Chapter Text
You ran tired fingers through your hair absentmindedly as you stared up at the Oscorp building, anxiety rooting you to the ground. Today was your first day as a personal assistant to Doctor Otto Octavius; a scientist you hadn’t heard that much about, but was paying well. You applied for the job on a whim, not believing you’d get any sort of interview out of it, but now you stood waiting on the outskirts of the property trying to compose yourself. You had yet to meet the man you’d be working for, instead answering video questions and speaking to a few different people, answering the same questions over and over again. While it had all become quite boring and repetitive, you counted yourself lucky that you’d even managed to get past the first interview.
Your watch flashed 9:20 and you headed into the building.
The interior wasn’t exactly what you expected. Clean white floors and clean white walls. Well, they were probably off-white, but it was a lot brighter than you thought it’d be. Almost like a hospital; sterile. A few men in business suits sat around a table with some sort of alcohol in hand, laughing loudly about some project they were funding. Ahead sat two receptionists, and you knew that was where you were headed. You pushed your anxieties down, gulped once, and walked towards them. The brunette smiled as you approached, while the blonde took a call, rolling her eyes at the person on the end of her line. “Hello, love. What can we do you for?”
“Um, I work here now. I’m Doctor Octavius’ new PA?” Her eyebrows shot up and her eyes widened. For a brief moment, time seemed to freeze between you. You assumed that the receptionists would know you were starting today. “So, where do I need to go?” Your voice brought her back to reality, and she smiled sweetly at you.
She typed something on her computer, and pulled out a business card-looking object. In big, bold letters, it read ‘TEMPORARY KEY’. “Temporary key,” the receptionist said as she handed you the card. “Go see Octavius and he’ll point you in the direction of the IT department, just give it to them when you get there,” You nodded your thanks and headed in the direction of the elevators. Just as you were about to enter, you heard a cry from the desk. “Miss! Floor 12, Room 1218! Sorry, I forgot to say!” The receptionist waved apologetically at you, but you felt quite awkward being called out from such a distance. Even the men who had been drinking turned their heads in your direction. Without a sound, you called the elevator and hopped in as soon as those doors opened.
The trip up the elevator was quicker than you anticipated, and you found yourself outside Doctor Octavius’ room in no time. His name was printed in large letters across his door, along with a dainty ‘Do Not Disturb’ just underneath. If he didn’t want to be disturbed, maybe he shouldn’t have hired a personal assistant? With a deep breath, you knocked on his door.
A brief moment passed. Was he not in?
You considered knocking again, but your thoughts were pushed away by the door swinging open. Before you stood a man so much larger than you thought he’d be. He towered over you with delightfully broad shoulders and a gaze that could kill. Not to mention the four robotic limbs that hovered behind him, watching your every move from over his shoulder. You couldn’t help but feel frightened of your new boss. Sure, you’d read that he had full control of his actuators, but that thought didn’t help seeing them in person. While his body towered over you, the robotic limbs hovered even further above. You, for lack of a better word, were scared.
You put on your best chipper tone. “Good morning, Doctor Octavius! I’m-”
“Late.” You could feel the disappointment radiating from him. Panic quickly flowed through your veins. Late. With a shaky hand, you looked at your watch. It read 9:26, which was four whole minutes before you were supposed to start. “Miss (L/N), I understand that you are new to this company, but we do expect all employees to arrive on time,” He pinched the bridge of his nose as he spoke, and you knew he was doing everything he could to not be too angry. When you didn’t say anything in response, a slight smirk pulled at his lips. “You haven’t exactly made a good impression, have you?”
“S-sir, please. The email I received from Doctor Howell said a 9:30 start,” as you spoke, you pulled out your phone and flicked through your mass of unread emails - you really needed to unsubscribe to most of them - before tapping the one titled ‘OSCORP PA POSITION’. You carefully handed him the phone, fearful of his large hands snapping it in two if he got too angry with you. He took it from you as gently as you’d passed it to him. Octavius’ brows furrowed as he read each line, before raising them as he stopped scrolling.
He handed back your phone with a sigh. “Doctor Howell is a brilliant scientist for his age, but I do believe boyish pranks are not beneath him just yet,” Pranks? Octavius took a step towards you, but you held your ground. You were not going to let the big ex-supervillain intimidate you. “I shouldn’t be telling you this, but you and him were my final two choices for this position, and I have a feeling he was quite jealous when I didn’t choose him,” You found yourself blinking a few times more than usual, confusion plastered over your face.
“So he sent me a fake email?” Your gaze hit the floor as your panic set in once again. If Octavius had said anything to you, you didn’t hear it. You were never late to things; always on time, if not earlier than you needed to be. How could you be so foolish to believe an email from a scientist you’d never heard of before? Why didn’t you double check with someone else at Oscorp before rocking up to your first day at work late? Why were you so stu-
A hand rested on your shoulder. You looked up slowly, your gaze meeting a pair of soft brown eyes; if your mind wasn’t buzzing with self-loathing, you could find yourself lost in them.
“You’re okay, Miss (L/N). I’m not going to hold it against you, I promise.”
“Surely you’re not going to forgive me that easily? I’m late on my first day- I don’t even know how late I am!”
He looked down at his watch, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. Octavius paused for a moment before answering the question you didn’t ask. He knew you were beating yourself up about the whole situation, and he didn’t want to make it worse. He briefly bit his bottom lip in thought, and mumbled “89 minutes”. Your face dropped. You thought maybe you’d be half an hour late; that you were supposed to start at 9. The numbers bounced around your head as you tried to figure out what time you needed to be here. A few moments passed in silence.
Your eyes widened and you let out a gasp. 8. 8 in the morning. You were supposed to start an hour and a half ago. Octavius squeezed your shoulder gently and you focused back on his sweet, beautiful eyes. “It’s okay, (Y/N). Breathe,” You did as you were told. He mimicked your actions, breathing deeply alongside you. Now that he was less annoyed with you, he seemed like a sweet enough guy. You could probably really get to like him. When you’d finally settled yourself, you looked him dead in the eye and smiled.
“I’m so sorry for my behaviour, Doctor Octavius,” you said with a polite nod. A smile pulled at his lips and he returned the gesture.
“You have nothing to be sorry for, my dear. Mistakes happen, and it’s not your fault,” He turned into his room, gesturing for you to follow him. You stepped in and were immediately taken aback by the clutter and mess. Not that it was mess mess; it was an organised mess. His desk was the most clean thing in the room, aside from a few books that he seemed to be in the middle of, a couple of photo frames, and of course, his computer setup. “Sorry for not cleaning up. I tend to bury myself in my work, and things get away from me,” You told him not to worry, and you saw the relief flood from his shoulders; the weight of guilt washed away with just a simple affirmation. He gestured to the corner of the room, where a clean - new - desk sat untouched. “That’s where you’ll be working. I believe this room will be big enough for the both of us?”
“I’ve been told I have a big personality, so I’m not sure,” He chuckled at your comment as he took his own seat. Likewise, you headed to your new workspace. While it was quite simple, you were blessed with a whiteboard and pinboard nailed to the back and side of the desk. The remaining side had nothing special but allowed you an uninterrupted view of, and easy communication with, Doctor Octavius’ desk. You placed down your bag and grabbed out a few essentials; a pencil case with your favourite stationary, your lucky rubber duck wearing a small hat, and a few photos of you and your friends. You placed them haphazardly on the desk, more interested in getting your proper work key. “The receptionist told me you could tell me where the IT department is?”
His eyes widened and he clasped his hands together. “Of course! I forgot you didn’t have your key yet,” He stood up from his desk and walked to the door, beckoning you to follow him. “Floor 4, down the hall and take a right. Then it’s the next left, but there’s a sign so you won’t get lost,” You stepped outside and gave him a gentle smile.
“Thank you, Doctor Octavius.”
“Please call me Otto, (Y/N). I like the formality from people I don’t know, but we will be working together quite a bit, so let’s skip the titles and go straight to first name basis,” You opened your mouth to reply but he cut you off. “You can see I already have.”
You looked away, feigning thought, before returning your gaze to his. “No, I don’t think I will.”
The two of you held eye contact for a moment, though it was quickly broken by a shared laugh. You ducked away with a wave, heading towards the IT department. You weren’t entirely sure what being Octavi- Otto’s assistant would entail; the interviews only gave away so much, but he seemed nice. He made you feel comfortable, and safe, and you couldn’t wait to start working properly. The actuators still scared you, however, but you were almost certain you’d get used to them eventually. After all, you quite liked the man you were working for, and if he was in control of them like the media claimed, they wouldn’t hurt you…right?
You stepped into the elevator and pressed the silver 4 illuminated by a golden backlight, grinning from ear to ear. You may have been late for your first day at work, but damn did it feel good to be an Oscorp employee.