Chapter 5 – Chaos and Coffee

Morning Mayhem

Elara Monroe had developed a new morning mantra: survive first, function second.

Her alarm went off at 6:30 a.m., and she snoozed it three times. Coffee brewed, she inhaled half a cup before spilling the rest on her shirt.

“Perfect,” she muttered, scraping the damp coffee off her blouse with a napkin. “Nothing like starting Monday already looking like a caffeinated mess.”

She grabbed her bag, laptop, and folder stack. Just as she stepped out, her phone buzzed: a group chat message from Chloe and Maya.

Chloe: Operation “Notice Him” continues. Don’t spill anything before 9 a.m.

Maya: Step 1: coffee intact. Step 2: charm CEO unknowingly.

Elara groaned. “They don’t even know if he notices me yet…”

Office Entrance – Disaster #1

At Hale Corp, chaos greeted her like an old friend. A stack of folders toppled in the hallway, and a clumsy intern barreled into her. She dodged, narrowly avoiding a collision with the water cooler.

“Monday,” she muttered, “you’ve officially won.”

She made it to her desk, only to find Chloe and Maya already there, waving small packets of chocolate.

“You need these for survival,” Chloe said dramatically.

Maya winked. “And morale. Also, slight manipulation. But mostly morale.”

Elara sighed. “You two are terrible.” She grabbed a chocolate bar. Might as well survive with sugar.

Mid-Morning Madness

The printer jammed. Twice. An intern spilled a cup of pens. Another sneezed loudly and startled everyone. And of course, her folder stack slid dangerously close to the edge of her desk.

“Oh, come on!” she muttered. She caught the top folder. Only slightly worse for wear.

Chloe whispered: “Maybe if you accidentally drop something near him, he’ll notice.”

Elara glared. “Maybe if you stop plotting my death by embarrassment, I’ll survive this Monday.”

Maya grinned. “We just want you to be seen. That’s all. Totally harmless.”

Right… harmless…

Accidental Encounter #2

Later, she headed to the elevator. Of course, Adrian was already there. She pressed the wrong floor button, and he raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, hi,” she said awkwardly.

“Hello,” he replied. Nothing more.

Elara muttered under her breath: “I can survive five more minutes… maybe.”

Inside, Chloe and Maya cheered silently from the hallway. Step Two: elevator chaos. Success.

Elara remained oblivious, pressing her hand against the railing as if sheer willpower could make this moment less awkward.

Lunchtime Chaos

She attempted a quiet lunch at her usual corner. Coffee, sandwich, laptop open. Bliss.

Until Chloe and Maya “accidentally” dropped a chocolate bar near Adrian’s table, causing him to glance up and notice her… slightly flustered.

Elara didn’t notice his glance. She was too busy managing the sandwich-to-coffee ratio to spill anything.

Survival is key, she muttered.

Afternoon Project Disaster

Assigned a joint report, she accidentally spilled a small pile of papers. Adrian helped her pick them up.

“Careful,” he said, handing her the stack.

“Thanks, boss,” she muttered, still oblivious.

Chloe and Maya whispered in glee from across the office. “He’s noticing her,” Chloe hissed.

“Slowly,” Maya added. “But surely.”

Elara sighed, muttering: “Can someone teach me to stop being clumsy? Or to stop existing near chaos?”

Closing – Oblivious to His Interest

As she left the office, files clutched and chocolate in bag, she reflected:

Another day survived. Same boss. Same chaos. Same me, somehow not falling into disaster… or love… yet.

Adrian’s subtle glances, unnoticed; Chloe and Maya’s scheming, barely effective; her oblivion, intact.

Survival is enough—for now

To Be Continued

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