When the man suddenly approached them and began introducing himself, the two women exchanged a look that confirmed their suspicions. [i]Yes, the new guy.[/i] Believing that their silent confirmation was discreet enough, both of them quickly looked back at him and smiled. 

The older of the two put her hand to her waist as she leaned her weight on one leg. "Investigative, huh?", Emily asked, who, all while smiling, was critically surveying him from head to toe as if she could judge whether he would be a good fit for the team or not. The fact that he didn’t know where he was going seemed to her to suggest that he was not. ”We could point you in the right direction, or walk you there. Might as well, seeing as we’re heading there too—the usual morning meeting in the conference room. I’m Emily, part of the team, and this is…”

"Skye Asselta", Skye interrupted to present herself as she extended her hand to shake his. ”I’m in Investigative too. Welcome.”

Skye allowed her gaze to linger on his face for some time before she let his hand go. Darting a quick look at the clock on the wall, she pulled her bag closer to her body. ”We better get going, I bet the others are already there.” Without further ado, Skye made her way past the others as she started leading the way to the conference room.

[center]---[/center]
 
Back in the conference room, an impeccably dressed man with his well-ironed shirt tucked into a fitted pair of cotton pants was one of the few who didn’t laugh at Tom highlighting the dating history of their new colleague. While he was avoiding standing in the bright sun that shone through the windows, he seemed to be engrossed in peeking through the glass from the shadows, looking at the people passing by on the street below the window. "We'll see how long the poor lad lasts, so I wouldn’t grow too attached to him, Christy, even if he is [i]easy on the eyes[/i]”, Nicholas finally commented absent-mindedly, forgetting that the conversation since long had moved on as his eyes were still occupied with scrutinising the pedestrians. The pessimistic cynic inside him doubted the new guy’s abilities. The fact that he was both divorced and had been tossed around between different jobs didn’t bode well—there must be something wrong with him. Nicholas shook his head before suddenly turning around to wander about the room. Failing to prevent a smirk from playing on his lips as he looked at Christy, he continued, ”Especially not if he is handsome.”

At that moment, the door to the room opened, and Skye stepped inside. ”Morning everyone”, she said as she threw her bag down on the chair closest to the door. Upon seeing most of her colleagues already sitting around the table, the young woman smiled apologetically. ”I hope we’re not late—we met someone new on the way.”

Emily, who had followed Skye inside the room, sighed heavily as she let herself fall down on a chair. "Can’t believe he hasn’t been assigned to anyone that can help him and show him around yet—shows just how efficient things are run at this damn place.”

A tired, but not all too serious voice that asked Emily to keep her mouth shut sounded through the room, causing a suppressed laughter to ripple across the group yet again. Most of them, however, were too curious to see who the newcomer was to continue the conversation once the laughter had died down.