[003] dangerous girl

                    Alice's office was a bit like her safe space.

                    Ever since she had taken over Moderne, Alice was truly treated like the boss she always knew she could be. The boss she had to be in order to shut both of her parents up. Between her doubting father and bitch of a mother, Alice had to work hard to prove to them both that her days of being an alcoholic whore who lived for mess were over. Sort of. Now she was just a whore, but one with a career and a dream to take Moderne to even bigger heights than it had gone before.

                    With all eyes on her, Alice knew that she had to be nothing but the best.

                    Before, when she was younger, Alice would show up to the office every so often when her parents were in charge. She'd terrorize most of the people there and intimidate them sometimes. Teenage Alice was even more of a menace than Adult Alice was now. Teen Alice had less rules to follow, less fucks to give. She was angrier and more impulsive, more ready to burn bridges than mend them like she had to now as Moderne's editor-in-chief. Everything was about connections and if she wanted to get ahead in this business, she couldn't be the girl she once was. She had to change some things.

                     Never did Alice think she'd ever actually be here today. But here she was. She was doing everything her parents never thought she could. And Alice had to admit that she was doing one hell of a job at it.

                   As she finished up with a call, Alice could see her mom walking towards her office through the glass. Although Alice was in charge, Marlo Kim would forever hold power long after she left things to her only daughter. You could see it in the way interns and employees alike all cowered at the sight of her. Although she was short in stature, the look on her face said everything. She was not a bitch to mess with.

                  If anyone wanted to know why Alice was the stone-cold bitch she was today, it was because she had learned from the very best.

                 Alice immediately stiffened when Marlo arrived at her office, knocking two times at the door before she opened the door. She plastered a smile onto her lips afterwards, not wanting Marlo to think that she was the slightest bit upset about having her around. Even if she was. Every time either of her parents were around, it messed with her head. She felt a lot like that teenage girl desperate for their approval instead of the adult who could finally stand on her own two feet without them.

                  "Hey," Alice greets first, "What brings you here? You didn't tell me that you were coming in today."

                  "I didn't think I was either. But I got a sneaking suspicion that I needed to check up on you and make sure that everything was going well," Marlo replied, sitting across from Alice.

                  Great, Alice thought, she won't be leaving anytime soon.

                   "Of course it is. You don't need to stick around if you don't have to," Alice responds with instead.

                   "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you didn't want me around," Marlo narrows her eyes in suspicion, seeing right through Alice's bullshit. She was her mother, after all, and she knew Alice like the back of her hand.

                   Alice awkwardly chuckles. "What would give you that impression? I love having you here."

                   "Alice, please tell me that you're actually getting work done," Marlo sighs.

                   "Of course, Mom. I have a couple of exciting things for this new issue. Including an exclusive interview with Harvey Grosvenor himself that'll be coming out next week," Alice replied.

                   "You managed to get the Harvey Grosvenor interview? But I thought -," Marlo sat up, suddenly way more interested in her daughter now.

                   "Mhm. He specifically asked for me," Alice replies, biting back a grin.

                   "Do you know how long I've been wanting to talk with him? His family even? Why didn't you tell me?" Marlo frowned.

                   Harvey Grosvenor and his family were well known in the world of fashion. They dabbled in art too, but fashion was really what they were known for. Harvey's parents, Irene and Claude, had their own fashion line - Grosvenor (not too much of an original name but whatever), and it was very successful. Alice even owned some of their pieces, wearing it from time to time.

                  Needless to say, Alice felt lucky to snag an interview with Harvey in the first place just weeks before. And it had been a good one. Most of it was professional, while some of it went into flirting territory. Alice was used to men hitting on her.  But Harvey was also married and had been five years, which added a complicated spin on things.

                   "I wanted to surprise you. I know how difficult it was for you to get in contact with them. They never wanted to do an interview until now. Well, Harvey anyway. He was very happy to talk to me," Alice replies and this time, she allows the smile to peek through. That proved to be a big mistake.

                   Marlo scoffs. "I bet you're loving this, aren't you? Now you have the chance to gloat in my face and act like you're so much better than me."

                  "That's not it," Alice denied with a shake of her head.

                  "Of course it is! It's always been a competition for you. You always thought you were better than me because you were younger and prettier. Don't forget... the only reason you are editor-in-chief is because of me. I gave you permission. Without it, you'd probably be on your fourth stint in rehab," Marlo spat.

                   As much as Alice wants to not let Marlo know that her words hurt, they had. Every chance her mother got, she loved to tear Alice down. Just to remind Alice and herself that she still had the power over Alice. That she made her and she could just as easily break her any time she wanted. 

                    No matter how hard she tries, Alice will forever be that little girl still trying to seek her parents' approval.

                    Alice swallows hard. "Fuck you."

                   "What did you say to me?" Marlo scowled.

                   Knocks on the door interrupt a potential fight breaking out between the two women. Alice glares over at her mother before she gets up from her desk, opening the door so she could see who it was. It was the receptionist, a meek and soft-spoken girl who hid behind large glasses. Her name was Renee which didn't surprise Alice in the slightest. She just looked like a Renee.

                   "What do you want, Renee?" Alice questioned, leaning against the doorway.

                   "Don't be a bitch, dear," Marlo scolded her while still sitting at her desk.

                   "Oh, I brought you these," Renee responded, holding out a beautiful bouquet of red roses.

                   "Renee, I'm flattered," Alice smiles as she takes the flowers from the receptionist. "But unfortunately, you're just not my type."

                   Renee turned very red quickly. "N - no! They're not from me! I don't know who they're from. There's a card attached but I didn't read it, I swear. It was just delivered here for you."

                  "Looks like you have yet another admirer. You're just so beautiful," Marlo sneered.

                  "Thanks, Renee," Alice went back to frowning all over again, her mother's presence erasing the little joy she had.

                  "If there's anything -," Renee began to say before Alice slammed the door in her face.

                 Alice walks back over to her desk, holding onto the bouquet of red roses. For a moment, she wonders if Max had sent them. As a way to win her back. But that'd be dumb, seeing as he was pretty adamant about wanting better for himself. Nonetheless, she finds the card and reads the small yet romantic note attached to it. And she quickly realizes that this wasn't from Max at all.

                  "Well... who is it from?" Marlo questioned, brows raised as she waited at the edge of her seat.

                  "It's from Harvey. He wants to have dinner sometime. He even attached his number on the back so I could call him," Alice answered, biting her lower lip.

                   Marlo scoffs. "You fucked him, didn't you? That had to be how you got the interview!"

                  "I got it because I'm good at my job, Mom. That's how. I didn't do anything with him. He's married," Alice snapped.

                  "Exactly, Alice. He's married. You have no business with him," Marlo shook her head.

                  "What's so bad about dinner?" Alice shook her head.

                   "Alice," Marlo sent her a warning look.

                   "I'm allowed to be friends with married people."

                   "No one sends their friend a bouquet of red roses."

                   "Roman sent me a vibrator once."

                   Marlo rolled her eyes. "It baffles me how you're still friends with that strange man."

                   "Solely to piss you and Dad off."

                   "I figured as much."

                    "I need to call him right away. Do you mind...?"

                    Marlo scoffed. "Fine. If you want to go and destroy your life, don't let me stop you. I'll just be ready to clean up another one of your messes."

                     The matriarch stood up, making her way towards the door. Alice breathed a sigh of relief.

                     "It was nice seeing you again," Alice replied, all while continuing to look down at the flowers. She even sniffed them to see if they were real. They were.

                     Alice waited until the woman was gone for good before she pulled out her phone, dialing out Harvey's number. It rang for a total of two times before he picked up.

                     "Who is this?" he answered.

                     "Alice Kim. You sent me flowers, remember?" Alice answered as she sat back in her seat, setting the flowers back down onto the desk.

                    "Ah, Alice. I was waiting for you to call me. Did you like the flowers?" Harvey responded.

                   "I loved them. They're so beautiful," Alice replied. "But... were you serious about dinner? I knew the interview was good, but I didn't think it was that good."

                   "I like talking to you, Alice. It's easy and you make me feel really comfortable," Harvey admitted.

                    Alice chuckles. "Don't you think your wife should be the one to make you feel comfortable?"

                   "You're not calling me about my marriage, are you?" Harvey teased.

                   "No. I'm calling to tell you that I would like to go to dinner with you. But... strictly as friends. That's all we are," Alice replied.

                    Harvey chuckled. "Of course. As friends. I enjoyed my time with you before and I hope that we can spend more time together. It's very hard to find friends in this city, especially for people like us. It's even harder to keep them."

                    "Unfortunately, I'm afraid you have a point there," Alice sighed.

                    "So let's be friends. Stick together. I promise to make it worth your while," Harvey responded.

                     Alice smiled. "Alright, you don't have to tell me twice. Where's this place that you plan on taking me anyway?"

                    "It's a surprise. Just... make sure to dress up. I like to treat all my friends," Harvey advised.

                    "Oh, really? Looks like we're going to be very good friends then," Alice agreed, her smile only growing.

                    There was a tiny voice in the back of her mind, telling her that this was all a very bad idea. But as long as she was extremely careful and she made sure to keep things strictly friendly, nothing bad would happen. Alice's old habits wouldn't come back to bite her in the ass. She was capable of being just friends with a guy - she practically did it with Roman and they hadn't fucked once. 

                     They just mostly teased each other but that was about it.

                     "I sure hope so, Alice. I hope so," Harvey responds.

( 🥀💔🍸 )

word count: 2080

notes: in case you couldn't guess it, harvey's going to be a very... interesting character. in all the wrong ways. alice is terribly broken and she always tends to make bad decisions. sometimes horrible decisions. and harvey is going to be a very big one. her mom is a total bitch but she's gonna be right big time