Ellie squeezed through the crush of people on the bus. It had been standing room only since the last stop and she needed to get off in a minute. “’Scuse me. Excuse me.” The bus was jerking along, as if it was pretending to be a kangaroo. Trying to avoid falling into an elderly woman’s lap, she grabbed at a handle and realized she’d avoided the woman only to have trodden on a man’s foot. “Sorry!” She wanted to giggle when the man looked through her without replying.

At last, the bus came to a sudden halt, and everyone standing up swayed in unison as they hung on. Ellie jumped off the bus as soon as the doors opened, stumbled, and almost fell. A passer-by put out a hand to help her but she didn’t need it. “It’s okay, thanks. My fault!” She hurried along the street, eager to get to her destination. In a very few minutes she was there. The huge glass-and-steel building always impressed her, with its double doors and huge lobby. This was where Heart magazine had its offices.

Ellie couldn’t wait to get back to work in the Editorial Department. It seemed ages since she’d been here for her work experience. Since then, she’d been working hard at school, but – thank goodness – at last it was the Easter holidays, and now nothing could keep her away.

 Heart was her friends’ favourite magazine, and Ellie’s too. It had all the best articles, great fashion pics, fun quizzes, and interviews with the celebrities they loved the most. Working for Heart really was Ellie’s dream job, and she was so lucky that Angel Makepiece, the scary Editor in Chief, had said that she could come in during the school holidays.

Ellie had always wanted to be a journalist like her father had been, and she had always hoped to work for Heart when she was grown up. But she had never thought it would really happen. After all, everyone longed to work for Heart. Thanks to her Uncle Patrick, who was on the board of the magazine, Ellie had got work experience here last term. But after that it had been up to Ellie. She had been determined to show what she could do, and had so impressed Angel that she had been invited back. How cool was that!

Ellie paused outside the tall building. She was going to spend as much of the holiday as possible at the magazine. But she was under no illusions. She might have been invited back, but she knew she would have to prove her worth over and over again. There was no room for passengers at Heart magazine. But this was what Ellie thrived on. She was ambitious, and very determined to become a brilliant journalist. So it was hardly surprising she was feeling so upbeat. Ellie Ixos was on her way, and she really did have the holiday job to die for!

Ellie didn’t mind how tough the Editor in Chief could be, or how exacting Francesca Mosse, her deputy, was. She was there to learn. It was a pity that Piano, the Editor’s PA, had tried to treat her as the lowest of the low, but during her work experience, Ellie had made good friends with Sophie, the post girl, and Flynn, Sophie’s gorgeous boyfriend, who worked in the IT Department. In spite of the ups and downs, it was the chance of a lifetime to gain experience here, and just arriving at the office made Ellie feel as if she was in heaven.

A shiver of excitement ran up her spine as she pushed open the heavy glass door. At reception she gave her name and got her pass. Then, feeling very sophisticated, she headed for the lift. Heart was located on the third floor, where the magazine had its own reception desk just inside the large, open-plan office. Ellie got out of the lift, and went to the shoe cupboard in the lobby to change out of her boots. Everyone had to keep a pair of suitable office shoes at work, as Angel was very particular about her white office carpet, although Ellie had noticed that Angel didn’t seem to mind when Ferdinand, her little dog, left hairs all over it.

Ellie pulled on her office shoes and hurried into the editorial office, wondering what the new receptionist would be like. The last one had been dismissed for her attempts to sabotage the magazine when she felt her potential had been overlooked. To Ellie’s surprise, Piano Arnley-Armitage, the Editor’s PA, was on reception, and looking thoroughly grumpy.

“Hi there, Pea-Are-No!” said Ellie, pronouncing the name in the way that Piano preferred.

“Oh, it’s you,” said Piano sourly, hardly glancing up.

“Where’s the new receptionist?” asked Ellie, who could see that Piano’s moods hadn’t improved since Ellie had last been here.

“What new receptionist?” said Piano, sounding furious. “The one we took on when Carlotta was sacked left after a couple of weeks, and the temp agency sends us total losers. Being understaffed is awful. Another one is coming tomorrow, but goodness knows what she’ll be like.”

“Well, I’m here now,” said Ellie, feeling sure that there would be lots for her to do. “And I can come in most days of the holidays.”

Piano rolled her eyes. “Oh yes,” she said. “I’m sure we’ll all be very grateful for your expert help.” She started to type furiously, as if Ellie didn’t exist.

Ellie sighed, but she was feeling much too happy just being here to let Piano get to her. “Do you know where my laptop is?” she asked, seeing no sign of it at the far end of the reception desk, where she had worked before.

Piano glanced up from her screen, looking even more annoyed than before. “You’re not sitting here,” she snapped. “I’m not having you cluttering up the reception area like last time, and I haven’t got time to chat like Carlotta did. I’ve come over here so I can do two jobs instead of one.” She paused. “Francesca said she’d sort out a small desk for you, but she hasn’t had a chance to do it yet. You’d better use my desk for now.” She pointed one dark-blue painted nail, and Ellie looked. She really was pointing at her own desk. Ellie’s heart skipped a beat. How brilliant!

“Thanks,” she said, giving Piano a wide smile. Ellie walked past Piano, and on into the large, open-plan office. Francesca Mosse, the Deputy Editor, was busy at her desk, looking as elegant as usual, but with a rather harassed expression on her face.

Ellie tucked her bag neatly under the chair at Piano’s desk and logged onto the laptop that was waiting for her. It was wonderful having her very own desk, even if it was borrowed. It made her feel much more professional, and as if she really belonged.

On her screen, Ellie could see some of the articles that were going to appear in the next issue of Heart. She didn’t want to read them all the way through just now, but it was great to have a sneak preview of what the next magazine would contain. It looked as if there was going to be a feature on swimwear. Ellie made a note to let her best friend Hannah know, because she’d been saying that she needed to go shopping for a swimsuit. There was also a little piece about the coolest colours for toenails.

“Hello, Ellie. How are you?” Francesca had finished what she was doing, and pushed back her chair, crossing one slender leg over the other.

“Fine, thanks,” said Ellie. “It’s fantastic to be back!”

“Well I’m afraid you’re going to be kept pretty busy,” said Francesca. “And as Piano has no doubt told you, we’ve had no receptionist again for a couple of days, which hasn’t helped.”

“That’s okay,” said Ellie. “I’ll do whatever I can. What’s happening this week?”

“Well…” Francesca looked resigned. “Angel has loads of meetings, so she’ll be in and out a lot. We’ve got a boy band coming in tomorrow, which is a great opportunity for a feature, so we jumped at it when their PR people contacted us. They’ve got a new album coming out, and want to promote it. Oh, and someone has to go and collect some shoes from Jacob Frou. Joe is going to photograph the new collection for us, and Angel decided that the band members ought to be in some of the shots too. We need to make sure everything is in place at the right time. We don’t want any hitches.” She made a note on her pad. “The band has agreed, but I mustn’t forget to confirm the models.”

“Which band is it?” asked Ellie, hoping it might be one she liked. Meeting famous people wasn’t the reason that Ellie wanted to be a journalist, but it was brilliant fun when she did – last time she was here she had met famous pop stars Pop and Lolly Lowther! She didn’t want to waste any opportunities that might come her way.

 “It’s Zone One,” said Francesca. She picked up on Ellie’s expression and smiled. “So you’re one of their fans too, are you?”

Ellie nodded. “They’re fantastic!” she said excitedly. “Especially Al. He’s the one with blond hair. He’s my favourite singer ever.”

Francesca laughed. “Well, it’s nice to know that we’re getting the right celebrities in for our readers and staff. Piano thinks they’re great as well.”

“Really?” Ellie hoped Al wasn’t Piano’s favourite too. Al was hers!

Francesca had stopped laughing and was looking more serious now. Ellie tried to suppress the bubble of excitement that was threatening to make her giggle, but it wasn’t easy. The thought of actually seeing, and maybe even talking to Al from Zone One made it hard to concentrate on the Deputy Editor.

“You might not get much chance to hang out with them,” Francesca was warning. “Your best opportunity will be when they arrive in the office at midday, before Angel takes them out to lunch. After that, of course, they’ll be involved with the photo shoot, which will take a while. Once they’re done they may be dashing off somewhere else, so it could be difficult to speak to them then. I will make sure you and Piano have a chance to say hello when they first arrive though.”

Ellie beamed. “That’s brilliant, Francesca. Just being in the same room as them will be amazing, and actually saying hello to the boys from Zone One…especially Al…will be fabulous. This is the chance of a lifetime for me. Wow! I’m actually going to be able to say hi to Al. I really can’t believe it!”

“Okay!” said Francesca with a tolerant smile. “I get the picture. You’re rather pleased to be working here again. Yes?”

 “Yes!” Ellie knew her friend Hannah would be green with envy once she found out about the band. She loved them too, especially Jay, who tended to be their spokesman. But Ellie didn’t want to give the impression that she’d be empty-headed from now until after she’d met the band. “If you have jobs for me to do I’d better get on with them,” she said eagerly.

Francesca looked at her with approval. “You need to go and see Angel,” she told Ellie before turning back to her screen. “Since the agency sent us so many unsuitable people she’s decided to look over any new person herself when they come into the office to work, and even though you’ve been in before, she asked for you.” She smiled. “I expect she wants to make sure all the staff are presentable.”

Ellie immediately smoothed her skirt and hoped that her hair and make-up were okay.

“Don’t worry,” said Francesca, scrolling down a page on her screen. “You’re fine. But hurry up. She’ll be wondering where you are. I know she had a load of jobs lined up for Piano before we discovered that the agency was letting us down again. No doubt she’ll want to give some of them to you.”

Angel was notorious for making huge demands on everyone in the office, and Ellie had spent most of the time trying to avoid her when she was last at Heart. Since getting Angel’s letter offering her holiday work, though, Ellie had felt a lot more confident. She took a deep breath. This was what working for Heart was all about. On her work placement here, she had been allowed to write a piece about Pop and Lolly, which had actually appeared in the magazine. Remembering that, she felt fired up, full of energy and enthusiasm. Yes, there were tight deadlines, and lots of stress, but there were also huge rewards. It had been a big thrill to get her article about Pop and Lolly published, and tomorrow she was going to meet Zone One!