The alarm buzzed, and Aria shot out of bed.
She couldn't afford to hit snooze.
Oversleeping wasn't an option today.
After washing up, she grabbed some loose change and headed out.
Her phone and wallet were still at the office.
Her bank cards too.
She had to get to the company first, retrieve her bag, and then hit the ATM.
Mornings were torture.
The crowded subway was even worse.
That's why Aria left half an hour early.
She grabbed breakfast on the way.
When she reached the office, the door was still locked.
She had to wait for Hannah to show up.
"Aria, when did you leave yesterday? I didn't even see you!" Hannah asked as she unlocked the door.
"I was helping out in Admin in the afternoon. By the time I got back, you were already gone, and the door was locked!" Aria explained.
"We thought you'd left early. Next time, just give us a heads-up. We won't lock you out!" Hannah glanced back at her.
"I was swamped yesterday. Lost track of time. I'll be more careful!" Aria replied with a smile.
Aria barely settled at her desk when the phone rang.
She hadn't even gotten water yet.
"Aria, it's Hannah. Did you finish packing all those gift certificates yesterday?" Hannah Moore asked on the other end.
"I'm short one certificate. Everything else is ready," Aria said.
"Short one? Do you have an extra box? That would be perfect!" Hannah's voice was dismayed.
"Huh? Let me double-check!" Aria was stunned for a second, then quickly replied.
"Check again. It has to be one-to-one!"
"Okay, I'll look again!" Aria said.
She hung up and told Hannah she was heading to Admin.
Then she walked out of the office.
Yesterday, Hannah had warned her not to add or miss any.
Aria had been so careful.
Later, she thought she had an extra box.
She was going to ask Hannah about it today.
She never expected a problem.
Hannah opened the warehouse door and asked Aria to check again.
She found the extra box.
These gift boxes were supposed to go out this afternoon.
What were they going to do with one missing?
Aria quickly told Hannah she would find it.
Hannah didn't say much more.
She told Aria to keep looking and went back to work.
Aria had to open and inspect the boxes she had already packed.
"Aria, what are you doing?" Olivia Clarke, the Admin manager, walked in and saw Aria sweating.
"Hi, Manager Olivia. I think I put in one too many gift certificates. But now I have an extra box with no certificate!" Aria explained nervously.
"Don't bother changing it. That extra box is a sample from the supplier. Didn't Hannah tell you?" Olivia asked.
"Hannah must have forgotten," Aria looked at the manager and replied.
"It's fine. Don't change it. I'll need your help setting up the event space later."
"Okay, thank you, Manager Olivia!" Aria repacked the box and put it back.
Thank goodness she hadn't made a mistake.
Otherwise, she would have had to open every single box.
She wouldn't have had time for lunch.
When Aria returned to the office, she heard the HR manager asking, "Hasn't Aria come in yet?"
"She's been called to Admin!" Hannah said.
Aria hurried into the office.
"Manager, you wanted to see me?"
"Yes, get ready for the training session," the HR manager nodded.
"Yes, Manager!" Aria replied quickly.
She grabbed her notebook and pen, went to the restroom, and then headed to the training room.
The class started.
There was a ten-minute break.
Hannah called and asked Aria to help decorate the event space.
Aria answered the phone and went to the manager's office to explain.
"I was going to wait until after your training, but Admin is swamped. We're short-staffed. I need you to pitch in," the HR manager explained.
"No problem. Thank you, Manager!" Aria agreed and went to Admin first.
They were setting up the event space today.
There was a company party tonight with a raffle.
When Hannah saw Aria, she said with some annoyance, "It was just a small thing. Did you have to report it to the manager?"
"Huh?" Aria looked at Hannah, confused. "I didn't report anything to the manager!"
"You didn't tell her about the extra gift box?" Hannah said.
"You misunderstood. The manager came to the warehouse to get something. She saw me opening the boxes and asked what was wrong. I said I was looking for a certificate. Manager Olivia told me not to bother. She said the extra box was a sample!" Aria explained. "I didn't mean to. You know how busy I've been. It's just Manager Olivia and me in Admin right now!"
"I understand. I didn't report anything!" Aria answered.
Hannah glanced at her and didn't say anything else.
"Let's go set up the space," she said.
For the next few hours, Aria was too busy to even use the restroom.
She was standing on a table, hanging decorations from the ceiling.
She barely came down for a break when Hannah gave her another task.
Finally, she couldn't hold it anymore.
"Hannah, I need to go to the restroom. I'll be right back!"
"Why do you have so many things to do?" Hannah glanced at her, displeased.
"Sorry, I'll be quick!" Aria said, jumping down from the table and rushing to the restroom.
As soon as she came out and returned to the event space, she heard Hannah say, "Aria, can you fix a water pipe?"
"Huh?" Aria was stunned.
"There's a burst pipe in the upstairs restroom. Go take a look!" Hannah finished and handed Aria a wrench.
Aria was baffled.
But she couldn't argue.
She had to go upstairs with the wrench.
As she walked, she thought, isn't this the property manager's job?
But then she figured, if Hannah asked her to fix it, it must be urgent.
Wherever the company needed her.
When she got upstairs, Aria didn't know which way to go.
It was her first time on this floor.
This was where the senior executives worked.
As a junior employee, she never had a reason to come up here.
If it wasn't for fixing a pipe, she probably never would.
Someone happened to walk by.
Aria quickly asked, "Excuse me, which restroom has the burst pipe?"
"Really? Let me ask for you!" the person said and walked back.
Aria followed her.
The person soon found out it was the restroom in the chairman's office.
She led Aria to the chairman's office and knocked on the door.