Sara - Season 1

Recent college graduate Sara De Roose, a rather unsightly good worker without any fashion-sense, auditions for the job -also coveted by the bitchy receptionist Britt Van Hove- of executive secretary in fashion enterprise Présence, to gentleman Simon Van Wyck, the successful commercial director above designer Marnix Standaardt, who just heard his father Léon Van Wyck is finally about to step down as director general (CEO) and leaves the choice of his succession to the board, which means the financial director Alexander de Lannoy, orphaned son of the other co-founder, is going to fight Simon for it. Helena de Lannoy, Alexander's sister and Simon's fiancée, insists the job goes to Britt, the devil she knows. Sarah accepts instead a lower, open job in the 'economaat', logistics clerks mainly in charge of office supplies, under office secretary Ellen; she tells former college friend Arne, who runs a pub, not her proud dad Hans, who would be terribly disappointed.

Now Sara has dragged drunk commercial director Simon from his Porsche just before it exploded after the fashion show, saving his life without serious injury so he can come to work the next morning, his father, CEO Léon who's about to step down, insists Simon must show his appreciation; when he learns Sara is a college graduate who wanted the executive assistant job, Simon decides to give her that job; as his fiancée Helena insists to keep Britt on, the compromise is to create as second EA job, but instead of sharing the office desk with Britt, Sara gets a glorified broom closet.

The reconverted filing cabinet she must use as office makes Sara consider to decline the secretary job, but that changes when Simon's division of labor almost turns rival Britt into the window-dressing. The mysterious ex-con Koen is back in Antwerp, and seems to blame Thomas for his sentence. Sara notices Simon's "business meeting" is actually fashion journalist Brenda, a floozy, and tries to cover versus his fiancée Helena, who hears about it from Britt. Still nobody listens to Sara about the errors she alone spotted in the Powerpoint presentation, which Helena orders her to hand back over to Britt. Simon has insisted his agenda is to be seen by nobody, and Sara holds out denying it to Helena, who even threatened with immediate dismissal, but is told off by Simon.

Simon still insists to Helena that Brenda is just an ex and a fashion journalist, but shares a hotel room with the old bag in boxer shorts, claiming his engagement to Helena is to get her vote for the CEO post. Sara is caught trying to spy in Alexander's PC, gets invited to go out by ex-con Koen when he hears her tell to Arne she likes runner Thomas, who is hitting with the new supplies clerk, then gets dumped by Britt with the hurried representatives from the Dutch firm Van Veen, who are not amused Simon is absent at the agreed time; her clumsiness amuses them enough to wait, yet Simon is all but grateful. Alexander conspires with Brit, to make sure Simon's presentation to the board will be embarrassing.

Desperate now Simon seems to have turned against her, Sara accepts to go out with Koen and writes a farewell notice. Alexander sees his CEO cards go sour when Simon pops champagne: Van Veen has placed its major order. He tells Sara to tear up the resignation she just failed to nick from his desk and even that he needs a woman like her; she stupidly imagines that to be meant romantically. When she refuses to give information about Présence, Koen dumps her sneering nobody would want to be seen with such an ugly critter. Back home, she suddenly realizes Simon's presentation isn't adjusted for indexation. Helena keeps pestering Simon about his unexplained lateness.

The board vote for the next CEO approaches. Britt plays double game, promising Alexander to sabotage Simon's presentation while kissing his lieutenant Lieven. In the pub, Anne is surprised how strongly Thomas feels about Koen's verbal abuse of Sara; when Arne shows the ex-con the door, Thomas even fights to enforce the expulsion; later his mother Ellen embarrasses the brave gentleman in the firm as if he were an unruly schoolboy. Alexander plants doubt in the mind of founder Léon, Simon's own father's, about spying on his files using Sara. Sara switches the presentation disks at the last minute, as Simon finds for the better, but fears to be bullied for her bursting in. Yet by a single vote Simon carries the day and gets Présence's helm. Alexander bets for Simon's resignation or the sale of his own shares that Simon's megalomaniac business plan will sink the ship in less then a year.

Sara was happy to see Simon triumphant at his acceptance champagne reception, even got commended for her help, but appalled to be ordered to put his reckless bet with Alexander on paper and sad he's taking his father's office and leaving her in the converted broom-closet, now far from him. Even Sara's dad Hans, the only one who bothered to bring colleague Martine to hospital and visit her, thinks Sara is too good to rush pucking up Simon who's thrown out of his taxi for throwing up drunk as a skunk and help him change shirt in his office before he heads for his fiancée Helela, which requires the night guard George's help.

Helena fixates on Simon's changed shirt, supposing him unfaithful, ironically the one time he was too drunk to cheat on her; Britt eagerly confirms Simon lied about being with her all night, Sara saves his bacon by bringing in the vomit-soiled shirt, as reward he decides to keep his office close to hers. Thomas barks bitch Britt off, his bossy mother nags such a dangerous enemy can easily cost him his job, hinting at some earlier drama. Designer Marnix isn't prepared to work even harder to serve Simon's ambitions, and considers his plan to launch a perfume line 'stinks'; Sara must study if this can bring in 10% more sales, suggests a real estate alternative, decides only after Arne's encouragement to persist after Simon told her off without even hearing the details.

Alexander refuses to give Sara numbers for her efficiency study, but fails to get his sister Helena on his side, she even intends to work out an alternative plan for Simon with Britt. Sara's dad Hans is finally tempted to try his grateful colleague Martine's car; their nursery boss Roger is as grumpy and impatient as always. When Simon plays with Lieven on the 'ideal partner choice' DVD he confiscated from Britt this stirs another of Sara's absurd pink dreams about him as her adoring lover. Meanwhile Simon keeps fooling around with Brenda behind Helena's back, working late Sara catches them kissing on his desk, him with his pants down. Now Simon orders his executives to give Sara all necessary documents, and she finds an expensive 21% error on the cost of fabrics.

Designer Marnix obviously won't hear about saving on fabrics, so the CEO intends to replace some top-quality used for the creations with knock-offs for actual production. Marnix gets wind of it, and Alexander dares him to make his theatrical threat to leave serious. Sara realizes she should demand a pay fitting her new responsibilities, but swallows her complaint about the minimum wage for Simon's bet's sake. Thomas's mother Ellen De Graeve admits to a colleague she always told the boy his -in fact emigrated- father was dead, but he just returned to Belgium. Simon keeps juggling his fiancée Helena and lover Brenda, a dangerous game despite Sara's help. Lieven convinces Brenda to 'make Simon jealous' by dating him, so he brushes off Britt, who finds out about Sara's mission to collect sales data behind Helena's back for Simon's business plan.

Gay designer Marnix teases hot runner Thomas about his straight crush for Annie. Simon has another flirt date, swimming with model Margot. Since Helena viciously opposes Sara collecting 'her' shops' sales data for Simon's business plan, Sara gets them working with Arne from his pub PC; they are quite disappointing, so Simon decides on the spot to launch a publicity campaign, Sara should budget it. Britt and Helena spot Lieven dating Brenda. Ex-con Koen taunts Thomas.

Thomas is embarrassed by the theft -as he suspects by Koen- of the GPS from the Présence van he neglected to close up properly; his ma worries Koen will become as big a problem as 'before', Marnix promises to cover the boy if necessary, but Thomas decides to pay for a new one himself. Britt and Alexander manage to sneak into Sara's computer guessing her password is 'Simon' but Simon catches them before they had a good look at the numbers. Sara's pa Hans's colleague Martine has to help him start his ancient car, he finally asks her price for hers. To Simon's surprise, Alexander casts the decisive vote for his new publicity campaign, and even suggests a far bigger one, over double the budget: to be saved elsewhere, perhaps closing some stores, a declaration of war in Helena's eyes, so she turns to her ex, labor union rep Steven.

The rumor Présence would close some shops causes panic, especially with Anne whose mother works in one, but after a threatening visit from her labor union mate and Steven, Simon tells Helena it was just a hypothesis, Sara has an alternative: a contest for Antwerp's graphics students, dead cheap, and carried by the board. Now he needs money for a car, dad Hans insists even more Sara should go for a more fitting wage. Flattery won't make Marnix consider any savings on fabrics. After Simon slips out to Marnix the wedding dress he designs for Helena won't be needed for months, she gets a reassuring ring, which shatters Sara's romantic delusions about actually almost ingrate Simon.