Chapter 6
Stepping into the lobby of the building Montrieux Atelier, Elowyn felt small in the way only giant buildings could make someone feel.
Everything glowed with a warm, understated luxury.
The floors were a smooth pale stone, softly veined, catching the golden light in a gentle sheen.
The walls rose high in rich walnut paneling-warm rather than dark.
Matte black metal framed the windows, but the generous lighting kept the space bright and welcoming.
People moved with purpose-heels clicking, elevator doors chiming open, ID badges glinting brushed gold under the amber lights.
Her dad walked beside her, toolbox in hand. "Don't wander too far," he said cheerfully. "This place is a maze."
Elowyn nodded, tucking her hands into the sleeves of her sweater. Big buildings always made her feel like an extra in someone else's movie.
They checked in with security, took the elevator to the tenth floor, and stepped into a hallway lined with glass-walled offices.
The whole floor looked warm and expensive-walnut desks, cream upholstery, stone-gray walls, all softly illuminated by hidden lighting that made everything feel calm and intentional.
She followed close behind her dad as he scanned the room numbers.
"Suite 10-C... here." He knocked lightly before entering.
Inside was a conference room with a long wooden table and one flickering overhead light-definitely the reason they were here.
Her dad set to work, humming quietly under his breath as he unpacked tools.
Elowyn hovered near the door at first, then drifted to the side table where a bowl of free mints sat beside sleek portfolios embossed with the Montrieux Atelier logo in matte gold.
She fidgeted, watching the city through the glass walls, watching people hurry by, watching her dad mutter to himself as he tightened something overhead.
It was quiet. Calm. No customers. No steam wand screaming. No rushing.
Honestly... she liked it.
She pulled out her crochet, letting the yarn unwind across her lap. Her dad always teased her for bringing her projects everywhere, but she didn't care. It kept her grounded.
A few minutes passed in peaceful silence.
Then-
Her dad cleared his throat. "Hey, fairy? I think I left the spare bulb in the van. Mind grabbing it?"
She blinked up at him. "Which one?"
"The long tube light. In the blue box."
She nodded, stood, and slipped into the hallway.
The quiet out there felt even heavier, but in a soothing way-like someone had pressed cotton around the world.
She almost made it to the elevator before someone rounded the corner, causing her to crash into them.
A strong hand shot out immediately, wrapping securely around her forearm, pulling her upright before she could fall flat on her ass.
Elowyn looked up after muttering a soft "sorry," then nearly choked on her own saliva.
Tall. Dark hair. A fashionable black suit. Tablet in hand.
Ms. Monroe.
For a heartbeat, they just looked at each other-both surprised, but for vastly different reasons.
"Elowyn," the woman said first, her voice soft but unmistakably warm with recognition.
Elowyn made a sound that might've been her name. Or a squeak. It's hard to say. Their bodies were quite literally flush against one another.
She was malfunctioning.
Ms. Monroe, feeling the girl's delicate breaths against her chest, gently let the girl's arm go after making sure she was steady and took a slight step back. "I didn't expect to see you here."
"I-um-my dad is-he's fixing a light," Elowyn managed, hands already curling into her sleeves.
"Ah." Her gaze softened. "That makes sense."
They stood there again. Not awkward, exactly... but filled with something unspoken and delicate, like thin glass.
Ms. Monroe spoke first. "Are you looking for something?"
"Bulb," Elowyn said quickly. "Van. Blue box."
A tiny smile flickered across the woman's mouth. "I see."
Elowyn wanted to crawl under a rock and hide.
Ms. Monroe took a small step closer-not close enough to crowd her, but close enough that Elowyn could smell faint jasmine from her perfume.
"Be careful walking on the south side of the lot. The pavement dips; I nearly tripped this morning."
It was such a normal comment. Casual. Kind. But Elowyn felt it settle warm under her ribs anyway.
"Okay," she whispered.
The woman gave a small, almost imperceptible bow of her head-polite, elegant-and stepped past her, heels clicking against the floor.
As she passed, her sleeve brushed Elowyn's arm.
Barely.
Accidental.
But enough to send a tiny electric flutter up Elowyn's spine.
Ms. Monroe paused, glancing back.
"Elowyn?"
She startled. "Huh?"
The woman's eyes held hers briefly, searching gently.
"Have a good afternoon."
It shouldn't have felt like anything.
But it did.
She then walked away, turning the corner, gone as quickly as she appeared-quiet and graceful, like she always was.
Elowyn stood frozen for another few seconds before her body rebooted.
Right. Bulb. Van. Blue box.
She took off toward the elevator, heart doing weird, unhelpful things in her chest.
?
By the time Elowyn reached the parking lot, the cool air outside helped settle her heartbeat-well, settle it mostly.
She found the blue box in the van's trunk, cradled the long bulb like it was a relic from a sacred temple, and hurried back inside before her brain could replay the hallway moment again.
Which it absolutely did anyway.
When she stepped back into the conference room, her dad glanced down from the ladder. "Got it?"
She nodded and handed it up to him carefully.
"Perfect. You're a lifesaver," he said, fitting the bulb into place with a few practiced adjustments.
Elowyn stood beneath him, arms tucked around herself, trying to appear like a completely normal human being who had not just encountered someone who made her internal wiring spark.
Her dad clicked the new bulb in.
The overhead light hummed, then glowed steadily-soft, even, no flicker.
"Ha!" he said proudly. "Good as new."
He packed up his tools while Elowyn wandered toward the window, staring out at the cityscape. Cars gliding by far below. Clouds drifting past the glass towers.
Calm. She could be calm now.
"You wanna walk with me to the next office?" her dad asked, hefting his toolbox over one shoulder.
She nodded, following him into the hallway.
He talked as they walked-about faulty wiring, about scheduling, about maybe stopping for fries on the way home. She listened in the soothing, half-drifting way she always did... until she heard something down the hall.
A voice.
Low. Even. Familiar.
Ms. Monroe.
She wasn't speaking loudly-just in normal conversation with someone, her words wrapped in that same controlled, quiet steadiness she seemed to carry everywhere she went.
Elowyn didn't mean to look toward the sound.
Her body just did it.
Through the glass wall of a nearby office, she saw Ms. Monroe standing with a few staff members. She was in CEO mode-her eyes sharp, her posture straight as she listened to an employee talk about something while motioning to a tablet.
Elegant. Focused. Effortlessly composed.
The woman glanced up mid-conversation.
Just a flicker.
Just a passing sweep of her gaze toward the hallway.
But she spotted Elowyn.
The recognition was instant.
Soft. Subtle.
Ms. Monroe's eyes lingered a second longer than necessary.
Not in a staring way.
Not in a weird way.
Simply-an acknowledgment.
Elowyn's breath hitched, barely.
Her dad didn't notice. He was too busy muttering about which room had the faulty outlet.
They turned a corner, leaving the woman out of sight.
The next repair was small-just a loose faceplate on an outlet. Elowyn crouched to organize screws while her dad swapped out the part. They worked quietly, comfortably, like they always had.
Usually, her thoughts floated peacefully when she helped him.
Today... they were anything but peaceful.
She kept replaying Ms. Monroe's voice.
Her expression.
How she paused.
How she held Elowyn close.
How Elowyn didn't panic.
Well, not in the way she was used to.
She normally couldn't stand physical contact from anyone other than the people she trusted, but she didn't exactly dislike when Ms. Monroe did it.
She shoved that thought deep down before it could get loud enough to hear.
When the repairs were done, her dad dusted off his hands. "Alright. That's it for today. Ready to head out?"
"Yeah," she said, standing a little too quickly.
"Everything good? You seem jumpy."
"I'm just-tired," she said, which was true. It's just not the whole truth.
He nodded, satisfied.
They rode the elevator back to the lobby. Her dad chatted with the receptionist while signing out, and Elowyn glanced one last time at the rows of elevators.
No Monroe.
She didn't know if she was relieved or disappointed.
Maybe both.
?
On the drive home, her dad cranked up the music-old rock again, something he always said "kept the van alive." Elowyn leaned her head against the window, watching the city blur into suburbs.
She didn't say anything.
Didn't need to.
Her dad was humming. The sky was pale blue. The world felt soft again.
But deep in her chest, quiet as a whisper, a tiny warmth glowed.
She didn't know what the warmth meant.
She only knew it had never been there before.