The never ending night

 Macy couldn't help but groan when Gram Jeanie called. She winced, wishing she were already in bed after her first day at work. This emotional stuff took a lot out of her. 

Macy was pretty sure she might have the flu after that intense lunch with Wren, who prodded her about Wade and his wicked ways. Wren evidently didn't honestly trust him. Still, Macy guessed they could or would be friends. Macy knew she had to trust Wren to navigate her through the Receptionist World. Now if she could take notes, but Wren talked too fast and always questioned Macy about Wade's eating habits, and did he fall asleep instantly?

Macy had no answers for Wade's fiancée, and at ten p.m., she didn't feel like answering Gram's questions about her first day at work.

"It was OK." Macy summed it up, hoping to make this a quick phone call. No way did she want to tell her how she'd dropped down the receptionist status.

"Why didn't you call me? You should have called me as soon as you got off work, or at least when you got home?" Gram always sounded worried, and her worries were always contagious.

"Well, it wasn't exactly what I expected," Macy told her, lounging on the couch just in her PJs. She yawned sleepily.

"What do you mean?" It was as if it were all foreign to her grandmother.

"I got there OK, because I met someone in the building who knew how to get me to work." Macy let slip with a sigh and a shrug.

"Don't you shrug me," Gram snapped. "Did you let this person drive your car?"

"Yes." Macy felt she needed to be honest.

"You didn't!" Wrong answer. Gram blasted back. Gram insured Macy's car, not this stranger she met in the elevator.

"But. But L is really nice and..and.." It felt as if L was the only friend she had. L brought her back, and they'd had a quick dinner of sandwiches and soup at the deli near the brownstone.

Macy felt estranged from Wade. Honestly, he'd been no help. And a lot of his stuff was left behind. It hardly left her room for her own things. 

On the upside, she did have a nice bed, and she thought the sheets were clean. But she might just sleep on the couch tonight. She was that tired.

"It's gonna be all right, Gram," Macy wanted to hush her up with a practical plea.

So this is what is left

 

Winnie looked like a beady bird as she studied Macy. Perhaps she was getting her ready for a Cinderella ball instead of showing her her workstation. No, not so. She shoved the notebook full of dos and don'ts at the reception desk.

"Do they still do things so old-fashioned?" L came to Macy's defense with a scowl. Winnie didn't have time to chat. There were things to do at her desk, evidently.

"You have no idea the life of a receptionist," Winnie informed L. "Aren't you supposed to be working?"

With that Macy was left on her own with Winnie, who gave Macy the cold shoulder. It felt like the beginning of a very ugly day. Macy was to read the thick manual, which hadn't been updated since 2019.

"Did you work through the pandemic?" Macy wanted to know as she skimmed through the intense document.

"Of course, I did?" Winnie looked back at Macy with a sour frown.

"How many used to work in this department?" Macy was curious, trying to make everything work-related.

"A dozen or so, actually," Winnie answered a phone call then and got on her computer to check a file.

Macy felt a little dizzy. It was all so strange. This was not the universe she was expecting. Even Wade didn't seem himself.  Macy did her best to be diligent with the reading. Still, the computer was cold. It wasn't even on.

"Do I need..you know, a password, perhaps?" Macy asked about thirty minutes later. Winnie was so busy transferring calls and answering questions. Macy listened, hoping she would remember the script for what needed to be said.

"Silly, you'll need a user name, as well," Winnie said she'd show her the computer after lunch.

"Oh." Macy hadn't really thought of lunch until her stomach woke up from Winnie's words.

"I'll take you to my favorite noodle place, just down the street. We can really talk then."

Macy looked at her wide-eyed, wondering what this meant.

Please Mister Please

 

Macy had such high hopes of joining the company. She could wait to be on an actual team in the banking industry. This would be big time. Scoring an apartment from an old classmate and wanting her in his circle.

"He must have had a crush on you, back then, huh?" L summed it up right away when Macy couldn't help but gush about her new job.

"Oh, no, it was never like that," Macy blushed, thinking she probably should smile so much at someone she just met. "He was my math tutor."

"Oh, was he?" L smirked, all casual yet professional in the same outfit. Macy looked down at her Mary Janes. She just didn't feel right for the part.

"There's a lot of work, you know, putting files in order, and then some," L mentioned, sometimes there were late nights. "At least for me anyway."

Macy nodded, knowing she had time on herside. Still, she was nervous. So very nervous. Evidently, L noticed how she jumped at every little noise in the old elevator. By the time they got to the bottom, Macy felt nauseous. 

"Would you like me to drive?" L looked at her as if she could read her mind.

Macy nervously replied, "Yes, please." She dug in her satchel for her keys, telling L on the way to the park garage that it was her grandmother's old car. "She hardly ever drove it. She's really into saving the planet and all." Macy found herself rambling, and L clicked the key, finding the car immediately in the crowded garage. The silver Camry beeped back.

"Don't we wish all grandmothers were that way?" L shrugged and opened the door for her like a scene from a movie. Suddenly, Macy felt she was in her own Mary Tyler Moore series, perhaps. L took control, and out they drove with no problem. Macy had never noticed the big city so intense and overwhelming, even in the dark shadows of the bright sun.

It wasn't long until L found a spot for the car and showed her the way in. Honestly, Macy felt she'd found her new best friend, even if she was certain it wasn't that way. She knew she couldn't ask much more of this streetwise person who never met a stranger. L knew everyone.

Before Macy knew it, L handed her a sweetened ice coffee. "I know it's winter, but the coffee can really burn you if spilled it." Maybe it was an omen for what was to come. Once they got where Macy thought she was going, things got strange. She could even see Wade laughing at someone behind the counter near the cubicle offices. Macy spilled her drink down her thrifted outfit, which might have looked more librarian than office material. 

"Well, that does it," An older gentleman in a dark suit and tie looked her over, "We don't need preschoolers here." His hands were on his hips as he shook his head, no.

Wade came to Macy's defense. "Hey, what are you talking about. She's a hard worker. I should know."

"Woo, that's enough."

"She came all this way from Colorado, can't you give her a chance?" Wade protested. Macy could tell his lanky body was ready to kick that higher up in the ass.

"I hear it's a mess in reception, after all the layoffs. She's cute. See if they can use her?" The balding man crossed his arms, giving them a straight lip.

Wade went to call someone. He then asked L if she could take Macy to see Francine.

"That's his better half," L told Macy on the elevator down to the lobby. "I suppose she's been wanting to meet you, anyway."

"Really?" Macy couldn't imagine why.

"I hear she's always asking him, ' What's the deal with you? '" L sighed.

Macy felt a lodge of anticipation in her throat. No way did she want to have to work with Wade's fiancée.