Work Text:
“Good morning, Miranda,” Andrea said as soon as Miranda got out of the elevator, Emily beside her taking the most important orders. After Paris, Andrea lost the little trust Miranda had in her.
Most days she would accomplish just the basic functions while Emily seemed to do everything, getting one step closer to promotion every day. She didn’t care about it. What she missed was the closeness with the editor-in-chief.
When Miranda turned in her direction, looking at her with those beautiful blue eyes, she felt hopeful.
“Andrea, you will go to the airport, and wait for my friend to arrive. Then settle her at my house in the guestroom. If she asks you for something else, do it for her.” Miranda said with her normal seriousness. While Andrea wondered who this friend was—having never heard about them before—she'd thought Miranda only had Nigel as a friend.
She would prove herself again to Miranda.
Running was something you were expected to do every day as Miranda’s assistant. This was Andrea’s current situation—running through the airport to arrive on time and make a good impression in front of Miranda’s friend.
Upon arriving at the gate, a problem surfaced in Andrea’s mind—she didn’t know what Miranda’s friend looked like, only her name: Amelia.
She scanned the crowd, searching for someone who seemed like they belonged on a magazine cover. Sure, Miranda’s friend would be stylish. Then, someone waved and approached her.
“Hello, you must be Andrea.” The woman who was supposed to be Amelia said with a big smile.
“Yes, but you can call me Andy. How did you know?” Andrea answered.
“Sometimes Nigel posts photos with his co-workers, and you were in the photo with Emily. The one assistant I’ve known before.” Amelia said, still behaving differently from what one might expect from a friend of Miranda's.
When Miranda assigned her the task, Andrea hadn’t expected it to be so straightforward. Amelia was a lovely person and easy to befriend. Andrea didn’t have any problem getting her settled at the townhouse. She even arrived at the office earlier than she had thought possible, considering New York’s traffic.
As Andrea organized a few things on her desk, she glanced at Miranda’s office and saw her talking on her cell phone. Something surprising happened: her boss was laughing as if it were a common occurrence in the office.
At that moment, Andrea felt jealous of whoever had made her boss laugh like that. Why it couldn’t be her? She became so distracted by her thoughts that when Miranda cleared her throat, she panicked.
“Focus, Andrea. Clear my agenda for the rest of the day,” Miranda said nonchalantly, as if it were a routine task. “And get the keys to the townhouse with Emily, you’ll deliver the Book today.”
Her day improved slightly after this directive. It meant that Miranda had regained some trust in her.
The day seemed to drag on for Andrea; she felt anxious about delivering the Book. She had already obtained the keys from Emily, and now she waited for the Book. As she waited, she wondered what Miranda had done during her day off; Miranda rarely cleared her agenda for anyone besides her daughters.
“Here it is, Andy,” Mike said, the one delivering the book. Andrea was so distracted by her thoughts that she didn’t see him approaching.
“Thank you, Mike,” Andrea said, organizing her things with excitement at the prospect of visiting Miranda’s townhouse again
“I don’t know how you can be so excited at this time of night,” Mike replied as he walked away."
The subway wasn’t the fastest mode of transportation, but it was the most affordable option for her Nervous about returning after so many months, it was her first-time setting foot in the townhouse again. She opened the front door slowly, trying not to disturb the quiet surroundings.
Nothing appeared to have changed in Andrea’s perception of the townhouse until she heard laughter between Miranda and Amelia. She didn’t know what got in her, just that she was walking straight to the den to see what was happening.
In the doorway, she saw Amelia with a hand resting on Miranda’s arm and two glasses of wine on the coffee table. This filled her with rage about the entire situation. With nothing else to do besides delivering the book, she cleared her throat, interrupting whatever moment they were sharing.
“Here’s the book,” Andrea said, her voice slightly louder than necessary.
“You could have left it on the table outside,” Miranda replied, not appearing annoyed with her assistant’s behavior. In fact, she seemed slightly amused. Andrea couldn’t understand whatever sign that was, maybe the difference was because of Amelia.
“I’m sorry, I thought maybe you wanted it right away,” Andrea said, feeling apprehensive about leaving the two women, who seemed too comfortable on the sofa. “Have a good night, Miranda.”
In the hall, Andrea walked slowly in the direction of the front door. Before she could get too far, she heard Amelia laughing again and saying something like 'adorable.' Who would call Miranda that, if they don’t have such intimacy?
One of the best days of Andrea’s life had just turned into the worst. She never imagined Miranda would return her feelings but seeing her with another woman was heart-wrenching.
Andrea's day started as usual, rushing to get Miranda's coffee on time while hoping to avoid any accidents along the way. The only difference was Andrea's mood, still affected by the events of the previous day.
At Elias Clarke, Andrea boards the first available elevator without paying attention to her surroundings. Noticing that the elevator seemed empty, Andrea raised her head and realized Miranda was the only other person inside.
In shock, Andrea braced herself for some kind of reprimand from her boss for sharing the elevator with her, but to her surprise, Miranda remained silent. Maybe, Andrea thought, it would be better to be fired for some trivial reason like sharing the elevator than to be in love with your boss.
As the elevator doors opened, Miranda gave her the first order of the day, and the most challenging one yet. It involved fetching some bags from the other side of the city. It was tiresome, but she preferred that instead of staying at Miranda’s side all day long, after last night.
On her return, she realized that a significant portion of her day's work had passed. People who didn't work for Miranda and had cooler bosses were already leaving the office. She felt miserable having to work additional hours at the office in her current state and wait for the book to arrive late at night.
On her way to her desk, Emily approached her with a grim expression.
“You’re late, Miranda asked for you,” Emily said in a low tone, implying Miranda was in her office. “Hurry, go there and see what she wants.”
That was all Andrea needed after a tiring day with a heartbreak. Maybe now would be a good time to resign. It would save both of their time.
Miranda’s office was always impeccably clean. While Andrea had never paid much attention to the smallest details, she knew she would miss every aspect of it, from Miranda’s impossible tasks to her wonderful colleagues: Nigel, Emily, and even Mike, the seemingly boring guy who delivers the book.
In her chair, or rather, her throne, Miranda sat gazing out at the beautiful view.
“Close the door. We don’t need anyone else intruding on us,” Miranda said suddenly. Andrea obeyed as she always did.
“Yes, is there something else you need me to fetch?” Andrea asked, her mind already anticipating future orders from Miranda.
“For the moment, no, Andrea. I know you’re a great employee and had aspirations when you applied to be my assistant. I would like you to think about it,” Miranda replied. It could have been Andrea’s imagination, but Miranda seemed nervous about the topic. But why?
“Are you firing me?” Andrea asked apprehensively, her mind racing with memories of the few moments when Miranda had shown vulnerability, like in Paris or with her special friend."
“No, I’m simply providing you with some prospects for the future,” Miranda answered.
“But why? I thought I was doing a good job,” Andrea asked.
“You’re doing a perfect job, Andrea. I just believe it will be easier to have this conversation knowing your choices weren't influenced by me,” Miranda said calmly, reminiscent of when she explained difficult things to her daughters.
“I don’t understand. How could it change? And what conversation?” Andrea asked, confused by the whole situation. Her boss was behaving oddly.
“I might be crazy, but Amelia suggested it. She said it would make things easier for us. I still don’t comprehend how, but I’ll just confess,” Miranda said, sounding afraid of Andrea’s reaction.
“I still don’t understand. If this is about you and Amelia, I prefer not to know,” Andrea said, close to tears as she imagined what Miranda had to say to her.
“Amelia and I, what about? Oh, it doesn’t matter,” Miranda said, walking closer to Andrea. “When you ran away from me in Paris, I realized I had impossible feelings towards you. I know I shouldn’t. You probably already have someone else. But since you’re almost completing your employee’s contract, it won’t affect our work. I thought I should at least tell you.” Leaning against her desk, Miranda waited for some reaction, whether good or bad.
Andrea fell silent, unsure if she had bumped her head and was dreaming all of this. Then, a million questions flooded her mind: How? Why? And what about Miranda’s friend, or more than a friend?
After a few minutes of trying to process the situation, Andrea asked, “And what about Amelia? Did you talk to her? End things?”
“Andrea, you know how I like to repeat myself. But what does Amelia have to do with this?” Miranda replied, more relaxed than she had been a few moments ago.
“Don’t you two have some sort of relationship? The calls, laughing together…” Andrea blushed a little and continued, “Wine at night, getting a little handsy.”
“No, Andrea. We have a longtime friendship, but only friendship.” Miranda replied.
“She called you adorable last night,” Andrea said, a little confused by the whole situation. “She may have feelings for you.
“She doesn't, I assure you. And even if she did, I have feelings for you,” Miranda confessed again, displaying a patience reserved only for those within her personal life.
At that moment, Andrea believed she had involved herself in an accident. It was impossible to comprehend what she was hearing from Miranda Priestly, but she decided to live in the moment.
“I have feelings for you, too,” Andrea said honestly, looking directly at Miranda’s eyes. “I don’t know when it started but since you distanced yourself, I missed you more than I should.”
Miranda hugged Andrea, her tears hidden in Andrea’s neck.
I thought you would hate me more than any other employer in this building,” Miranda clarified once she calmed down, giving Andrea some space.
Andrea didn’t resist. She leaned in, capturing Miranda’s lips in a deep, heartfelt kiss. It felt like the culmination of every unspoken longing and hidden desire between them. As they parted, Miranda's laughter bubbled up, infectious and warm, mingling with Andrea's laughter.
“I’m not complaining,” Andrea said, her voice barely above a whisper, “but why are you laughing?”
Miranda's eyes sparkled with newfound joy. “I suppose I was anxious all day for this moment. But now, I’m simply happy,” she confessed, leaning in to steal another kiss.
- Epilogue
“I can’t believe she’s already going,” Andrea said, walking beside her girlfriend at the airport.
“I thought you didn’t like her,” Miranda replied.
“It’s in the past, and stop grinning,” Andrea said, trying to hide her smile. "When they arrived at the gate, Amelia was waiting there with her usual beautiful smile, ready for the trip.
“I thought you might be tired, so I brought you some coffee,” Andrea said, giving her a cup.
“Your girlfriend is adorable as always, Miranda,” Amelia replied to Miranda, then it occurred in Andrea’s head that they could have been talking about her, the night before Miranda’s confession.
“By chance, did you two talk about me the night I interrupted?” Andrea asked, pointing to herself.
“I don’t know, Miranda always talked about you even when I was in the other country, so probably,” Amelia answered nonchalantly, already going away to take her flight.
“I can’t believe,” Andrea said.
“Were you jealous?” Miranda asked rhetorically and hugged Andrea. Got close to her ear and whispered, “I love you either way.”
- The End