By the time she could see the big, silver skyscraper, she was already dripping with sweat. She had a massive graze on her knee and elbow, a ripped skirt that she was holding together with a hair pin that she'd pulled out from under her wig, and she was wheeling a heavy, broken bicycle with her.

She'd borrowed the bike from one of her neighbors since she was no longer in possession of a car. In retrospect, it hadn't been a good idea, since she had no idea how to ride one. It's not like she'd had a father to teach her. She'd almost gotten the hang of it a mile or two into her ride, when the sudden honking of a car horn had caused her to tumble onto the pavement. The bike fell hard, as did she, breaking its already dodgy looking pedal as it crashed into the concrete pavement.

All in all, not a good morning. Everything that could potentially go wrong had, and now she was almost running late the first day of her new job. She ran the last few blocks, it was challenging with the heavy bike, but she couldn't be late. She chained the bike to the only thing she could see outside the office; a small tree. She ran for the door once she'd locked the bike up, but before she went in, she looked at herself in the reflective building.

She stared. She was trying to figure out which part of her looked worse? The top half of her with the windblown wig, broken glasses, blood stain on the elbow, or the bottom half... ripped skirt and bloody, grazed knees. At least she hadn't fallen on her face, thank God for small mercies.

She tried to straighten herself as best she could, but it wasn't working. No amount of straightening would make her look any better today- she still looked like she'd being dragged through a bush and then run over by a very large bus.

Oh well, here goes nothing. She pushed the door open and trotted across the floor towards the lift as fast as she could, shouting a 'hello' to the receptionist she'd met yesterday as she went. She didn't have time for pleasantries because she was due in her office in ten minutes and Mr.Stark looked like the kind of guy who arrived early.

"Hey!" The receptionist screamed after her. "Where the hell do you think you're going?"

"To my office." She shouted over her shoulder as she arrived at the lift.

"I don't think so!" Petunia heard the sudden scurry of feet behind her. "Stop right there!"

"Huh?" She turned around and came face-to-face with the receptionist.

"Don't move or I'll have to call security." The woman facing her was swaying from foot to foot like she was getting ready to run if she had to. But why?

Petunia burst out laughing. "Oh... you didn't the memo from Mr. Stark. I work here now. As of today." She gave the woman a friendly smile and turned back to the lift. She reached out and was just about to press the button again when...

"Hold it! Stop right where you are!" The woman shouted at her even louder this time and it made her jump.

"I don't think so," the woman pointed a pen at her now. "Mr. Stark told me to remove you from the building if he ever saw you here again."

"What?" Petunia felt something fall into the pit of her stomach. "He said that?"

"Oh yes," The women was circling her now with the pen, as if she was warding off a wild beast that could pounce at any given moment. "He's concerned about your mental state, and quite frankly, so am I.. just looking at you." Her eyes scanned Petunia from top-to-toe and she was mortified. Had he been tricking her? Playing some cruel joke on her by getting her hopes up...? Was he really that much of a cold hearted bastard. She was determined to ask him.

"Well," she squared off in front of the pen lady and stamped her foot defiantly, "I want him to say that to my face!" She reached behind her back and finally pressed the lift button, but as she did, the pen-wielding psycho let out a yell.

"Security!" She wailed so loudly that it echoed through the large reception. Soon the echo of feet could be heard too as a frightening looking security guard ran towards her. "Escort this woman out the building. Immediately."

Before Petunia could object, she felt the painful grip of fingers around her already sore elbow and the forceful tug of the strong man.

"Wait. Wait..." she tried to break free, but the man marched her all the way out of the door and pushed her outside without so much as a word.

Petunia's heart was racing from the shock of what had just happened. It thumped against her chest as acute humiliation and anger flooded her. She'd never been treated like this in her entire life, she'd never been more embarrassed and more, more... more...

The tears burst out of her like water bursting through a crack in a dam. This was the second time she found herself crying outside this office. Clearly, it was a sign! She should not work here. What was she thinking? She wasn't welcome here, that much was crystal clear. She turned and walked up to the small tree where her bike had been locked up, she was barely able to see through the salty, wet veil that was now coating her face.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the key that the neighbor had given her for the bicycle chain and tried to slip it into the hole.

"Fuck it!" she cursed loudly when the thing wouldn't fit. She wiped her tears in an attempt to see better and tried again. NO! She turned the key over in her hand and tried again but still... NO!

"Fuck it!" She wailed once more and a man walking past looked down at her as if she was mental. "Sorry!" She tried to flash him a friendly smile, but it probably looked more like a mad grimace. No wonder he picked up his pace. She tried one last time, pushing the key as hard as she could, but it still wouldn't slip into the lock. She pulled her stupid prop glasses off her face, which were also making her blinder than usual and raised the key to her eyes. It was the key for her fucking apartment. Not the key for the bicycle chain. She must have swopped them by accident!

"I hate this day." She yelled loudly and didn't care who the hell was looking. She stood up and looked at the tree. It was small, a mere sapling, maybe there was a way of picking the bike up and pulling it over the tree by bending the small thing. She couldn't arrive home without the bike, and it's not like she carried a bolt cutter with her. She grabbed the bike and tried to raise it with one hand, while bending the stem in her other, in a desperate attempt to maneuver it free. She yanked a couple of times and a few of the smaller branches broke.

"HEY!" A voice screamed at her and then, out of nowhere, the wetness came. A strong, long, cold gust of water made her fall backward.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" She finally saw where the water was coming from. An angry looking gardener was wielding a hosepipe and moving in her direction, quickly. "I planted that last week. What the hell are you trying to do? Kill it?" He run up to the tree and ran his hands over the broken sticks, as if he was personally wounded by it. Then he turned and looked at her with such venom that she was sure his look would kill her dead!

"Get out of here now before I call the police and report you for property damage."

"But my bike?" Petunia struggled back up to her feet; she was dripping with water now.

"NOW!" The man bellowed and pointed the hosepipe in her direction once more. Petunia took that as her cue to run. She turned and started running away from the building as fast as she could.

When she was a decent way away she turned and looked at the intimidating silver thing once more and burst into tears again. This had to be, without a doubt, the worst morning of her life, and she'd had a few pretty damn shitty ones before. But this one took the fucking cake and all the icing too!

She turned and started the long, teary, wet, painful, bloody walk back home...

***

I had so much fun writing this day from hell! I'm pretty sure that it's impossible, IRL, to have such a crappy day though. Hope you are enjoying!!?!?

JOX