A More Permanent Position Ch. 01

Amanda was seated behind her solid wood desk. She looked up at Madison and smiled, then got up to walk over to her. She noticed that Amanda had a comfortable leather chair, unlike the cheap plastic one she had at her own desk.

When Amanda got near Madison, Madison was surprised to find that the blonde girl was taller than her! She looked down at Amanda's feet to see she was wearing a pair of Christian Loisviton shoes, probably a pair she took from her. It completed the rest of her business casual look, complimenting the tailored business suit that made her seem sexy and sharp. Madison became freshly aware that she was dressed like a teenager.

"Welcome to your first day, Madison! Time to clock in," Amanda said, pointing at her feet.

Madison looked down, seeing that NAMI had highlighted two kiss marks - one on the each of the toes of Amanda's shoes.

"You can't be serious," Madison said, looking up at Amanda. For the first time, she noticed that Amanda's hair was immaculately styled in blonde ringlets. It completely outshined her own hair, which Amanda had told her to put in a simple pony tail.

"Madison, that's how you clock in here! Other girls think up different ways, but for now we'll use this," Amanda told her cheerfully. Madison still hesitated.

"Madison, I'm tired of this delay," Amanda snapped. "If you don't want to clock in you can find another company to work for!"

Madison stared at Amanda for a moment, but then decided to do what she said. She figured that Amanda would get tired of this act eventually, and by that point she'd have a good position in the company.

Swallowing her pride, Madison knelt before her former rival and bowed her head down to kiss her toes. Her face flushed as she touched her lips to Amanda's feet, but she did it as quickly as she could.

"Login failed. You have to try again," NAMI said automatically. Madison glared, but kissed Amanda's feet again.

"Login failed. You have to try again," NAMI repeated.

"Wow Madison, you're enthusiastic! Take as much time as you need down there," Madison heard Amanda gloat from up above. Her cheeks flushed crimson red. Eventually she learned that she had to put her lips on the peep toe of Amanda's shoes: partially on the shoe, and partially on Amanda's toes.

"Hold the kiss for two seconds," NAMI finally explained, after a dozen failed attempts.

Madison kissed each of Amanda's feet, holding her lips against them for several seconds.

"Login succeeded! Thank you," NAMI chirped. Madison heard two pleasant ding noises, and got back to her feet. She noticed that Amanda had her phone in hand, pointed down at Madison as though to take pictures. Did she hear a camera shutter while she was down there?

"This will be how you clock in every day," Amanda explained. "Make sure you get it done by 8AM sharp. You're late unless you kiss my feet before then."

Madison swallowed, aware of how flushed she looked compared to Amanda. She had been told to wear minimal makeup.

"It's better you get here early, so there's time for your mistakes," Amanda teased. Madison could have strangled her!!

"Now get to your desk! I'll let you know when I need something," Amanda barked, dismissing Madison with a wave of her hand. Madison turned on her heel and walked out of Amanda's office, immediately feeling self-conscious about her own space now that she had seen Amanda's.

*******

Amanda was standing in front of Madison in the lunch line. They both had their eyes on the last chocolate cupcake. When they got to the front, Madison reached over Amanda to swipe the pastry.

"Sorry Amanda. There are certain classes of people in this world. I'm up here," Madison explained, holding her hand above her head. "And you're down there, with those tacky shoes" she continued, pointing at Amanda's feet.

Amanda's friends, Raaina and Zoya laughed at the awkward blonde.

"I don't even think you could afford this cupcake! But here, I'm feeling generous."

Madison peeled the paper wrapping off the cupcake and tossed it onto Amanda's tray.

"Make sure to eat the whole thing!" Madison and her friends laughed as Amanda blushed and walked away, leaving her tray behind.

She was wearing the same outfit that Madison had on today.

*****

Madison spent a few minutes looking at the computer monitor, but she couldn't figure out any work to do. The computer's operating system seemed very limited, even dumbed down. There were two icons on the screen: Work and Internet. When Madison clicked on work, it just caused NAMI to say, "You have no current assignments."

When Madison clicked on the Internet icon, it didn't go to any page. Instead, it asked for her e-mail address and password. Then, without going to her e-mail, it asked for her FB, Eyestagran, and Linkdup usernames and passwords. She was scowling by the time she put in her fifth username, but then it finally opened to the Onestia network.

"Onestia is Loloth's social platform," NAMI explained. The website was a feat of engineering, interfacing with her glasses to make the monitor look like it was a 3-D world.

"Everyone uses it, and it combines data from many different sources to create your profile. Now you can see the profiles of the other people who work here!"

Madison wanted to get up and test the program, curious to find out what "tagging" is. But before she could do anything, she heard Amanda's voice in her ear.

"Madison, you signed into Onestia?"

"Yes Miss Mathis," she answered.

"Okay, great. Good work. It will update your other social sites automatically. For now, though, I have a job for you."

Madison asked what it was.

"I'm getting a mani pedi today, and I want you to pick out a color for me. Do some research on trends, and find out what will look good on me. I'll send you some photos to work with, and you can look through my Onestia page to see more of my style."

Madison was floored. Her first job was to pick out a color for Amanda to paint her toes? What kind of job was this? She tried to reply, but there was no indication that Amanda could hear her.

Madison's desktop background updated with two images: one of Amanda's hands, and one of the tops of her feet.

"Your workbar has been updated," NAMI commented. She was annoyed, but at least she had something to do now.

Madison clicked on the 'work' icon, and it quickly loaded an insta image of a girl's feet after a fresh pedicure. Her toes were painted a dark purple color, which Madison clicked as a "slight match" for Amanda.

An hour later, Madison had looked at hundreds of photos of women's hands and feet, and learned a lot about nail trends. She had also looked at many photos of Amanda, curated to show her the blonde girl's transition from awkward teenager to beautiful young adult.

Eventually, she settled on a bright red color for Amanda's fingers and a sky blue color for her toes. She sent them back to Amanda, and awaited her response.

"Looks fine. Call the nail salon and make us an appointment in fifteen," Amanda said.

Madison snorted. Now she was booking appointments for Amanda to get her nails done? At least she said, 'us,' so Amanda would probably treat her to get her nails done too.

"Your workbar has been updated."

Madison opened the workbar. "Book a nail appointment for Miss Mathis, 10:30." It was very easy to do, she just clicked her way to the nail salon's webpage and made a request for an appointment. It was confirmed immediately.

Ten minutes later, Amanda emerged from her office.

"Come on Madison, let's go," she said, without breaking her stride.

They walked down the walkway together, each clack of Amanda's heels reminding Madison that the girl was wearing her prized shoes. When they got to the escalator, Amanda told Madison to take the stairs, and she had to hurry to keep up with her blonde boss. Somehow, it worked out that Madison was always one pace behind Amanda from that point on, scurrying to keep up.

They got to the nail salon, and it was the nicest one Madison had ever seen. It could have served royalty, for the quality of the furniture and facilities. It didn't have a 'salon' feel, but more like Marie Antoinette's parlor, all lace and soft lighting.

Amanda immediately went to one of the luxurious chairs lining the walls. Madison was about to sit down next to her, but her earpiece buzzed.

"You don't have an appointment," NAMI scolded, emphasizing the word 'you.' Madison was left standing nervously.

"Um, Amanda?" Madison asked, as a pretty manicurist approached Amanda's right. She offered the girl her hand, and immediately started getting a massage.

"Miss Mathis," Amanda corrected.

"Miss Mathis," Madison continued, frustrated at using that title for Amanda.

"What am I supposed to do while you get your nails done?"

Another girl dressed in all white brought up a low stool and a stainless steel bowl, which she put in front of Amanda.

"What are you talking about? You're the one doing my pedicure!" Amanda replied, giving Madison a look of genuine confusion.

"Sit on the stool," NAMI suggested.

Madison nervously sat down before Amanda, looking up at her. The same girl brought a white ceramic vase and handed it to Madison. Its contents were warm. Madison heard the sound of Amanda's shoes hitting the ground as she put her bare feet into the basin. Her perfect white pedicure looked less than a day old.

"Pour the water into the basin," NAMI said.

Madison, feeling nervous, poured water over Amanda's feet. She noticed that Amanda's second toe was slightly longer than her big toe. The assistant came and took the vase from Madison, and put a rolling tray of tools beside her.

Madison recognized each one - she had received hundreds of professional pedicures in her life. But she had never imagined herself giving somebody else one! She looked down on the nail techs as women who were reduced to cleaning, rubbing and pampering the feet of women more fortunate than themselves. Usually, she didn't even leave a tip.

"Miss Mathis, can I please.."

"Madison, hurry up and start! NAMI will tell you what to do if you can't figure it out," Amanda cut her off.

"Begin her foot massage," NAMI whispered into Madison's ear conspiratorily. She had to look around to see that no one was there.

Surpressing a shudder, Madison pulled one of Amanda's feet out of the water and dried it off on an expensive white towel. Then she applied some deluxe lotion on her hands, and began rubbing the feet of her new boss. She felt her cheeks flush and looked around to see if anyone was watching, but everyone else in the salon was wrapped up in their own business. A petulant frown crossed Madison's beautiful face - this wasn't the way her life was supposed to unfold. Was it worth doing all this just to work at Loloth?

"Rub harder, Madison. My feet are tired from making so much money all day," Amanda teased.

Madison, besides herself with humiliation, started rubbing Amanda's foot more vigorously.

"Use the core of your body to apply pressure," NAMI suggested. Madison followed suit.

When Madison started rubbing Amanda's other foot (Amanda left the the first one possessively in Madison's lap), she noticed a girl taking pictures of them!

"Um, excuse me, what are you doing?" Madison asked her.

The girl looked up from her camera, and Madison noticed her elfin features. She had a small face, a small mouth, and strikingly beautiful green eyes. The green eye shadow she wore highlighted them, but was she wearing a tunic??

"Miss Mathis requested a photographer," the pixie girl answered by rote, and went back to taking photos. "Make sure you smile!"

Madison looked aghast.

"Smile, Madison. Then reach for the nail polish remover," NAMI agreed.

Madison gave a fake smile, and continued with Amanda's pedicure. The photographer got many photos of them, which Amanda insisted show both of their faces. The worst part was at the end, though, when Amanda asked Madison to blow on her toes to help them dry faster. Madison heard the snap of the camera repeatedly.

"Default photo!" Amanda called out. "Angle your face towards the camera while you blow on my toes."

When she finished with the pedicure, Madison helped Amanda put on some disposable flip flops, and carried her high heels back to their office. Amanda told her to leave the shoes on the desk- she'd put them back on when she stepped out for lunch. Madison resented the fact that her own desk was being used as Amanda's shoe rack.

"Your social media has been updated," NAMI announced. Madison felt a lump in her throat.

She went immediately to her FB page, and saw that she had a new profile picture. She nearly cried out when she saw it: a high-def photo of herself blowing on Amanda's toes. Amanda, a big smile on her face, was making a sideways V and mugging for the camera. The photo caption read, "Summary of the relationship!"

Madison tried to delete it, but the website crashed. As much as she tried, she couldn't load it again.

"Your workbar has been updated. It's extremely important," NAMI warned Madison.

Madison, still livid from the FB trick, opened the work icon. It read "Budget Report"!

"Madison, I need you to complete this budget forecast for next quarter. Make sure it's the best use of funds for our department. You'll find everything you need in your workbar," Amanda said.

Madison opened her workbar and saw the 32 page budget document. Suddenly, her work load seemed more real. This was her chance to prove herself capable of doing real jobs! Madison leaned forward in her seat and threw herself into the work. This was what she studied at school, and she was quite skilled at it. Although in the past, this sort of thing was a group project, and she was mostly skilled at pushing work onto other people.

"You have until the end of the day, just make sure you do a good job," Amanda said as she left her office. Madison barely noticed, she was so swept up in work. Time flew by.

The document was probably less than half complete, which surprised her. Wasn't this Amanda's job to make sure it was done right?

Anyway, maybe they didn't trust Amanda with this sort of work, Madison thought. She grinned smugly, imagining taking credit for the project and making Amanda look like a fool.

NAMI proved surprisingly helpful, and would actually respond to her requests for information.

"NAMI, what was the total revenue for last year?" Madison said aloud.

"Last year, Loloth Industries made 70 billion dollars," NAMI responded. Her eyeglasses displayed the exact number, until Madison told NAMI to clear it away.

In spite of her best efforts, Madison was struggling. She reached for her glasses to take them off and rub her temples, but the alarm buzzed.

"Please don't take off your glasses. They're synced with your pupils right now. Re-syncing is taxing on your body," NAMI said. Madison closed her eyes and sighed.

At that point, Amanda came back to the office. She was glowing - was she just tanning?

"How's it going, Madison?" Amanda asked, snickering at the sight of Madison seated at her old high school desk.

"I don't know, Amanda, this is a big job. I might need more time," Madison confessed.

"No, it's due today. I figured you would struggle with it, so I brought you this," Amanda said, giving Madison a blue gel capsule.

"What's this?" Madison asked, picking up the strange pill.

"It's one of Loloth's pharmaceutials. It increases your focus, speeds your thoughts, and improves your memory," Amanda explained.

"Is it dangerous?"

Amanda shook her head.

"Just don't eat it on an empty stomache. I brought you some food so you don't have to step away from the desk. Also, you should call me Miss Mathis."

Amanda dropped a paper to-go container on Madison's desk. Madison smiled, but almost shouted when she opened it.

It was just the leftovers from Amanda's salad. The other girl had clearly picked out all the best parts, so only some romaine lettuce and croutons remained. Amanda even had the nerve to leave the crust of her sandwich inside!

Madison considered throwing it away, but her stomache hurt from hunger, so she wolfed it down then swallowed the pill. Maybe later she'd make a joke about Amanda eating so much.

The pill was quick to come on, and when it kicked Madison felt it hard. She felt like a computer. She could look at a page of figures and instantly memorize all of them, recalling them perfectly even an hour later. Her heart beat in her throat and she broke out in a cold sweat, but she barely noticed. Anyone passing by would see that she was ghostly pale.

Madison remembered running against Amanda for class president one year.

Amanda came to school with a plate full of homemade cookies with 'Vote for Amanda!' painstakingly written in frosting on each one. She was giving them out to people, and gave one to Madison as a friendly gesture.

"Ugh, these cookies are gross!" Madison cried out, loud enough for everyone to hear. She dramatically threw her cookie into the trash, then spit out the piece she had bitten off.

"Seriously Amanda, if you suck that much at baking, you should just buy some cookies," Madison said. Then she turned to address the class who was gathered around.

"When I'm president, I'll make sure that Amanda never brings in her nasty cookies again! And that's a promise! Throw your cookies in the trash if you're with me!"

The other students laughed at Madison's dig and, wanting to appear popular, they threw out their cookies too. Madison won the presidency, and spent the rest of the year ignoring her responsibilities.

*******

At one point, Madison remembered going into Amanda's office, but she couldn't remember what they talked about or grasp any fine details - probably something relating to the budget. At 5:00, Madison realized she was just sitting at her chair, stiff as a board, staring off into space. Weird colors danced on her eyeglasses like some kind of screensaver. She felt drool on the corner of her mouth, which she wiped away with her hand. Disgusting!

"Your update is complete," NAMI announced cheerfully. The hair on the back of her neck stood up. Her workbar showed that she completed the project somewhere during her daze.

"New features added! You can now tag other employees."

Madison stood, her body aching all over. She knocked on Amanda's desk and was invited in.

"Ready to clock out?" Amanda asked.

"Yes Miss Mathis," Madison answered demurely.

"Okay. First though, something has come up that you should know about."

Madison felt a knot in her stomache.

A large monitor on Amanda's wall lit up. It was a bank account with her parents' names on it. She read the balance and her jaw dropped. They only had less than $250 savings! Amanda clicked once, and another document took the screen. It was a refinance of the mortgage on their Malibu house, showing that they had borrowed more than it was worth. The bank was asking for a payment immediately, and the document was two months old.

Another click. It was a notice to vacate the house in a month. Dated last week.

"This can't be true," Madison whispered.

"I'm afraid it is, Madison. Your father made some bad investments, and started borrowing really heavily to cover them up. To keep you and your mom happy. This isn't even the worst of it." Amanda said.

Madison squinted at the screen, looking for something that disproved it all.

"But what about my bank account? I have over $10,000 in there!"

"Yeah, that's the last of your parent's fortune. They let you hold on to it so that you wouldn't realize what was going on. Didn't you think it was weird that they had you take out student loans to go to college?" Amanda pointed out.