Reaction - Chapter 51

Charles blinked in surprise. Glancing to his left he saw Fairbanks barely holding back a guffaw; to his right, Carol was wearing her trademark “You’ve got to be kidding me” look. With her left eyebrow raised unnaturally high, Carol obviously didn’t buy it. And why should she? Why should any of them? This kid was likely no better than the other two candidates in the room, not to mention the countless other applicants they’d heard drone on and on about "Teamwork," "Loyalty," and "Synergy" for half the morning.

Charles knew he should chalk it up to a sorry attempt at job interview humor, shoot this smart-aleck a stern "Cut the comedy" look, and move on to Candidate #3. After all, Candidate #3 looked like a serious contender and all her responses, so far had been well thought out and professional. And, if he was being honest, boring. Charles was bored with Candidate #3, and #1, and the twenty-nine others they’d already talked with this morning. He’d been bored with this lanky, clammy-handed Candidate #2 in the middle chair too. So whether it was just an attention-grabbing ploy or the tell-tale sign of a weak candidate, the response that he’d “work for free” had at least livened things up for the moment. Considering this, and perhaps unconsciously wanting a show of gratitude, Charles went for the follow up--he'd give this upstart applicant another chance and maybe encourage Carol's eyebrow to migrate southward again.

After a longer than normal pause, Charles found his voice. “Clarify this for me—you’re saying you are the best candidate because you’d work for free? As in, you would fulfill the requirements of this job, working in excess of twelve hours a day, every day, six days a week—and you would not expect, nor accept, any compensation whatsoever? Is that what you are telling me?”

Cole P. Martinsen, Candidate #2, gulped, attempted a paltry smile and nodded.

Fairbanks didn’t hold back this time and laughed loudly—the perfect accompaniment to the quick-tap of Carol’s pencil signaling her increasing annoyance with the direction this was headed. The other two candidates in the room were now openly gawking at this stranger, trying to decide if he was an edgy, take-no-prisoners applicant trying to get ahead in the game or just clinically insane.

Sensing it might be the latter and calculating how best to contact security if necessary, Charles finally gave voice to the question they were all wondering:

“And why would you do a thing like that?”

Pralines and Cream - Chapter 50

Cole was fascinated by how her face reminded him of pralines and cream. Each subtle curve of her face was shadowed in smooth caramel. The fingers on his left hand twitched as he twirled the stray strands of her auburn hair. The scent of Japanese cherry blossoms made his lips pucker in anxious anticipation. Even the sepia overtones of the photograph could not hide the deep hue of her sapphire eyes.

The authoritative voice trailed off, yanking the drooling twenty something youth back to reality. The photo behind the Gucci pinstripe jacket quickly blurred into a glossy haze as the foreground sharpened. The clicking of the overhead fan rattled in Cole’s ears. The silk tie seemed to draw tighter around his neck, preventing his intake of the soggy air.

The man with a laser-line goatee leaned forward in his leather chair. “We currently have 145 qualified applicants for this position. Tell us why you’re the best candidate for the job.” Cole glanced quickly around the room, searching for signs of the right answer in the eyes of the other two interviewers. In the brief silence, the balding man on the right inhaled furtively, while the woman in the grey business suit on the left crossed her arms. No dice.

Cole stared directly into the eyes of Pralines and Cream’s father. “I’ll work for free.”

Rules of Engagement

Three rules:

1. There is no wrong answer. Stick your name on it or write it anonymously, but once it’s on the wall, it stays there unless it doesn’t meet rule #3.
2. Write the beginning or write the end. If you don’t think a section fits, write something before or after that section to make it fit. We will start with 20 chapters, chapters 40 through 60 (we will expand later). Add “Chapter X” to the title of your post to order it within the story.
3. Keep it clean. I’m anticipating a thematic rating between PG – PG13, but please stay away from swearing, innuendos and the like. If it goes up, I’ll take it down.

See you on the other side.