"I left it on the table!" Ella muttered. "How could it vanish into thin air?"
Evelyn helped search. She had been shredding papers. She checked each one carefully. There was no invoice.
But she wasn't certain. Ella might have stuck it to the back of an A4 sheet. She hadn't checked that.
A moment later, a thought struck her. She hurried back to her desk. She grabbed an invoice she had tucked away in the file holder. She walked over and asked, "Ella, is this the one?"
Ella took it. Relief washed over her face. "This is it! Thank goodness!"
The next second, she looked at Evelyn. "Why was it with you?"
"Well, you asked me to sort the waste paper and check it. When I saw this invoice, I wasn't sure if you still needed it. So I set it aside," Evelyn explained.
"Evelyn, you're a lifesaver! I must have accidentally mixed it in with the trash. Thank goodness you caught it. I would have been in serious trouble!" Ella said cheerfully.
"I was going to ask you about it before shredding it," Evelyn replied, a little embarrassed. "I just forgot in the rush."
"It's fine. I'm the careless one! Thank you so much. Lunch is on me today."
"Ella, that's not necessary. If there's nothing else, I'll get back to work."
"Go ahead!"
Evelyn returned to her seat. Honestly, she had been nervous. Finding the invoice was a huge relief. Otherwise, she couldn't have proven she hadn't shredded it.
Besides, Ella said it was stuck to an A4 sheet. It wasn't. It was a separate invoice.
At noon, Evelyn had lunch with Emily.
Ella had wanted to treat her. Evelyn had to say she already had plans with a classmate. She declined.
After all, it was just a small favor.
Amy had told her at the start of her internship: be visible in your work, but low-key in your conduct.
So, if she had accepted Ella's lunch, it would have undone all the good from the morning. People would just think she was looking for a free meal. It wasn't worth it.
Evelyn texted Emily. They met at the staff cafeteria entrance.
Evelyn came downstairs. Emily was already waiting.
"Have you been waiting long?" Evelyn asked as she walked over.
"No, I just got here!" Emily said with a smile.
"How's your leg?"
"It doesn't hurt unless I put pressure on it."
"You should still be careful. You don't want a scar."
"I bought some scar cream. It should be fine."
"That's good."
"But that cream was so expensive!" Emily sighed.
"It's okay. You can earn more money. A scar is for life," Evelyn said with a reassuring smile.
"That's true. Honestly, if I don't wear skirts, it doesn't matter if I have a scar or not. But thinking about it, it's better not to have one."
"Well, that's obvious," Evelyn said with a laugh.
They queued at the order counter. They picked up their trays and found a seat.
"How's the secretarial office treating you?" Emily asked while eating.
"Good. There's a lot to do, but it's convenient," Evelyn replied.
"It's tiring now, but you're learning a lot. My mentor says don't be afraid of hard work during an internship. The more you do now, the more skills you learn. It'll make your future job easier."
"Your mentor is absolutely right!" Evelyn said, giving a thumbs-up.
Emily smiled and nodded. "I hope we both get our contracts signed successfully."
"Let's work hard together!" Evelyn replied with a smile.
After a moment, Evelyn asked, "I wonder how Stella's internship is going?"
"She doesn't live in the dorm anymore. I'm not really sure. We chatted online a couple of days ago, but she didn't say much."
"Oh," Evelyn responded.
"I asked if she was seeing someone. She said no, but she didn't say anything else," Emily continued.
"Stella doesn't want to make it public. We'll pretend we don't know. It saves her the embarrassment," Evelyn reminded her.
"I know. I'm just worried she might get taken advantage of," Emily said.
"Stella is smart. Maybe she won't. Next time we meet up, we can subtly bring up the topic. Give her a little nudge."
"Yeah," Emily nodded.
Evelyn didn't say anything more. She focused on her lunch.
Instead of worrying about work or marriage, she was more worried about how to tell everyone she was already married.
Emily later said that once her leg was fully healed, she wanted to try starting her own business.
She said it was the best chance to get a contract. As long as she could make something work.
Evelyn felt Emily was really fighting for it. But she couldn't do anything except cheer her on.
What was more awkward was that even if she told Emily about her relationship with Alexander, she couldn't help.
Alexander didn't allow anyone to use connections. Even she had to pass the exam to get an internship. Getting a contract was even harder.
After lunch, they still had some time. Emily wanted dessert. They decided to walk to a nearby shop to buy some.
As they left the hall, they ran into Alexander. He was just returning from outside.
She didn't meet his eyes, but she saw him.
"I haven't seen him in a while. Is the secretary general's wife really that ordinary-looking?"
"Of course not! You just weren't paying attention. Mr. Sterling is so handsome. How could he marry someone ordinary?" Emily rolled her eyes.
"I didn't notice," Evelyn had to answer.
"See? I told you. I heard Mr. Sterling's wife is very young, very beautiful, and has a great figure."
"Are you sure you heard that right?" Evelyn stared at Emily in shock.
"Well, I haven't seen her. I heard it from a senior manager who went to Mr. Sterling's wedding."
"That person must have bad eyesight," Evelyn muttered.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing. What are we going to eat later?"
"I want a mango smoothie!"
"Your leg is still healing. No smoothies. Have some grass jelly with honey instead."
"Evelyn, when did you become such a mother hen?" Emily said, half laughing, half crying.
"I have to keep an eye on you. You can never control your mouth," Evelyn retorted.
Emily looked helpless but touched.
The weekend arrived in the blink of an eye. Evelyn sighed several times that morning.
For no other reason than how to tell Charlotte she was married.
Alexander looked up at her. "What's wrong?"