"Mike Ross? Hi, I'm Rachel Zane. I'll be giving your orientation," the young woman said and shook the young man's hand.
"Wow... You're pretty..."
"Good. You've hit on me. We can get it out of the way that I'm not interested," she said, clearly having heard that before.
"N-No, I'm sorry. I wasn't hitting on you," he tried to say, but was interrupted.
"Trust me. I've given dozens of these, and without fail, whatever new hotshot it is thinks that, because I'm just a paralegal, that I will somehow be blown away by his dazzling degree. Let me assure you, I won't. "
"I was. I was hitting on you, "Mike admitted.
"You were. Take notes. I'm not gonna repeat myself, "she said and handed him a notepad.
"I love you, "Mike whispered to himself.
After saying that, Rachel Zane looked towards the waiting area, where another young man was waiting. But this one was different compared to Mike Ross. He wore a bright yellow suit with a violet tie. That's not where the differences ended, however. Unlike Mike, who was nervous and anxious about his first day, this man... was sleeping. He had his hands tied on his stomach, and his body positioned as if he were lying on a deckchair. Rachel didn't quite manage to get whether this was some practical joke.
"Uhm, Adriano Mattei?"
"..."
"H-hello? Hey! Adriano Mattei?!"
Adriano's eyes opened slowly. He looked at Rachel, then at Mike, who stood to the side and looked amused at the scene, but mostly confused. Then, he stood up slowly and cracked his neck.
"Are you Adriano Mattei?" Rachel asked.
"Indeed."
She looked at him a bit condescendingly, but still reached out her hand to shake his.
"I'm Rachel Zane. I'll be giving your orientation."
"A pleasure, I'm sure," Adriano said lazily, scratching his head.
"... Are you sure this is the suit you want to be seen wearing at the office?" she asked.
"Why? Is something wrong with it?"
"… Nevermind. Follow me."
She led the two men through the entire building at Pearson Hardman, located at 601 E 54th Street, New York, NY 10000. While she was doing that, Rachel explained the basics of Pearson Hardman, including its sections and departments.
"Each bank of offices is in its own area of the law and is anchored by a department head on either end. So on our left, mergers and acquisitions. On the other side, high-net-worth divorce."
"Nice. Mergers across from divorce. Symmetry, heh," Mike chuckled.
Rachel looked at him weirdly. Mike cleared his throat, embarrassed.
"Yeah, I should just listen."
"The firm operates on a chain of command model. Harvey's your commanding officer, Mister Ross. However, Louis Litt oversees all associates. So you both will answer to him. He will be your commanding officer, Mister Mattei," Rachel explained.
"Hmm."
"What do you think about Harvey?" Mike asked.
"People are in awe of him. They say he's the best closer there is, but I have very little contact with him, so I don't know."
"What about Louis Litt?" Mike asked.
"Let's continue with your tour," she said, changing the topic with an ironic smile.
They continued with their tour and finally reached the end, much to Adriano's relief. He was reminded why he never bothered to join a large firm in the first place. All the hustle and bitterness in the air pulled someone down. Friendships were a rarity here.
"And finally, this is where you two'll live," Rachel said as they arrived at the associate's bullpen.
Some might question why Adriano was given such a small place amongst the associates, given that he came from a very successful firm where he was the managing and owning partner. But the reason for that was that he simply didn't care about having an office. What he did, he could do anywhere, and he enjoyed watching the change. Who would think to look for him here?
What Adriano didn't realise, though, was that Jessica Pearson, the managing partner, had plans for the immaculate genius and only wanted to see how he'd react. They had met for that lunch she wanted to have a few days ago and settled on ‚terms 'for him coming to Pearson Hardman. Adriano was rather greedy, but Jessica Pearson was more than willing to give him what he wanted in exchange for his working for her. She knew his potential, maybe better than most, apart from those closest to him.
"I gave you that for a reason. You haven't taken one note," Rachel said, pointing at the note blocks she gave both of them.
"That's because--"
"Because you were too busy ogling me to listen to a word I've said?" she interrupted him.
"Heh," Adriano snorted, and Mike also smiled knowingly.
"Partners' offices anchor the wings. Fifth floor's research, sixth is security. All work gets billed, even if it's finding an address. I answer to Harvey and Louis Litt, and judging by the way you responded to my questions, I should admire Harvey and fear Louis. You have been here for five years, and just because I outrank you does not mean I have the authority to command your services," Mike delivered his lines.
Rachel smiled, embarrassed, but Mike wasn't done.
"Oh, and it's also pretty clear that you think you're too smart to be a paralegal."
"You know what nobody likes? Nobody likes a showoff," Rachel said.
"You used the word 'ogling'," Mark argued.
Rachel then looked at Adriano angrily, like his smile offended her greatly.
"What are you smiling at?" she said sharply.
"Hmm, scary. Don't reflect your embarrassment on me, Miss Paralegal. If you think you're irresistible, you need to handle the letdown when someone's not licking your boots," he said.
That made Rachel Zane pause for a moment. Without another word, she left the associates' bullpen, leaving the two on their own. They looked at one another. Mike had a slightly annoyed expression on his face, while Adriano looked amused. Adriano sat down behind his desk and placed his laptop down. Being here was not only a pathetic attempt to hide from Donatella Rahn, but also preplanned to benefit from the incoming chaos and restructuring that was going to happen very soon.
Besides, where he worked didn't matter to him. Nothing would change other than that he would spend a few hours doing senseless paperwork, that would bore him to death, but which he would finish with disgusting ease.
"So, Adriano, right?" Mike started.
"Right."
"Italian?"
"What gave it away?" Adriano asked, without looking away from his screen.
"Right. It's just... I've never--"
"Been a lawyer?"
"Wha-?! No! Ha... haha, no, what I meant was that I have never been in such a busy building. All these associates... It's a lot to take in, you know."
"Don't get intimidated by appearances. Appearances can and mostly are deceiving. Concentrate on what you do and do it best. From what I've seen in the last couple of minutes, you have the potential to be one of the best easily."
"Yeah? What makes you say that?" Mike asked, both proud and interested.
"Photographic memory," Adriano said and finally turned to Mike. "That definitely has its advantages. Especially if you need to memorise a lot of things."
"How did you-- Ah, very good. Then what about you?" Mike asked. "Any special skills you can tell me about?"
Adriano looked Mike in the eyes, with the same lazy expression he had when he opened them earlier.
"I know how to solve a Rubik's Cube."
"..."
As if to prove his strange point, Adriano pulled out a 3x3 GAN Speed Cube from his suitcase and set it on the table. Adriano was a serious speed cuber, it was no joke. Then, he ignored Mike and started typing on his keyboard, ready to start the mayhem.
"Uhh, r-right... yeah, that's... something."
.
On a different floor, in Jessica Pearson's office, Harvey Specter was having a discussion with her. She had arranged for his Senior title to be revoked and taken off his office door. She wasn't happy with him, and that was his punishment. He was standing in front of her desk while she went through some papers.
"Gerald Tate fired the firm, "she said.
"So you're taking my promotion away. "
"You know, most firms would put you in front of the bar and have your license stripped. You lied to a client, and he figured it out, "Jessica said.
"I lied to him, to get him to do the right thing and honour his goddamn contract. And you did't seem to mind so much when you thought I got away with it, "Harvey argued.
"But you didn't get away with it. And I can't justify handing you a promotion on the same day that you lose a huge client. "
"One client doesn't make a firm, "Harvey said, raising his voice slightly.
"I don't know if you've noticed, but we're in the middle of an economic meltdown. Companies aren't exactly lining up to spend money on attorneys right now. "
Harvey had his hands in his pockets and his lips pressed together. He was very unhappy right now, since becoming a Senior Partner had been his goal for years. He might have gotten it sooner, had he not lost a huge case against a certain ‚nobody '.
"And you know, Gerald might have forgiven the lying, had you not humiliated him. But you did, and you need to accept that. "
Harvey looked at her and then smiled humorously.
"Jessica, if you hadn't done as much for me as you have, I'd be heading for the door. "
"If I hadn't done as much for you as I have, I'd be throwing you out the window, "she countered.
Harvey took this as his cue to leave now, but was stopped by her.
"But, Harvey, no more shenanigans. You do one more thing that isn't straight as an arrow, and instead of covering your ass, I'll put you in front of the bar myself. "
A knock pulled both of them out of their thoughts. Adriano stood in front of the glass doors. Seeing him, the two had different reactions. Harvey almost had his eyes pop out of his skull, while Jessica smiled. Whether she was amused by Harvey's reaction or genuinely happy to see Adriano was for her to know. But Adriano saw both of their looks and catalogued them for later use.
Jessica waved him in.
"You wanted to see me, Miss Pearson," Adriano said.
"I did, thank you for coming. Harvey, I'm sure you remember Adriano Mattei, don't you? From the case you had together," she said, smiling.
It was as though the moment proved her point in the talk she had with Harvey. Adriano understood what was going on right away. Jessica Pearson was a politically skilled player. She was a manipulator who liked to plan and place different pieces on her board to defeat her enemies and rivals. That was also why Adriano knew she would be desperate to get him to join, because he spread the rumour that others were interested in hiring him.
And they were. But Jessica got to hear about this interest sooner than others, making her rather desperate to get Adriano on board at Pearson Hardman—all relatively easy things and done with a few phone calls.
"You hired him?" Harvey asked.
He wasn't happy at all to see Adriano. Such a big defeat weighed on him more than he would ever admit. He had been cross for a month after the case was done. After finally getting Senior Partnership, he thought he had finally overcome that mountain and reached his goal, only to now see the bane of his last month here.
"I did. He is an impeccable lawyer with a lot of success, though I don't know why he hides it," Jessica said and looked at Adriano.
Adriano only smiled his trademark smile without answering.
"But that's for you to say and not us to discuss. That would be all, Harvey. You can go."