shirt, and...no pants. Despite his unorthodox appearance, Robin couldn't help but find the man handsome.
"Here are the forms you requested," Robin said, focusing back to the task on hand. She took a few more steps into the room to hand the papers over.
"Ah, yes, thank you." Iceburg responded, briefly looking over the forms before placing them on his desk.
"I was unaware you had scheduled a meeting at this time," Robin said. "Depending on how much longer you need, we may need to push back your—"
"No, no, we won't be needing much longer," Iceburg said with a wave of his hand. He signed the documents before flipping them around to the blue-haired man. The stranger signed and dropped the pen back onto the table. Gathering the papers, Iceburg turned to Robin. "Oh, that's right, I don't believe I've introduced the two of you yet. Robin, this is my brother, Franky. Franky, this is Robin, one of my secretaries."
The blue-haired man stood up, extending his hand towards Robin.
"Pleasure to meet ya, Robin." Robin took Franky's hand, giving a firm shake.
"The pleasure is all mine."
"Franky just signed on to be the new head of dock 1. He's going to be helping Paulie and the others with the increased workflow that we've been having recently." Iceburg explained, standing up and putting his jacket on. "I still need to give him a tour of the docks before Tuesday, could you find a time that works?"
"Of course." Robin turned to face Franky again. "I'll give you a call as soon as I find a suitable time for Mr. Iceburg to give you a tour."
"Perfect!" Franky grinned. Something about him made Robin want to smile too. But she remained professional and suppressed it, only allowing a flicker of a smile to reveal itself.
"Do you need help finding the way out?" Robin offered.
"Nah, I got it. It's shouldn't be that difficult. See ya later!" Franky walked past Robin and out the door, giving one last wave to Iceburg before he left.
"Mr. Iceburg, should I inform him that he's going the wrong way?" Iceburg thought for a minute before shaking his head.
"No. It'll be more fun that way."
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Robin weaved her way through the first floor once again, this time to the copy room. On her way there, she caught a glimpse of a familiar shade of blue hair and stopped short. The man—Franky, if she recalled correctly—was scratching his head as he stared at the cubicles in front of him.
"I coulda sworn I was just here! Maybe I should have taken that lady up on her offer..." she heard him grumble. Her hand went to her mouth to stifle the giggle she made.
A hand tapped Franky's shoulder and he spun around in surprise.
"Do you need some help?" Robin asked.
"Just the lady I was looking for!" He beamed. "That'd be SUPER if you could show me the way outta this place."
"Of course," Robin said, flashing a dazzling smile. Franky's brain nearly short circuited at the sight. Robin was absolutely stunning, and Franky could practically feel Cupid's arrow piercing his heart. "I need to copy some forms, but after that I'm heading out as well. If you'll follow me...?" Franky dumbly nodded and trailed after Robin, too dazed to understand what she had said—he was still reeling from the adrenaline rush caused by her smile. Once he did snap out of it though, he began to take notice of the various rooms and hallways he passed through. They all seemed the same, with identical gray cubicles matching the dull gray walls and the dull gray ceiling.
"Couldn't hurt to add a little personality back there, could it?" Franky remarked once they had made it to the copy room. Robin delicately laughed at his joke, bringing another pink tinge to his face.
"No, I suppose not," she said, hitting various buttons on the copy machine, each making a mellow beep after being pressed. "I'm sure Mr. Iceburg has his reasons for making them that way, though." Franky gave a gruff hum in response. The machine whirred, periodically spitting out papers out of one side. "So," Robin said, breaking the slightly awkward silence. "I never knew Mr. Iceburg had a brother."
"It's a long story, but yeah, we're brothers. We didn't always get along, but luckily everything worked out in the end. We'd pull pranks on each other, get into the occasional scuffle—y'know, typical rowdy boy stuff." Franky let out a hearty laugh. "Man, good times..."
Robin was too shocked to do anything else but blink. This couldn't be the same Iceburg they were talking about.
"I'm sorry, did you say Mr. Iceburg was rowdy?" Franky quirked an eyebrow up when he saw the surprised disbelief on her face. "I find that...intriguing, considering how formal he can be." It made sense to him, Iceburg had matured severely once Tom had passed away and left Iceburg in charge of the company. A wave of sorrow slowly washed over him—that is, until he saw Robin staring at him curiously through those long lashes of hers. When he looked at her, all the guilt and misery building inside him was immediately replaced with a warm feeling in his heart and a flutter in his stomach. Suddenly remembering her question, a grin spread across Franky's face.
"Oh yeah, we were totally rowdy! We used to get into arguments and start pranking each other. One time, Ice for Brains put hair dye in my shampoo, and made my hair neon yellow. But I got him back good by dumping ice all over him when he was fast asleep—for a week straight!" Another chuckle escaped his lips. Robin's eyebrow shot up.
"...Ice for Brains?" she asked hesitantly, almost not wanting to know the nickname's origins. Franky stiffened up.
"Shoot! Did I say that?"
"Mhm." Franky let out a deep sigh, hand reaching to scratch the back of his head.
"Iceburg doesn't want me to call him that around other people, especially now that he's a super important guy 'n all."
"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone," Robin gave another heart melting smile. "I promise." He felt the heat crawl up his neck as Robin turned back to the copier. The machine had run its course, making the exact amount of copies Robin had requested. She took the still-warm papers into her hands and walked towards the door. Stopping to cast a glance behind her, she said,
"Follow me, I'll show you the way out now."
To be completely honest, Franky was rather disappointed that he was leaving. However, Robin managed to get him to share a few more childhood memories before they had to part ways.
"I had a wonderful time talking to you today," Robin said, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "It was fun listening to your stories of growing up with Mr. Iceburg."
"Y'know," Franky began, swallowing nervously. "If you want to talk more, I could...take you out to lunch right now?" Franky chewed the inside of his lip as he studied Robin's face for any sort of reaction. She gave a small, pitying smile and his heart plummeted into his stomach.
"I'm sorry," she said as he braced himself for the incoming rejection. "Lunch isn't a great time for me—I start my shift at the library in an hour. I have to eat in a hurry if I want to make it on time." Robin reached into her fitted blazer and pulled out a cream-colored business card. "However, I'm free on the weekends, if that works for you." Franky blinked. So...she wasn't rejecting him? In one swift motion, Robin took a pen from behind her desk and scribbled something on the back of the business card. She then held it out to Franky, who carefully took it from her slender fingers. "I should to get going. See you around, Franky." With a swish of her hair, Robin was gone, and Franky was left standing in the entryway of the building.
He stared at the card, then at the neat numbers written in black ballpoint pen across the back.
Franky broke out into a little dance right then and there, kicking out his feet and jumping around like a kid before ending in his trademark super pose. An uptight looking blonde woman peered at him with an icy gaze through her glasses.
"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
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The door of the building slowly opened, sending a rush of cold air inside. Robin stopped typing on her keyboard and saw a delivery man standing in front of her desk, holding a rather large bouquet of assorted flowers.
"Must be another suitor of Iceburg's," Robin sighed, preparing to sign off on the delivery.
"Delivery for a...Miss Robin?" The man read. Robin froze. Flowers? For her?
"Thank you," she said, quickly recovering and handing the paperwork back to the man. Taking the bouquet, she noticed a small card attached to the long-stemmed flowers. Carefully flipping it over, a small smile bloomed on her face.
Thought these would help add some personality...Can't wait for Saturday!!!
- Franky ☆
Robin set the flowers in a vase (they needed to invest in a few, considering how many bouquets Iceburg would receive) and got back to work. Every time she looked back at the colorful blossoms, Robin felt her lips curl up into a delicate smile. She couldn't wait for Saturday either.