5.b.
Visitors. She never got the chance to receive visitors
here on the thirteenth floor. She was,
after all, at desk two and desk two was positioned to receive clients entering
from the staircase. Visitors were
extremely rare on the thirteenth floor and no one ever came up the stairs. Why bother when there was a very comfortable,
highly functional, elevator on the opposite side of the building? Yet here they were, sweaty and out
breath. Seven of them.
She reviewed
her list of welcoming parameters, she had never needed to employ her meet and
greet protocols, and said, “Good morning, and welcome to the offices of
Incorporated Business Corporation Incorporated.
Section thirteen here at the Jacob
Center Tower
“Water,” Fair
Wage said, his voice raspy as he stumbled toward the water cooler.
“Please help
yourself,” Betty said as she straightened the sleeve of her periwinkle
blouse. “It is listed among the top
requests of potential visitors.”
“Hi Betty, my
name is Corporate Man.
“Oh my, that’s
rather simple Mr. Corporate Man.
“Who are
they? And when will they be ready for
us?” Corporate Man asked.
“They are the people you are here to see
and they will see you after you have
waited the appropriate amount of time.”
“This is
asinine,” Business Woman said.
“Oh no,” said
Betty, “Forgive me, but I must correct you.
This is Corporate America. This
is how it works.”
“Can I slap
her?” Business Woman said, her hands on her hips, her head slightly titled as
she cast an impatient glare at Corporate Man.
“Since that
worked so well with the CEO at Waldos…” Corporate Man muttered. He looked back at the receptionist. “Betty, we’re investors. We represent a conglomerate of interested
parties and national organizations. We
are not to be kept waiting.”
Business Woman
rolled her eyes. Senior Executive
allowed a blast of breath to derisively escape his nostrils.
Betty nodded
and said, “This assertion is congruent in fact as well as in inclination. Please advise your colleague that he may wish
to forgo the offerings of the water cooler for the bottles of sparkling water
that await you in Conference Room A.
Coffee and tea are also available as well as an assortment of pastry
items. You may go in now and please…
have a lovely day.”
Senior
Executive approached Corporate Man as they filed past the reception desk and,
in a hushed tone, said, “What was that?”
“What? You didn’t think they called me Corporate Man
for nothing did you?”
