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“Next is Michael Li, our Design Lead. He and Andre North there tend to work closely together, as Andre is our Lead Artist.” The two men gave Allee a friendly wave. Michael was of Asian descent, with jet black hair spiked up all over his head, similar to a pufferfish. He had three silver hoops in one ear and a silver chain and cuff on the other. His dark eyes were friendly, and his smile broad. Michael also wore all black, with black nail polish on his fingernails and black eyeliner surrounding his eyes. Andre, on the other hand, had long white-blonde hair that was pulled back in a braid. He had a long blonde beard, plaited in two like a Norse Viking. His blue eyes were piercing, but his expression was welcoming. He wore an open shirt, with a singlet underneath, and faded, torn denim jeans.
“On my left is our Community Manager, Samividhan Majumdar. He takes care of the social aspect of our community here and is also the one who has to deal with the backlash if something goes wrong in the games.”
“Please, call me Sammy. Everyone else does, my name’s too much of a mouthful, especially when someone’s swearing at me,” said Sammy with a cheeky wink. Allee grinned back at him, starting to feel more at ease, as so far, apart from Charlie, all of the Team Leads had seemed friendly and welcoming.
“Last but not least, is our Lead Programmer. This is Noah Bligh. Noah has the dubious pleasure of being the 'oldest' member of the team – he was one of the originals.”
Allee turned to face this last introduction, a small smile tugging at her lips as she noted that this 'oldest' team member was quite young. She thought he was around the same age as herself. Noah had shoulder-length brown hair pulled back in a ponytail; his blue-grey eyes were solemn, and the beard and moustache that covered the lower half of his face held a reddish tint. He wore jeans with a brown t-shirt with 'Browncoat' written across it in a stylised font. Allee smiled, recognising the reference, but there was no return smile. However, there was a curious light to his gaze, as if Noah was trying to decide if Allee was friend or foe.
“Now that we've completed the introductions, let's get down to business. I'm going to let Allee take the floor first.”
Craig motioned for Allee to start. She took a deep breath, smiled, and began.
“I'd like to start off by saying thank you, for making me feel welcome on my first morning. I only arrived in Brisbane on Sunday evening, so I am looking forward to making this area my home. I hope that my arrival hasn't disrupted the office and will do my best to make sure everything continues to run smoothly. If there's anything that I can help you with, please ask, and I'll try to get it for you as soon as I possibly can.” Allee looked around the table as she spoke, trying to project the confidence she was desperately needing. Her nerves screamed, but her outward appearance was calm and poised. “However, I'd like to address the obvious,” and gestured towards the box of dirty dishes in the centre of the table.
“Part of my job is making sure you all have a safe, hygienic and comfortable working environment. When I arrived this morning, I was disgusted by the state of the communal kitchenette. I have tidied up the benches and shelves somewhat, and you may have noticed that there are signs up on the fridge and microwave. They are gross, and I’ve organised new ones to be delivered and installed tomorrow. Whatever hasn't been cleaned out of the fridge by tonight will be tossed tomorrow morning.”
Allee paused, gauging the reaction to her statement. They listened to what she was saying, including Charlie, who had previously appeared to be fascinated by her nails. Allee continued, “I am not your maid, and although we employ cleaners, they are paid to keep the toilets and the general office area clean, not to do your dirty dishes. By the end of tomorrow, there will be a new fridge and microwave, plus a dishwasher. I expect everyone to clean up after themselves. If you spill something, wipe it up. If your lunch explodes in the microwave, clean it out before you walk away. I'm happy to run the dishwasher at the end of the day, so long as everyone stacks their dishes in there first. I'm also happy to wash the tea towels every weekend for those who would prefer to hand-wash their utensils.
“I will warn you that if the kitchenette gets to that state again, I will remove the fridge and microwave. I will not be blamed for others' laziness causing an outbreak of food poisoning or an infestation. I'm not prepared to lose my job simply because others couldn't be bothered cleaning up after themselves!”
Allee sat back, cheeks flushed. She felt self-conscious and a little embarrassed, as she hadn’t meant to speak so forcefully or lose her cool. She was surprised to hear a chuckle to her left and turned to see that Noah was smirking at her. She glanced around the table, noting that nobody, not even Charlie, looked angry or about to make a sarcastic jibe. In fact, Allee noticed Charlie giving her an appraising look as if she was reconsidering her previous opinion of her.
Allee swallowed and finished calmly, “I would appreciate it if, throughout the day, the owners of those dirty dishes could please come and collect them and clean them up. They can leave them here or take them home, I don't mind, but if they're being left here, can they please be washed.”
Craig nodded, “I think that's fair, Allee, and I'm sure we can accommodate it. Now, let's get down to the rest of this week's business.”
Allee sat back, taking notes with speed, her pen flying across the paper. Occasionally, Craig or one of the others would turn to Allee and ask her to repeat what had just been said or reiterate what had been mentioned and agreed earlier. Eventually, everything on the agenda had been discussed, decisions had been made, and plans and targets for the next weekly meeting were noted. The meeting ended with Craig reminding the Team Leaders to get their staff to collect their dirty dishes and remind them of the deadline for that evening. Allee waited for them all to leave, then walked back to her office.
An hour later, Allee looked at her watch. It was half-past twelve and time for her lunch. She pulled her sandwich out from her cooler bag and ate it slowly, her mind going back over the events of that morning. While she had been typing up the minutes of that morning's meeting, the postie had arrived with a stack of mail. Once Allee had finished, she had gone through the mail, sorting it into relevant piles. Most of them were various bills and correspondence about the running of the office, so she kept them to one side. There were a few gaming magazines, a couple of technology catalogues, and some envelopes with specific names on them. Those she took to Craig, as he would know whom each item belonged to, and he could keep the magazines and catalogues on hand. Once this had been done, Allee had sent Gareth an email, first letting him know that she had arrived safely, then thanking him for the letter he had given her.
Allee finished her sandwich, packed her cooler, collected her new TARDIS mug and headed for the kettle. She quietly stood there as she waited for it to boil, mentally adding items she wished to have for the kitchenette. She made herself a coffee, noticing the number of freshly washed mugs and spoons sitting on the drainer.
After rinsing her own spoon off, she turned to walk back to her office and jerked as Noah was leaning against one wall, watching her. Allee swore under her breath as some of her hot coffee splashed over her hand. She smiled tightly at him, all of a sudden nervous, as she accepted a tea-towel and mopped up her spill. She kept a hold of the cloth, edging towards the doorway, hoping to get back to her office. For some reason, she felt on edge around Noah. As though he knew she was all bluff and no substance.
“I like your mug. I would never have pegged you for a Doctor Who geek,” he said to her, that smirk playing back over his lips.
“Whovian.” Allee blurted back.
“What?”
“Doctor Who fans are called Whovians. Just as Firefly fans are known as Browncoats.”
Allee nodded towards Noah's t-shirt, and as he looked down at himself, she scurried past him, closing her office door behind her.
Allee felt like a fool. Here was a chance to become friendly with one of her new colleagues, and she'd botched it. It wasn't going to work. All of that bravado, that feigned confidence, it was going to all fall in a heap. Allee closed her eyes and put her head on her desk. It was going to be a long week.
“What's Miss I'm-not-your-mother-so-pick-up-after-yourself like then?” Charlie sauntered over to Noah's desk, having observed the brief interaction between the two.
“Odd. Not how I would have pegged her, not at all.”
“Oh? In what way?”
Noah sighed, leaning back in his chair, his hands behind his head, his fingers laced together. He frowned a little, trying to think of how to describe his encounter with Allee.
“Well, for one, she didn't seem as confident and composed as she was this morning. In fact, it felt as though I'd cornered a frightened little mouse, and she couldn't get out of there quick enough.”
“I knew it,” Charlie laughed sardonically. “She's a fraud! Melbourne has dumped some inexperienced bimbo on us just to get her out of the way. It wouldn't surprise me if she got the job by fucking someone in middle-management!”
