"Fabian," Alice corrected. "And I think he's going to meet you here in the office for the first day."
Donna clutched her phone. "Which means we get to take tons of pictures!"
They were clearly excited to meet this weird celebrity. I didn't care as long as I got this over with quickly.
Though I had a feeling these next seven days were going to drag like an eternity.
As I sipped my tea and waited with dread for what was to come, the elevator dinged open. The doors parted to reveal the most over-the-top, flamboyant, ridiculous looking man I had ever seen in my life.
And everyone in the office lost their minds.
Alice and Donna, immediately forgetting about me, rushed to the elevator to join the growing horde of fans gushing over this dude. I had no idea so many people on our team were this obsessed with the so-called celebrity I'd never heard of. Maybe I really had been living under a rock.
It was actually kind of amusing watching everybody clamber over him. Hey, at least this way I still had a few more minutes before I had to meet the guy. I barely got a glance at him before he was buried behind the office paparazzi.
This might take a while…
I sighed and sat down contentedly to sip my tea. Unfortunately, my peace didn't last long. Alice and Donna reappeared from the crowd and grabbed my arms, hauling me to my feet. My tea was left woefully behind.
"Come on, Stan!" Alice said. Her eyes sparkled. "He's here to see you!"
"Great," I mumbled.
The crowd parted upon my arrival against my will, like I was some revered being all of a sudden. I wish they'd stayed crammed together so I didn't have to do this. Eventually, we made it to the front of the crowd where Fabian stood. Alice and Donna pushed me forward like they were presenting the chosen one.
"Ah, is this him?" Fabian asked.
Donna nodded. "It sure is. Fabian, this is Stan Smith."
Fabian, who looked ridiculous from far away, was even more spectacular up close. He reminded me of a pompous tropical bird. He was wearing too many colors, too much makeup, and his outfit looked too expensive. I thought his whole shtick was garish and tacky, to be honest.
But… His face was different. I recognized how handsome he was, even with layers of makeup slapped on top of the skin. His features looked like they were carved out of marble by some Renaissance sculptor. His presence was bright. Too bright. It felt like I was standing next to the sun and it was blasting my retinas off.
I realized Fabian and the whole crowd surrounding him were waiting for a reply.
"Um... Hi," I said grudgingly.
Everybody's eyes darted to Fabian, hanging off his next words. I ignored the urge to roll my eyes. Why was everybody so obsessed with this guy? He didn't seem special at all. He just looked like a walking highlighter.
"Very nice to meet you, Stan," Fabian said, extending a hand. His nails were long and painted deep red. I awkwardly put my hand into his, trying not to get scratched by his claws.
"Sure," I mumbled.
I knew I was being rude, but I didn't care. Other people's opinions didn't matter to me, especially not a celebrity who thought he was better than all the common folk. Fabian must've thought I was a poor, pitiful soul looking the way I did. Well, screw him. I didn't need his approval or his makeover, but I was getting the latter whether I liked it or not.
Fabian looked me up and down, his gaze scrutinizing. I frowned. I was used to people either ignoring me or shooting me weird looks about the way I dressed, but nobody actually stared at me the way Fabian was doing. I crossed my arms.
"Do you mind?" I asked.
He met my gaze and smiled. "Not at all. Just seeing what I have to work with."
I scoffed. He was already treating me like something to be fixed.
"Well, Stan, shall we get going?" He winked. "Clearly we have a lot of work to do and only so much daylight."
A raucous laugh echoed around the crowd. My cheeks went hot. Great, now he was inciting everybody to make fun of me. I already wished I could press fast forward on this whole week of torture.
"Shall we go?" Fabian said. "I've got the limo waiting outside."
