LILAC Sisterhood 2: Wallflower in Bloom

Book 2: Wallflower in Bloom

CARLY

Quiet Carly. That’s me. I’ve always been quiet. I’m slow to open up to anyone, and I work myself up a lot. Sure, I know they aren’t the best qualities, but I do what I can when I can.

Admittedly, I have been doing better since I took the internship I was offered at LILAC. I have always been passionate about fashion and lifestyle blogs, and LILAC is by far the best one.

I’ve had so much fun working here.

They gave me some fun responsibilities at first: I organized the sample closet and inventoried everything; I got to touch all of these priceless vintage and couture pieces.

It was like a dream. I helped out whenever anyone needed me.

I was coming out of my shell, but then I was offered a paid position on the social media team, and it was perfect for me.

I got to be behind the computer and do what I love. I got to be a part of everything and share it with the world.

It was a great outlet for my creativity, and it kept my finger on the pulse of what was going on with our brand.

LILAC hosted a huge event for its tenth anniversary, and the party ended up being a huge deal.

Sloan Kennedy, our head fashion consultant, took charge, and we ended up throwing the event of the season.

Several celebrities showed up, and the hype was insane online. Our social media accounts blew up, and Marlene, the head of LILAC, was so happy with everyone.

In the last few months, LILAC has been a really great place to work—everyone is always in a good mood—but I have a meeting coming up with Marlene today, and honestly, I’m so nervous.

There are at least two supervisors between her and me, and I wonder why she wants to talk to me directly, but obviously, there is nothing I can do about it. I have to go.

I made sure to look my best today and had an extra shot of espresso before I went into the office. I walk as calmly as possible down the hall to Marlene’s office and knock on the door.

“Come in.”

I try to smile as I walk into the room, but I’m sure she can tell that I’m nervous. “Good morning.”

“Hi, Carly. Have a seat.”

My nerves are on edge, and I will myself to stay calm. I can feel the heat rushing to my cheeks, and I wish that I was anywhere but here.

I sit in the chair across from Marlene’s desk and do my best to plaster on a smile. I have no reason to fear Marlene; she is always nice.

“How are you feeling about your position at LILAC?” she starts.

“I, um, I’m really happy honestly. I love working on the social media projects, especially now that we have a new influx of followers,” I explain.

“You look nervous, dear. This is a friendly chat, okay?” she assures me.

“Okay, I’m sorry. I do tend to work myself up.”

“Not a problem, I just want everyone to feel comfortable here. To be able to come to me if needs be.” She smiles, and it seems genuine.

“Okay, thank you.”

“So, the real reason I asked you here is that there is an opportunity that I would like to consider you for, but if you’re really happy in social media, then I don’t want to force you to move.

“Are you interested in learning more?”

“Yes, please. I love LILAC. When I first started here, I didn’t know this would be my lifelong career but, honestly, now, I can’t see myself working anywhere else.”

“Well, you know Sloan. She is going to be taking on more responsibility with her new position, so I want to give her an assistant brand designer. Would that be something of interest to you?”

“I would work with Sloan Kennedy, like, planning events and things?” I know that I’m getting over-excited, but Sloan is the rock star of LILAC right now. She’s basically our own celebrity.

“Yes, you would essentially work under her, but knowing Sloan, she would probably treat you more as a teammate.

“Of course, the position comes with a pay increase, and you’ll be officially full time, so you’ll get more benefits.”

“Wow, Marlene, I don’t know what to say.”

“Do you want to think about it?”

“I’m pretty sure I love the idea. If you think I’m up for it, I would love to try.”

“I have all the confidence in the world in you, and Sloan was happy with the suggestion as well. Can you start working with her tomorrow?”

Whoa, Sloan Kennedy wants to work with me? “Sure, yes, I don’t have any big projects in progress.”

“Perfect, well, I will send the paperwork over to HR. You’ll be getting a 10 percent raise on your salary with the opportunity to earn bonuses and raises at your performance reviews.”

“I… Wow, thank you,” I stutter.

“Congratulations, Carly, I’m happy this is working out. You can report to Sloan’s office tomorrow morning and see where she needs you.

“Please, try to finish any social media projects today. Or feel free to delegate anything you can’t finish.”

I smile. “Thank you, again, Marlene. I really appreciate this.”

She smiles back casually. “Enjoy the rest of your day.”

***

The rest of the morning goes by in a blur and all I can think of is how happy I am. As soon as I go on my lunch break, I can’t wait to call my mom.

Yes, my mom is still my best friend. Maybe I’ll be lucky and this opportunity will make me come out of my shell even more.

Hopefully, I’ll get along with Sloan. Honestly, I know she’s amazing, but we’ve hardly spoken.

Before I know it, it’s time for lunch, so I grab my things and head down to the coffee shop down the street.

While I walk to the coffee shop, I pull out my phone; time to give Mom the good news finally.

“Hi, my baby!” she answers.

“Hi, Mom, guess what?”

“Hmm, you sound happy, so I’m going to guess it’s good news. Maybe you met a boy?”

I laugh. “No, Mom, but it is good news. I’m getting promoted.”

“Really? Carly, that’s awesome! Good job! What will you be doing?”

“Remember when I told you about the purple party a while ago?”

“Yes, you said that gal pulled some crazy things out of her hat and flipped the party in a week.”

“Yes, well, I’m going to be her assistant. My title is assistant brand designer, and I got a raise,” I explain.

“Carly! I’m so happy for you! Are you happy?”

“Yes, Mom. It is unexpected, but I’m really happy. I just hope I don’t work myself up too much. I start tomorrow.”

“I’m sure you’ll be just fine. Just be you,” she assures me.

“Well, I’m going to grab my lunch now but I love you.”

“I love you, too, honey. Call me tomorrow and let me know how it goes.”

“I will, thanks, Mom.”

“Bye, sweetie.”

“Buh-bye.”

After I get my lunch, the rest of the work day goes by so quickly as I try to finish and offload all my projects.

Soon, it’s time to go home, and I go back to my tiny apartment to watch some reruns of The Bachelor on my DVR, then go to bed and hope for the best tomorrow.