Eighteen

                                    

                                          
Photo of Brian
                          
Music: What lovers do by Maroon 5 ft SZA
                          
Skylar stared up at the massive office building that was Parker Capital and took a deep breath before climbing the equally massive steps that ran through the entire front of the building and led to the glass double doors that slid open as she approached.
                          
'Here goes nothing,' she whispered to herself as she approached the receptionist who sat behind a thick slab of black and gold marble. She seemed to be listening to someone at the other end of the Bluetooth speaker attached to her ear while simultaneously tapping furiously on her keyboard. 
                          
Skylar waited patiently until she finally pressed a button on the speaker and looked up at her with a bright smile. 
                          
'Welcome,' she said, 'I'm sorry for keeping you waiting, everything's usually more fast-paced around here when the boss is around.'
                          
Skylar returned her smile, 'it's fine.'
                          
The lady nodded, 'Please have a seat, I'll let someone from IT know you're here.' She picked up the receiver of the intercom on her desk and began dialling a number on it. 
                          
Skylar blinked, 'IT?'
                          
The receptionist looked up at her, sighed and slowly lowered the receiver back into its cradle, 'you're not here for the systems upgrade are you?'
                          
Sky smiled ruefully and shook her head, 'I'm afraid not.'
                          
'Of course not,' the girl murmured, 'again, I'm sorry, I'm just sitting in for Lyla, the person who's usually here, so it's basically my first day on this particular job.'
                          
Sky nodded, 'don't worry about it.'
                          
The girl nodded looking relieved. 'So who are you here to see?' she asked.
                          
'Brian,' Sky said, 'Brian Parker...you mentioned that he's in?'
                          
'Oh, uhm,' she glanced down at her system looking a little flustered, 'I'll have to confirm that for you, do you have an appointment?'
                          
'No,' Sky responded, 'but if you could just let him know I'm here...my name is Skylar, Skylar Reys.'
                          
The girl looked torn, but she nodded, 'please have a seat.'
                          
Skylar nodded and walked over to one of the many seating arrangements, choosing a comfortable looking black leather couch.
                          
She crossed her legs and waited as the receptionist spoke in hushed tones into the receiver of the phone on her desk. She saw her frown and listen for a bit longer before ending the call. 
                          
This time she pasted a plastic smile on her face as she turned towards Sky, 'Mr Parker's assistant will be with you in a moment.' She said. 
                          
Sky opened her mouth to respond just as another call came in. The lady tapped quickly on the Bluetooth headset and turned her attention away.
                          
Sky sighed and checked her watch, she needed to be in school for a class in the next two hours and she'd thought that stopping by would be a good idea.
                          
Her talk with Demi had resonated with her more than she'd imagined it would, and she'd reluctantly admitted to herself that she had developed feelings for Brian and she didn't want to deny them anymore. 
                          
She also didn't want to walk away now and deal with regrets later about letting him go. So she'd decided that she would talk to him and see where things led.
                          
It had taken her a few days, but she'd finally chalked up the nerve to pay him a visit, but apparently reaching him at work hadn't been the best idea, she thought to herself as she got to her feet.