A small crowd formed around a stall as a man with wine-red hair held a clear box containing the damaged pieces of a vase.

A hunched-over old man with a long handlebar moustache leant over the counter, observing the pieces of the shattered vase. “There’s not much I can do I’m afraid. How did you break it?”

“My boss threw it at my head and it smashed into the wall.” The young man said nervously.

The old man looked up at him with a raised brow. “That sounds like it’s her fa-.”

The young man shot forward, covering the old man’s mouth before he could finish speaking. At the same time, he placed the box down on the table. “Ssssh. Don’t say that, she might hear you.” His eyes darted around frantically, as if he was afraid his boss would appear right behind him. Making sure he was safe; he sighed and dropped his hand. “Look. She’s not been in the best mood recently, and I don’t want to give her any reason to snap at me. So please, just help me with this.”

The old man sighed. “Fine. I’ll see what I can do. Leave it with me and come back in a few hours.

“Thank you so much. You don’t know how much this means to me.” He raced off, leaving the box behind as he disappeared into the crowd.

The small crowd dispersed, with Zara joining them. That guy sounded genuinely terrified of his boss. I’m so glad I don’t directly work for anyone. I just work for Buddie, and he hasn’t been throwing stuff at me.

Zara continued to wander around through the crowded market, occasionally looking at stalls that piqued her interest, but didn’t end up buying anything else. Slowly, the market emptied, as most people went back home.

She yawned, rubbing her eyes as she looked around at the occasional straggler like her that remained in the market. I should probably head home now. I don’t think I’m gonna find anything else.

Turning the corner, she walked straight into a person’s back, sending the object in their hand flying.

The man leapt forward, catching it out of the air before landing lightly on the ground.

“Phew, that was close.” He whispered to himself.

The man looked familiar to Zara, as if she had seen him somewhere, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on where. Everything clicked when the man turned around and she saw the vase in his hand. It’s the guy from earlier. I almost made him drop the vase, that would’ve sucked.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“Sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going.” She apologised, scratching the back of her head.

“It’s all good. I managed to catch it, so everything turned out okay.” He said, still clutching onto the vase carefully. He looked at Zara and paused for a moment. “You’re Zara, right?”

“Yeeeahh. How do you know that?” She asked, now slightly wary. Damn, I should’ve kept my axe with me. She looked around, trying to find another person, but found the place to be empty. Damn it.

“Oh, I probably should’ve introduced myself.” He cradled the vase in one hand, reaching out to Zara with the other for a handshake. “I’m Kieran, I’m a secretary in the marketing department. My boss has read your file a few times before, so you looked familiar.”

“The boss that threw a vase at your head?” She asked, cautiously reaching out to shake his hand.

“You heard that, did you? It’s okay, I can assure you she’s not like that all the time. Something just happened recently that’s got her a bit miffed.” Kieran shrugged it off.

“Sorry to hear that. What happened?” Zara asked.

“She recommended someone for a position, and now she’s paranoid that she’s gonna get punished after he went and did something stupid. Wait why am I telling you this? You’re already well aware of what he did considering how you hang out all the time.” Kieran said.

“Wait. Are you talking about Ed?” He’s definitely talking about Ed. Does he know what happened to him? “Do you know where he is?” She asked excitedly.

“Of course. He’s in-”

“Due to her involvement in the situation, Zara has to earn that information herself. Please refrain from finishing that sentence unless you want to be punished.” Buddie interrupted, his voice overpowering Kieran’s, stopping Zara from hearing what he was saying.

A cold shiver ran up Kieran’s spine, as he quickly shut his lips. “Sorry, looks like I can’t tell you that.”

Damn it! I was so close. I almost had it. Her shoulders slumped at her failed attempt. “It’s fine. I’ll get the information myself somehow. You don’t have to get punished for my sake. But can you at least tell me if he’s safe?” She asked.

Kieran waited for a moment, listening out for if Buddie was going to say something. Not hearing anything, he breathed a sigh of relief and answered. “Yeah, he’s safe. He’s been in a few scuffles here and there, but you don’t have to worry about him. Buddie will make sure that he doesn’t die.”

Phew, that’s good to hear. Zara perked up a little at that, glad to hear that Ed’s safe. Her head started to feel heavy, as she yawned again. “It’s getting late, I should probably head back now. But thanks for the info. I feel a lot better knowing that he hasn’t gone and gotten himself killed.”

“Of course. I should probably get this back to my boss’ office.” Kieran said, indicating at the vase.

Zara continued walking, heading towards the nearest door, but stopped and turned back around to Kieran. “Can you let me know if anything happens to Ed in the future?”

“I’ll allow it. But I will verify the information to make sure you don’t find out anything you shouldn’t.” Buddie said.

Hearing that, Kieran relaxed a little. “Sure, I’ll keep an eye on him and send anything to your computer.”

“Thanks. Bye.” She turned away walking around the corner and back to her apartment, where she kicked off her shoes and immediately fell asleep.