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Finally, the bell chimes and the soft hiss of the elevator door sliding open reaches my ears. As soon as they are open, I step in and begin pressing the button for my floor - the fourth floor, but before the doors close, a voice says, “hold the elevator,” and then a woman slides inside. “Didn’t you hear me say hold the elevator?” She enters with her head down, but when she lifts her gaze, the smile on her face literally falls off when she recognizes me. “Oh, sorry.”
I should be offended, but honestly, I feel the same way. Crazy Katie - I know the letters don’t match but the alliteration is still there - is one of the few people who nearly makes me break out in hives. She is the opposite of order. She’s almost always late, her desk is a cluttered mess, and I hear her talk about dares she does with her friends. I never participated in Truth or Dare, but I would think even those who had would outgrow it by the time they’re nearing thirty. Not Katie, apparently.
Time seems to slow down as the elevator lifts, and I know I should say something, but what can I possibly say to her? We orbit in completely different paths, and I’m fairly certain the only thing we have in common is the air that we breathe. Finally, the doors open and Katie steps out first. I try not to exhale a sigh of relief, at least not loud enough that she can hear me, but then I see her heading for the conference room. No, this cannot be happening. She cannot be up for the same promotion I am. How is that even possible?
Now, my heart rate is pounding off the charts; a bead of sweat has trickled down my back and I swear I’m emitting some sort of odor even though I took a very thorough shower this morning and applied the exact right amount of deodorant - seven swipes under each arm. I don’t believe in gods - lowercase and plural - but if I did, I would swear they hate me right about now.
Before the conference door can close, I slip in behind Katie and take a seat at the nearly full table. Evidently, Katie is not the only competition. There are four other people from our department seated around the table. Are we all in the running for the promotion? I had heard the bosses were looking at multiple people, but six people feels like they didn’t narrow it down at all. Of course as I look around, I realize we all have different strengths. What exactly are they looking for in this promotion?
“Ah, good, everyone made it.” Philip, the boss we report to and the only one we ever see, breezes into the room. Even though he’s in charge, he doesn’t dress as professionally as I do. His blue shirt has no buttons or even a collar and his khaki slacks look like they could use a press. I’ve never seen him wear them, but I imagine Philip in Hawaiian shirts and cargo shorts outside of work. There is a beachy, laid-back attitude that clings to him even through work clothes. Today, his blond hair looks a little lighter, and if I didn’t know better, I’d say his skin is a little tanner than it was a week ago at our meeting. Did he take a mini vacation that I missed or has he just been tanning outside? That seems unlikely as it’s February, but I would put nothing past him.
“What are we all doing here, Philip?” Mark asks. I consider him my biggest competition. Though not as punctual and efficient as I am, Mark is handsome and friendly and often has women fawning all over him. Charisma just seems to drip from him and obey his every command if his perfectly coiffed hair and white teeth are any indication. “We’re not all up for the same promotion, are we?” There is a hint of disdain in his voice as he looks around the table.
“Actually, you are, but I couldn’t decide which of you to hire, so I thought we’d have a little competition.” Philip clasps his hands in front of him and smiles out at us as if we’re supposed to find this fun, and maybe some of the others will, but my stomach is already bunching. I was never good at competitions unless it was something I could study for, and I doubt this is.
“What kind of competition?” Katie pushes a strand of unruly hair behind her ear with a shaky hand. Interesting. She looks a little nervous as well.
Though I didn’t think it was possible, Philip’s smile grows wider as he stares out at us. “We have a client looking to create an app of fun things to do in the city. You are going to partner up and decide which places should appear in the app. It would also be encouraged to find some fun activity that the company could use.”
Partners? My stomach drops to the floor. I can’t do partners. I work better alone unless I’m working with someone much like me, and as I scan the people in this room, I realize none of them are like me and I really can’t work with any of them. “Is there a chance we could do this on our own?” I hope I sound more confident than I feel.
Philip flashes a condescending smile at me, and the urge to slide under the table consumes me. I should have just kept my mouth shut. “Afraid not. I have already decided on the teams, and I will be choosing one winner from the winning team.”
Darla, the pretty girl of the office, raises her hand; her face is scrunched in confusion. “So, we’re teammates and competitors?”
“Exactly.” His head bounces like one of those Bobbleheads people used to have in their cars. I never understood that trend either or the swaying Hula dancer. Both seemed tacky to me. “You’ll have to help each other to make it to the top, and then I’ll be able to tell who is most deserving.”
The way he rubs his hands together and looks at us makes me feel more like he’s plotting who to devour first instead of who to promote. I glance around the table again, wondering who he’s paired me up with. Darla wouldn’t be great. She’s pretty with her long dark hair and green eyes, but she’s not the brightest tool in the shed. Mark and I have never gotten along, and I’m fairly certain he would throw me under the bus the first opportunity he got. Harvey has this bad habit of chewing loudly -
“Derek, you’ll be with Katie. Harvey with Angela…”
Katie? Did he say Katie? I can’t be with Katie. She has no structure; she thrives on chaos. Her desk literally looks like a volcano erupted on it. I cannot work with Katie. But of course, I say none of this out loud. Nope, only in my head am I this boldly loquacious. Before I can even open my mouth - not that anything would actually come out - Philip ends the meeting, and the others exit the room. I’m left, staring at the table and wondering how this day turned upside down so quickly.
Katie sticks her head back in the room. “Are you coming? We should probably start brainstorming.”
“Right, I’ll be there in a second.” I push back from the table, but I don’t follow Katie to the common office area. Instead, I turn toward Philip’s office. Surely there has been some sort of mistake. Something that we can remedy.
Philip looks up as I knock on the doorframe. “Derek? How did I know I’d be seeing you?”
“I’m sorry, sir, it’s just that I can’t work with Katie.”
“And why not?” He leans back in his chair and folds his arms across his chest. He’s not that much bigger than me, but he certainly manages to seem that way when he wants to.
“We’re just too different. She’s cluttered and spontaneous and I like to plan things out.”
“And that is exactly why the two of you were paired together,” he says, leaning forward. “Look, Derek, you’re a great employee and maybe you are even the best at putting a presentation together but connecting with the clients isn’t your strong suit. Katie is a little less organized up front, but she is amazing with clients. I put the two of you together so you could learn from each other and get better.”
I want to argue with him, but logically what he is saying is correct. I have no doubt that Katie could learn a thing or two from my organization, but what am I supposed to learn from her? I just don’t have that laid back carefree gene in my body which is probably why I open my mouth and say, “But I made a presentation of my strengths.”
Philip chuckles and shakes his head. “I’m sure you did, but I’m not going to look at it. You work with Katie and prove to me you can handle all the aspects of the job. The known and the unknown.”
With a sigh, I nod and exit his office. Maybe I’m blowing this out of proportion. It’s just brainstorming, coming up with ideas, jotting a few things on paper, maybe visiting a few places. How hard could it be?
CHAPTER3
Katie
With a dramatic sigh,I drop onto the couch. “Do you guys have any idea what you’ve done to me?”
