Episode 2: A Break in Lunch

As she walked in the corridors, her Jimmy Choo's Nova made clacking sounds with the shiny floor. Her hair moved to and fro. A steady smile on her smile was visible. In her head, a thought arrived came so amusing that she could not help but to smile. Such changes would be made if she was to be the new Editor. Vivid looked old to her. She wanted a new zing to appear in the magazine and that could only be done by a talented fashionable person like herself.

She moved passed the cafeteria. She noticed the rush in there. Even though, the notice asked the staff to work on Saturday, July 31 but it did not seem as there was much work going on. Not clearly visible though but there was more slacking than working going on.

"Oh! How wonderful these Jimmy Choo sound!" a thought just erupted in her head. "Surely, these are the footsteps for success."

As she passed the cafeteria to another corridor, her heart started beating in a pace. Every step was like a journey in itself. Every step had a new thought. Just before lunch, she heard that they kicked out Ian Buff, the International Events Editor.

"Ian must have done something wrong, or else you cannot just fire a person of his importance." Another thought appeared. "I guess Issi never gelled with him well."

Suddenly, something struck her out of the blue.

"OMG! They are kicking me out too." A thought so loud that she wondered as she said it out loud. "OMG! OMG! I have been throwing a bundle of tantrums to Issi. That cow!"

She took one more step and her confidence returned. She denied her last thought as a hormonal rush. One more step, and it happened. Her heel broke, and her heart almost skipped a heartbeat.

"OMG! I am cursed," this was confidence crushing moment. Lately, the fashion world was seeing its fair share of broken Jimmy Choos. Every time one broke, the owner of that pair was involved in some type of trouble. Last week, model Gabriella Stefanov broke her Jimmy Choo on the ramp. Next day, she was arrested for crystal meth possession. A week before that Geneva Roseworthy-Bloom was sued by a cosmetic company because she was wearing a shade of a competing company while she was on a shoot in Kenya, clearly violating her contract with the endorsing company.

As these thoughts were floating in her head, another thought came to replace the present ones.

"I can't walk with a broken shoe in the meeting. Gotta replace this quick!" She looked around and, to her fortune, the wardrobe was open. She quickly walked in. It was filled with stuff which fashion revolved on. Everything nicely stacked and labeled.

"OH MY GOD!" said Jacob Stein aka Jake, the storekeeper. "You broke a Jimmy Choo!"

"Major news! Call BBC," she said. She was looking for a suitable replacement.

"Do you know it’s bad luck these days to get your Jimmy's broken." said Jake. "Thank God! I am always prepared for emergencies."

She going to pick up a pair of flats. "Don't touch those shoes!" shouted Jake. "Don't you know that in order to break the curse of a broken Jimmy Choo. You need to wear a) a higher heel or b) a more expensive shoe than your Jimmys or c) both." Quickly, he rushed to snatch the pair from her hand. She tried to fight it but the shoes slipped out of her hands.

"Big deal! It’s just a broken shoe!" she said with her snobby tone.

"Look missy! Wardrobe is my area! I are the King here! I know best." said Jake with an Olde English accent.

"Look Jacob! Don't mess with me or else you would in my bad book." she threatened with a robotic voice.

"GASP!" Jake placed his hand on his mouth while uttering the word. "Here, wear these. Lucky you, they match." He handed her Valentino Bow Slingback Pumps. "I think they should fit."

While she tried on the shoe, Jacob opened his mouth again and said, "I have been hearing things!" He said it in a tone as he was a monk who knew mystic art of predictions.

"Jacob! You have always been hearing things. That what happens when you are alone in a store." she said in her snobby tone.

"Oh well! I guess I should keep my shut. I thought it would be nice that you'd know." Jacob goes back to his lunch of tuna salad.

"ME! What about me!" said she excitedly. "Tell me now."

"No way missy!" said Jacob. "For people like you, talk to the hand." He showed his palm to her face. She snatched away his lunch.

"Sweet move! You can have it because where you are going, they do not serve tuna salad or Valentinos." said Jacob. He snatched the lunch back.

"Let’s just say you are going East this summer, birdie!" said Jacob while making a joke out for her canary yellow dress.

"EAST! Where in EAST?" she shreiked.

"The Jacob has spoken!" Jacob shouted as he pushed her out of the door and locked. She was flabergassted by this new news.

"East! But, where in East?" she thought. "No way in a million years, I am going to that dingy East London office. Oh wait. Thats the office for the Financial News Weekly. They can't keep me there."

As she was making her way, her mind opened to an array of new ideas. "Let’s say east of London is Milan. Oh my God! MILAN! I guess that they want a Vivid in Italy after all but wait, I don't know Italian." Her mind wandered again.

"East! East! Did Jake mean East Coast? Oh my god. New York City. Big Apple. Vivid USA, here I come," and she thought this thought, a ray of sun lighting up the office. The rain stopped and the sun was peeking out of the clouds. The sunlight gave a magical effect to the whole premises. As she saw that, she knew it was a sign. She would be going to be the Editor for Vivid USA. She would be a fashion editorial warrior. She would fight the likes of Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. Oh what great fun it would be!