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“Got it,” said Stern. Harbison Sr. cleared his throat. Jim had slipped out while I wasn’t looking, and come back with a stack of thick concept boards.
“I’ll yield the floor,” I said, sure I had nailed it. The Douchenozzle Brothers didn’t even have a model. And from what I could see, their concept was humdrum, a squat mid-rise crackerbox you’d see anywhere.
“We started out with two separate concepts,” said Jim. “But we had a lot of overlap, so we merged them together. We’re totally green, same as Izzy, but our design is more streamlined. More value for money.”
It took all my strength to keep my eyes from rolling. If by “streamlined,” they meant “boring,” okay, I’d buy that.
The more they went on, the more my confidence soared. Their building was decent, energy-efficient, but it wasn’t eye-catching or innovative. It was just sort of there, a big concrete cube. No way would the partners go for it, especially Stern.
“I like it,” said Stern, when they were done. “Minimal, basic, but it checks all the boxes. And it fits in with the rest of the block. Jim, you’ll take lead, Mark and Izzy, you’ll join him. We’ll be here if you need us, but this is your baby.”
Stern kept talking, but I couldn’t hear him. My ears were ringing, my head full of bees. He’d gone with the cube? The great pile of concrete? Harbison Sr., I could see it happening, but Stern? Joe Stern? He hated boring. He called buildings like that one “nothingberghausens.” So why had he… why…
“Thank you,” said Jim. “We won’t let you down. We’ve made a good start already, and with Izzy on board, maybe we’ll even find room for your green space.”
My whole body went hot, from my scalp to my soles. Room for green space, like that was all I brought to the table? Literal grass, a few clumps of trees? I clenched my fists so tight I felt my nails bending.
“You all right?” said Stern, as the douchebros filed out.
“I’m fine,” I said, and forced a tight smile. I gathered my sketches and my mini-easels.
“Your concept was good. Smart and ambitious.”
That was too much for me. I dropped my sketches on the table. “Then, not to sound rude, but why pick the safe one?”
“Budget was part of it,” said Harbison Jr. “Theirs’ll be easier, quicker to build.”
“But it’s mainly what Stern said,” added Harbison Sr. “It’s too ambitious. Too fancy by half. It doesn’t fit with the neighborhood, or with?—”
“It does with the new blocks.” I realized I’d just cut off the big boss, but I kept talking anyway, unable to stop. “The older buildings, sure, they’re big concrete boxes. But if you go down the street a ways, where they just built the Sunrise, they’re all much more modern, much more like mine.”
“Maybe,” said Stern. “But this would’ve been a first for you, taking the lead. You need to learn to walk before you can run.”
“And Jim and Mark showed teamwork, combining their pitches. We like to see that,” said Harbison Sr. “Shows they’ll work well with clients, they know how to network. I haven’t seen that with you so much. You’re more of a lone wolf.”
I opened my mouth to protest, then closed it again. They’d made up their minds, that much was clear. Maybe before I’d even walked in the room. Maybe the job would’ve always gone Jim’s way, no matter what I brought to the table.
“All right,” I said. “Thanks for the opportunity. I’ll go meet with the dou— with Mark and Jim.”
I shoved my sketches back into my portfolio case, scooped up my model, and dumped the lot on my desk. Then I headed straight down the hall and straight past Jim’s office, out to the balcony where folks used to smoke. No one went out there since smoking got banned, and I flopped down on the lone chair and texted Lola.
They gave it to JIM!!!!!!!!!!!
Lola didn’t answer, and I hissed, frustrated. I tried Spencer instead, the same screaming text. The dots popped up, vanished, and then my phone rang.
“Jim?” Spencer hollered, by way of hello. “They gave it to that dick? What the hell? Why?”
I sank down in my chair. “Because I’m not a team player. Because I’m too ambitious. Because I have no future here, no way up the ladder. This place is a boys’ club, and I’m missing a penis.”
“You can borrow mine, if you think that would help.”
I didn’t think anything could make me laugh right then, but I found myself snorting at Spencer’s crack. “Might borrow that later, if you’re going to be home. Or, no, you’ve got practice. You going out after?”
He made a humming sound like he was thinking. “Tell you what. What time are you off?”
“Around six, maybe seven. Why do you ask?”
“I’ll swing by around seven and pick you up.”
