The Protege chapter 1 by rimaday ,
Alecia, turns a chance meeting with her hero into a life changing job offer. When Cynthia stirs some strange feelings in her.. Alecia must find the balance between her personal and professional desires.
My name is Alecia Carmichael. My story begins when I was 24 and just finished my MBA in Finance from Indiana University (Top in the class and best piece of ass. I would joke with my best friend Mikey.) I was top in the class with a 4.0 GPA and near perfect score on the GRE 336 combined score. And I was clearly the hottest bod in the whole damned department.
Not trying to be conceited but I was blessed with great cheekbones and better than average tits. I work out like I study, all out. I have always been naturally motivated and can’t sit still. Luckily, I have a knack for constructive endeavors.
My older sister Amber has the same energy, but lacks a compass, so she has had a more troubled life. She’s had some substance abuse issues and frequents rehab facilities.
The bottom line is I am motivated by success and power. While Amber is motivated by drugs and rock and roll. Thus, we have taken very divergent paths.
I took a lot of flak for staying at IU and the Kelley School of business for grad school, but I knew life would change dramatically after graduation and wanted to enjoy life close to home a bit longer. Besides, I can run circles around the Harvard Grads. My knowledge and instinct Financial Market Strategies is second to none.
I have wonderful supportive parents that believed in me from an early age. By 9th grade I had convinced them to let me run my own 529 account and I tripled the value of the principal by 12th grade. By 10th grade my parents and grandparents had turned over control of half of their retirement accounts to me, and I outperformed their next best funds by 200% before I completed my undergrad degree. By the time I finished grad school I had taken on over 12 million dollars of investments for family and friends retirement accounts earning over $100K per year on the side. Thanks to scholarships my school was essentially free, and my parents sighed off the 529 unused funds to add to my nest egg. As I set off to begin my career, I had built the nest egg up to just over $300K. Not bad for a 24-year-old.
Now, off to the Big Apple, the only place to work if you’re gonna be the next Muriel Siebert. (She was the first woman with a seat on the stock exchange and started her own investment company that went public.) She paved the way for women in a male dominated field.
The hot commodity (pun intended) in the world of finance now was Cynthia Liebert. At 34 she is responsible for over $50 Billion AUM and poised to become COO for one of the largest Investment firms in the US. I have fantasized about meeting her since high school. My Senior year in Highschool I set up a model of 3 different investment funds I have managed since. I have actually out performed her for the past two years.
I had lined up a few interviews and had two offers for jobs in Indy, but New York was the only choice. I leased a 2-bedroom 2 bath apartment on the 20th floor of the 71 Broadway Apartments, sight unseen paying 12 months in advance for only $60K. It was in the heart of the financial district with access wall street, freedom tower and the stock exchange in walking distance. Movers had delivered the basics and set it up for me prior to even seeing the place.
I insisted my parents wait at least until fall for a visit and had our tear filled good by at the Indy airport. I had five interviews lined up with major investment firms and knew I would be starting in six figures with at least a 2 for the first digit. I had listened to Alicia Keys and Jay Z’s New York about 20,000 times in the last 8 years but had it on repeat for the flight. I think the business man next to me in first class was sick of the song before we took off.
It was Thursday, and I had my first interview Monday, so a fun weekend was planned with three New Yorker friends I met in college. Three separate meetings to get their unbiased advice and insights on New York. Monday I would hit the ground running and I planned to have at least two offers by the end of the week.
I arrived at LaGuardia at 8:30 PM and hit the cab to Manhattan right at sunset. I had been to New York only once with my friend Stacey, whom I would be seeing tomorrow but this time was special. Sunset, lights, traffic, on my own in the “big city where dreams are made of. There’s nothing you can’t do. Let’s hear it for New York!” The smile on my face was giant. The cab driver was a young Arab sounding man, his eyes caught mine in the mirror.
“First time in New York?” he asked smiling.
“First time as a New Yorker,” I said in disbelief. (I am a New Yorker!) “Moving here today.”
“Moving to Manhattan?” he asked surprised.
“Yes,” I said confidently
“Living at 71 Broadway?” he continued.
“Yes…”
“Just married?” he asked condescendingly.
“No sir,” I replied getting slightly annoyed.
“Are you a model? You are so beautiful.” he said blushing a little.
Insulted and flattered at the same time, I could not help but blush. “No sir, I just graduated with my master’s in finance coming to work on Wall Street. Can you please take me past the stock exchange on the way to my apartment please?”
As we passed, my throat tightened at the site of the bull statue.
“This is my weekend off if you need someone to show you around,” he said rather confidently.
I glanced at the mirror and he was attractive in a tall dark and handsome sort of way.
“I got it covered thanks though,” I said smiling a little flirtatiously.
When we arrived at the building, the fare was $49. I gave him a $100-dollar bill. “Keep the change Ghalib. Thanks for the offer,” I smiled.
He handed me his card, “Please call if you need a ride. I stepped from the cab, the warm summer breeze was incredible. The resident assistant met me in the lobby and helped me to my apartment and the concierge got my bags. My heart raced when I stepped in. It was beautiful but a bit bare. I decided to wait for living room furniture until I saw the place.
The moving service did it all, setting up my bedroom with clothes in the drawers and closets, towels in the bathroom courtesy of mom and dad. It was amazing. I felt like royalty. I unpacked my luggage and headed up to the rooftop terrace. I sat and gazed in wonder at the freedom tower.
I would be interviewing there Monday with Moody. My web interview went extremely well, and Mr. Richards their VP of Investor Relations seemed ready to make me an offer on the spot, but I needed to talk to three more Executive VP’s on Monday.
I did my best to keep direct eye contact with him during the interview adding just a touch of flirtation and making sure to stand while subtly leaning toward the camera for a touch of cleavage. When he squirmed in his seat I settled back into my seat. He gave a subconscious little cough and the remaining questions were mere formalities. It was a fact I leaned early on, men can be manipulated very easily by a pretty face and some subtle body language. I was blessed with a pretty face, but they rarely see that I am smarter than them, which creates an even greater advantage. The other three interviewers were all men, so I was sure an offer would be coming after Monday.