“I will.”
Andrea handed that day’s assignments. I was a bit rusty in transcription, but she told me to take my time. She didn’t give me anything that needed a quick turnaround.
There were three other ladies and one man in the word processing pool, but I didn’t try to strike up any conversations. I wanted to do my job and go home; simple as that. Although I was not a standoffish type of person, I wanted to let some time elapse before I cultivated any workplace friendships. My first three assignments were a piece of cake. I had typed petitions before, so I could understand everything on the tapes. Transcription was hard when you had to listen to voices you were not used to, or when the speakers were not comfortable talking into a microphone. I was beginning to feel more at ease.
During my lunch hour, I was reading over my assignments when this woman blew into our work center with a tape. Looking around and only finding me, she approached.
“I need this tape transcribed immediately!” she said without bothering to do introductions.
I glanced at my watch, noting that I had another forty-five minutes left on my lunch hour.
“Ms. Brooks is at lunch, but I’ll tell her as soon as she returns.”
I went back to reviewing my work.
“I said, I need this immediately,” she barked.
“I see,” I said, putting my own work aside, trying to act like I gave a shit about what she was saying. She was the type of woman who was used to getting over, and I wasn’t about to fall for that shit.
“I’m at lunch right now. As I said, I’ll be delighted to let Andrea know that you urgently need this tape transcribed. Other than that, my hands are tied.”
“Are you being insubordinate?”
“Not at all. This is my first day so I don’t know how they handle emergency requests. I’m not trying to get off on the wrong foot,” I replied smugly.
“We’ll see about that!” She slammed the tape down on my desk. “Have Andrea call me!”
As she was leaving, the peace I had gathered was shattered.
“What should she call you, bitch?” I said to her retreating figure.
Self-doubt ate away at my tranquility as I debated whether I should start on the tape. After sweating over it for a few minutes, I popped the tape into the transcriber. I assumed it would be an emergency pleading and was surprised to hear it contained only a few PR letters. The kicker was the tape was at least two weeks old. I did the letters but I intended to tell that neck-snapping, teeth-sucking heifer that lack of planning on her part did not constitute an emergency on my end.
“Oh my goodness. You’re still here?” Ms. Brooks said, smiling, when she came back into the “barracks,” as she affectionately called them.
“You will have to rent a crane to get me from this building before quitting time,” I replied, smiling as well. “I did have one problem, and I didn’t know how to handle it. This woman stormed in here demanding that I transcribe a tape. I told her I was at lunch, but I’ll admit she intimidated me into doing the tape.”
“Damn, I see you’ve met Shonell. She works for one of the senior partners. Between you, me and the wind, I believe she’s only getting paid for time on her back. She doesn’t do her work and, when she gets called on it, she comes down here and creates a scene. I’m sorry you had to deal with her on your first day.”
“She doesn’t know I did the transcription yet so, if you want me to, I can erase it like it never happened,” I said.
“No, it’s okay that you did it, and I’ll put in for your overtime since you did it during your lunch hour. I plan to nip this situation in the bud. Every other person in this office is running scared of Shonell because she works for the big dog, but her bulldog tactics won’t work in here. I’m going to fire off a memo to the managing partner and inform Shonell that this is the last time she’ll be allowed to submit work in this manner. She must’ve gotten word that there was fresh meat in the house.” She chuckled. “All of us old heads know what time it is and don’t get sucked into her drama.”
“I wish I’d known because I wouldn’t have done it. I kept thinking it would be some emergency pleading she needed to have filed this afternoon, so I did it. If I’d known it was a bunch of PR letters I would’ve let it wait until after I finished my lunch.”
“Tell you what. You can knock off an hour early, how is that?”
“Uh, no offense, Ms. Brooks, but I could really use the overtime.”
“You’ll get your overtime. Don’t worry about that.”
“Wow, that’s nice of you. But will this get me in trouble?”
“You’re under my supervision while you’re in my department, so no. But from what I’m hearing, I don’t think you’re going to be here for long. Word in the lunchroom is that they plan to have you work as a floater. This means the only time you’ll come in here is when you don’t have another desk to cover.”
“Darn!” I exclaimed, not wanting to cuss in front of my supervisor. “I like word processing. I get a taste of all different types of law. I hate typing up stupid PR letters. Give me a brief any day!”
“You’re just nosey!” Ms. Brooks said, laughing.
I laughed with her because she wasn’t even lying. I rose my right hand. “Guilty, your honor!”
“Ms. Thang is going on vacation next week. They’ll want you at her desk. After that, I’ll see what I can do to get you back here. I like the work I’ve seen so far, and I could use the company.”
I was touched. “Thanks, Ms. Brooks.”
We shook hands. “Call me Andrea.”
I started for the door but turned back. “Andrea, what will happen to that case I was working on with the lady that stabbed her husband with the fork?”
“It’s up for review by the Appeals Court and that process usually takes several months. We should know something by spring.”
“Will you let me know when they reach a decision?”
“I will.”
SAMMIE
Rushing to beat the clock, I hit the revolving door and raced to the elevator. I was trying my best not to be late since I had an important meeting with my supervisor that morning. I chastised myself for too much partying and celebrating the night before. But, in the end, I still felt nothing but good stuff. Jasmine had come over. We watched some movies and drank some shooters. Talking to Jasmine was a breath of fresh air to my boring existence.
Jasmine had lived the life that I had always wanted. She had been raised in a loving environment with two affluent parents and yearned for nothing. She had traveled extensively throughout the world and could even speak two languages. I was dually jealous and proud of my sister.
We were watching Bringing Down The House on DVD when the door had started to rattle. Startled, I turned to Jasmine as the knocking began. Oh shit. I had forgotten that I had a date with Jessie.
“Who the hell is that?” Jasmine asked, turning to face the door. “Somebody obviously has issues with you.”
With leaded feet, I walked to the door expecting the worst. Jessie hated to be kept waiting.
“Bitch, you are really tripping,” he said as he strolled into my apartment, glaring at me in disgust. He shrugged off his leather coat and shook off the moisture from the light rain that had been falling all day.
“Hi,” I muttered, totally embarrassed that he had called me a bitch in front of my sister. Even though we had been talking nonstop since we had met, I had never mentioned my Jessie thing to her.
“Aw, hell, no! No this nigga didn’t just come in your house and call you a bitch!” Jasmine said, jumping up from the sofa.
Their eyes locked, and Jasmine had this vicious snarl on her lips. Jessie was stunned into silence. His head kept swinging from me to Jasmine. I chuckled to myself, knowing he was confused.
“Jasmine, meet Jessie. Jessie, my sister, Jasmine.” Still too stunned to say anything, Jessie stood there with his mouth open.
“Close your mouth. You don’t want a fly in there, do yo
u?” Jasmine said.
I cringed because Jessie hated being the butt of a joke.
“Sister? What the fuck are you talking about?” Jessie shouted. “You ain’t got no damn sister!”
“Like hell, she doesn’t! Who the fuck are you?” Jasmine demanded.
“He’s my ex-husband,” I replied.
Jessie shot me an evil look. I walked over to the DVD player and pressed stop. “Jessie, I forgot about asking you to come over. We were just watching a movie. Would you like to stay and watch it?” I really wanted him to leave but tried to act nice.
“Hell no, I don’t wanna watch a movie. You know what I came here to do!” He put his hands on his hips and snapped his neck like an irate woman.
I found an ounce of courage to stand up for myself. “We’ll have to reschedule that.”
“Reschedule my ass!” he fired back. “Tell sister dearest that you got something to do!”
“You know what? I don’t like your fucking attitude!” Jasmine stood up. She was all business, based on her stance, she must have thought she could take Jessie. “My sister told you she was busy. What part of that sentence did you not understand?” When he didn’t respond, she started moving her fingers around in front of Jessie’s face. “Can you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth?”
She was so funny that I busted out laughing before I could stop myself. Jessie failed to see the humor.
“Oh, you think this shit is funny?” Jessie reached out and snatched a handful of my hair. “Hell, I’ll fuck you both!”
His breath was foul and I could tell that he had been drinking. He pulled tighter on my hair and, for a brief second, Jasmine was paralyzed from the sheer brutality of the attack, but she quickly recovered. My sister took two steps and slammed her fist into Jessie’s face. Blood gushed from his nose and he instinctively released my hair. I gulped in a quick breath, amazed at Jasmine’s fearlessness and held it until I became lightheaded.
“I’m sorry. Did I break your concentration?” Jasmine said, and I fucking fell out laughing. She’d used a phrase from the movie Pulp Fiction. The veins on the sides of Jessie’s neck started to bulge, and I thought he was going to stroke out right in front of our eyes. He turned and glared at me as he started to leave. I could not believe what I was seeing! Jessie walking away with his tail tucked between his legs! Un-fucking-believable!
He used one of his bloody hands to grab the door open but shot me one more menacing glare before he left. I rushed behind him and slammed the door before he changed his mind. In my head, I rewound to the moment when Jasmine’s hand had connected with Jessie’s nose, and I nearly fell over laughing. I had suffered abuse from that man for almost ten years and, in a matter of seconds, my sister had his ass running skeerd!
“Sorry, sis. I didn’t mean to hit him like that, but he pushed all of my buttons at the same damn time!”
“Hey, and I ain’t mad at ya. I should’ve done that shit a long time ago. I just didn’t know it would be that simple.”
I shook my head. If I didn’t love and respect my sister before, I did now. She’d shown me a way out of a situation that I thought would haunt me for the rest of my life. I would miss the money Jessie threw my way, but I could do without the physical and mental abuse. As we got closer to the end of the year, I wanted to change my jacked-up thinking and old behavior. I walked back over to the DVD and pressed play; still in a daze.
“Oh, hell no, sistergurl. You’re going to have to explain this shit!”
Jasmine hit the off button on the remote that was sitting between us on the sofa. I sat down heavily.
“I’m so embarrassed. I was hoping that you’d never see the part of my life Jessie represents, but I guess this is yet another prayer that God left unanswered.”
“Sammie, when are you going to get it through your thick skull that we’re sisters? I’m not here to judge you or make you feel like less than a woman. We’ve all had our share of shit!”
“Jessie was special to me. He was the first man who said he loved me, but he used me badly. He turned me into a stripper and a prostitute. What else can I say? I thought I loved him and, unfortunately, he showed love with his hands.”
Tears streamed down my face. Jasmine scooted closer and wrapped her arms around me. It opened the barriers I held onto in my heart, and I dumped out all my pain on her shoulder.
“Hush, boo. Please don’t cry or else I will also,” she mumbled into my shirt.
But it was too late; she was crying already. We remained locked together for over fifteen minutes. I told her where my love for Jessie had taken me. It was just a brief overview, but I told her practically everything; even about my encounters with other women. I had planned on keeping that information to myself.
Moving away from her and smiling, I said, “If only I knew I could’ve busted him in the face to stop him, I would’ve cold-cocked him ten years ago!”
“Gurl, as big as you are, you could’ve snatched his scrawny neck right off and shoved it up his ass with no problem!” Jasmine raised her hand for a five, which I gladly slapped.
“Imagine that!” I said as we each shook off the pain and allowed the joy to shine through.
“On a serious tip, why is he still coming around? Aren’t you divorced?”
“Yeah, we’re divorced and, believe it or not, he’s remarried. But when Jessie wants something other than traditional sex, he knocks on my door.”
“Damn, gurl! You got gold between those legs?”
“I guess so. He keeps coming back, and he pays me good money, too!”
My current lifestyle relied on financial support from means other than my nine-to-five.
“Hey, we, and let me say it again for your hard-headed ass, WE are going to get through this. If you need anything, let me know. I’m not as well off as I used to be, but I’ve got a little something on the side.”
After a rough night of tossing and turning, I made it to my desk with two seconds to spare as my phone rang.
“Sammie, could you please come into my office,” Ms. Barker requested.
“On my way.” I hung up the phone. I was not nearly as nervous about the meeting as I had been about Jasmine finding out about Jessie.
“Shut the door,” Ms. Barker said as I entered her office.
Damn, I thought. Maybe I should have been worried, since shutting the door was serious. I tried to think back on all the screw-ups that I had made since my hire date and could not think of anything that would warrant a closed-door session. Hell, this was the longest I had held a position in my life and I thought I was doing a halfway decent job.
Icy fingers of fear pressed against my heart as I waited for her to speak. She had my folder open and was reviewing it.
“Relax, this isn’t a bad meeting. It’s just a move that I’m concerned about.”
I was completely in the dark. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“I know, and I’m not sure about the underlying reasons either. I’ve been instructed to switch your assignment from Mrs. Tanner to Mr. Spencer, effective immediately.”
“Am I in trouble?” I asked, still not understanding what was really going on here.
“From what I understand, no. As you know, Mr. Spencer is the senior vice president at Georgia Power. He requested you, and it’s my job to make sure that he’s happy. This means that you’re entitled to an initial small raise, if you accept and another one after you complete your six months.”
“I don’t know what to say. I don’t even know the man. Why me?” It felt like a setup.
“I don’t have the answers for you. All I know is that if you accept you are to move your things right away to your new office on the twenty-second floor. If I find out anything else, I’ll let you know. Congratulations,” she said, rising out of her chair and indicating that the meeting was over.
“What are the repercussions if I don’t accept?”
“I honestly don’t know, but you’d be doing so at your
own risk. During my fifteen years here, I’ve never handled such a request.”
Even though I had a million questions, I didn’t utter a word as I exited her office. Valerie, the girl I was replacing, was sitting in the waiting room. I looked her in the face, and she glared at me as if I had stolen her man. The shit was so weird!
LEAH
After a few weeks on the job, I felt elated as I left work. It had been so long since I had been mentally challenged, and I was looking forward to the following week. I gathered up my belongings and joined the cattle call at the elevator. All of the nine-to-fivers were standing around staring at the up and down buttons, waiting to be free of the office. I was the only one who was reluctant to leave because I had been out of the mainstream for so long.
“Night,” they all chorused as the elevator arrived and we filed on. The workers acted like they didn’t know each other as the elevator began its decent. I was uncomfortable, since I didn’t know any of the brown and white faces so near mine. I was parked right beside Shonell and that heifer didn’t even bother to say “thank you” or kiss my ass for doing those letters on my first day. She had become my nemesis. The office was large but the gossip was rampant, and I had heard a number of stories about me that she was spreading behind my back. I wanted to confront her ass, but I was still in my six-month probationary period, and I didn’t want to jeopardize my job.
I drove the few short blocks to the day care center and spent several moments behind the wheel trying to erase thoughts of the office. I had to switch hats when it came to Mya and, even though I felt reasonably sure that things were going well, you simply never knew with her.
The center was quiet when I entered, and there was no one at the desk. I tiptoed down the hall toward the classrooms; not because I wanted to sneak up on the employees. I hated the rat-a-tat-tat of my heels. I glanced inside as I passed Craig Richmond’s office. He was becoming another pillar of strength to me, and I had to check myself on that. I did not want to encourage the connection we had growing and risk it becoming inappropriate. I was relieved he was not in the office.
Lawd, Mo' Drama Page 15