by JD Strand
“Time to bring these flower children into the twenty-first century,” Olson had explained to her on the day the project was introduced. “No one cares about the big causes of the past. These days, the only thing that concerns people is convenience.”
Elise started to say something but decided to listen instead.
“That’s the reason they’re called convenience stores,” he continued. “People might say they want a huge selection and low prices, but those things are quickly forgotten as long as they can get what they want quickly and easily.”
While she had never been as idealistic as some of her classmates in school, Elise did not completely accept her boss’s view of the world, but she fully respected his business sense. That is precisely why she had felt so honored to be hired as his personal assistant. Stewart Olson was one of the youngest people to be chosen as executive of the year by Fortune Magazine. She had certainly learned more in the last year and a half working with him than in four years of college. Stewart’s ability to analyze data, create a plan, and stay focused until achieving an objective was amazing. It seemed that nothing distracted him from his goal.
One of the first goals he sought after Elise began as his assistant was to negotiate a deal making Smart-Shop the exclusive distributor of VitaBuzz, a very popular energy drink. As soon as she realized the importance Stewart placed upon getting the deal done, she had dedicated every spare moment to doing research on the drink and creating several promotional programs by which Smart-Shop could market it. In the end, Elise’s ideas proved a big part in the drink’s makers deciding to give Smart-Shop the exclusive distributorship. Of course, Stewart Olson did not miss Elise’s valuable contribution to the success of the project.
“I don’t say this to many people, but I have to say that you have impressed me,” Olson had told her one afternoon as they were reviewing the quarterly profits reports. The words took her by surprise and immediately caused her to blush. “When I brought you on board for the VitaBuzz project, I hoped that you would prove to be useful as far as handling some of the more tedious tasks such as making copies and confirming daily appointments.” He smiled at her and shook his head a little before continuing, “I’m certainly thankful that your talents were not wasted on such busy work.”
Despite having earned her share of awards in school, praise made Elise uncomfortable, and she made an effort to cut it short by saying, “Well, I’m happy that VitaBuzz has joined the Smart-Shop family. Now, we just need to turn our attention to being sure that the stores have everything they need to display and promote it. I don’t have to tell you that these first weeks of promotion are crucial.”
“You don’t have to be afraid of getting a compliment, you know,” Stewart Olson said. “Your dedication to this project has been obvious, and I appreciate it.”
The memories of her early days with Stewart were cut short as she pulled onto the street in front of her townhouse. The place had been her home for a little over a year. While it was not luxurious by any means, the short distance to work made it perfect for Elise’s needs. She had chosen it precisely with the idea of being able to focus on getting work done rather than wasting time with a long commute.
She hurried through the front door and dropped her purse and keys on a dining table chair that had been place there as a place to drop her purse and keys.
Even after a year, the place was nearly vacant. The walls were bare. There was a dining room table covered with newspapers and business magazines, a practically new brown leather recliner and matching couch with a small table between, and a new television set. These were the only furnishings to be seen. Other than a few houseplants, the townhouse was also without any signs of personal decoration. These were not things that Elise gave much thought. Her focus was always on getting the next deal done.
Elise switched on the light in the kitchen to reveal a cluttered room. One end of the counter was a small microwave oven, a black coffee maker and a pile of fast food containers. The sink held a few coffee mugs and a cereal bowl. She opened the door to very little inside. The young executive shook her head and reached in to grab the carton of milk.
“Looks I’m cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs again,” she said aloud and gave a half-hearted smile.
Placing her bowl on top of a newspaper on the small table, she turned on the TV. As usual, it was tuned to the business news channel. A few minutes later with a half-eaten bowl of cereal in front of her, Elise was asleep on the couch.
Chapter 3
She woke up the next morning with a sore back and immediately jumped up from the couch. Thinking she was going to be late for work, Elise rushed into the bedroom to change her clothes. A moment later, the calendar on the wall reminded her it was Saturday. She relaxed a little, reading the words she had written in the square for today Lunch 12:30 1540 Haight.
It was just 7:20, so Elise had plenty of time to get ready and review her notes on the new store before meeting with Stewart. She had gotten dressed, put on makeup, and was looking at some of the projections for business she had put together before the previous night came to mind. Stewart had certainly seemed shaken. Elise could not remember him ever appearing less than in complete control. She was sure that he would be back to his normal confident self today.
At a few minutes before noon, Elise parked near 1540 Haight Street and walked to the little coffee shop. Stewart had chosen this place, because it was just a few blocks from the proposed site of the new store. At this time of day, the lunch crowd nearly filled the place. The young woman behind the counter was filling coffee cups and had her back to Elise.
For a moment, Elise thought it was Beth, her youngest sister. The girl turned around and was not Beth, but Elise smiled at her.
“Welcome to Cup of Love,” the girl said brightly. “What can I get for you, ma’am?”
It took Elise a moment to recover from being called ma’am. “Just a cup of coffee please.”
“Would you like the regular, flavored, or high-octane blend?” The girl asked as if the words were well rehearsed.
“Uh. Just regular, I guess.”
“Okie-dokie. Now is that tiny, medium, or earth-shaking size?”
The girl had a name tag reading Melody. The name made Elise smile. She didn’t think she had ever been asked so many questions about a simple cup of coffee.
Finally, Elise said, "Melody, I'm going to play it safe and get a regular, medium coffee."
She paid and moved over the end of the counter where drinks were picked up. Once Elise got her coffee, she looked around the place a place to sit. The wild mix made her smile. There was a couple of older men in business suits deep in conversation over coffee and muffins. Next to them was a long-haired young man drinking a fruit smoothie and moving to the sounds coming through his ear buds. At a table nearby was a pair of teenage girls giggling at something on a computer tablet.
As she continued scanning for a free seat, Elise’s eyes stopped at a thirtyish man with a deep tan and short brown beard seated by himself at a table near the back of the shop. Surfer dude she thought. Although they appeared to be the only available seats in the place, something about the man made her a little uncomfortable. Maybe, it was his completely casual appearance. Casual was a word that would never be used to describe Elise. She wasn’t quite sure what it was, but she continued to look around the room.
A moment later, her eyes swung back to the bearded man, and she was startled to find his eyes fixed upon her. The man smiled at her. Before she could catch herself, Elise smiled back. An instant later, she felt foolish and looked away. She made sure her eyes did not return to the back of the room but instead looked everywhere else.
She was wishing that Stewart would hurry so that she could get out of this place when Elise felt something touch her arm. She over to see a very small girl with bright red, curly long hair.
“Cody wants me to ask you to sit with us,” the little girl said so quietly that Elise had to learn over to hear.
Without wa
iting for an answer, the little girl grabbed Elise’s hand and began leading her over to the table. There was no resisting the determined child, and Elise did not try.
“Here she is!” The girl announced to the bearded man and climbed onto a chair near him. “You can sit there,” she said and pointed to the chair on the other side of the table.
Elise sat down but kept her eyes focused on the little girl. “Thanks, but I’m waiting for someone.”
“Are you meeting your boyfriend?” The little girl asked.
“Penny, that’s not our business,” the man told her before turning to Elise. “You’re welcome to sit here while you wait. I will try to keep my little friend from interrogating you.”
The little girl flashed a shining smile at Elise and won her over.
“That’s all right,” she laughed. “I’m sure she’s just curious. My name is Elise. What’s yours?”
“I’m Penny,” she answered proudly. “And this is my best friend Cody, Cody Cooper.”
“Nice to meet you, Penny,” Elise said and shook her hand.
She automatically turned to Cody and offered her hand. “Nice to meet…” Elise stammered a little as Cody’s bright blue eyes looked into hers. “Nice to meet you, Cody Cooper.”
The little girl leaned over and looked into Elise’s coffee cup.
“Coffee is yucky!” Penny announced. “But I love the banana and mungo smoodie.”
“A banana and mungo smoodie sounds delicious,” she agreed and giggled with the little girl.
Elise had lost track of time and was surprised when her mobile phone buzzed to see it was 12:56. Stewart was never late, so it made sense that he was calling. She answered the phone but found it was too noisy to hear. Elise stood quickly, said “Sorry I have to take this”, and left the noisy coffee shop.
Once out on the street, she said, “Stewart?”
“Hello, Elise.” The sadness in Stewart’s voice was obvious. “Sorry I have to cancel on you. I have to go to Chicago.”
“Is everything okay?” She asked and instantly realized that it was a stupid question.
“I’m afraid not,” Stewart answered slowly. “The call I got last night was about my father. They took him to the hospital last night. I guess he had a massive stroke, and the doctors are not sure if he is going to recover.”
“I’m so sorry, Stewart. What can I do to help?”
“Well, I hate to ask, but there is really no one else who can do it. I need you to take over the Haight-Ashbury project, okay?”
Elise’s heart jumped into her throat. She felt completely unprepared to take over the project.
Stewart sensed her reluctance and said, “Listen to me, Elise. No one knows this deal as well as you do. Hell, you know every detail of the thing. If we have to bring in someone else, it’s going to mean delays. I don’t have to tell you that delays mean deals don’t get done.”
“I just don’t want to do anything to ruin all your hard work,” Elise answered and was immediately angry at herself for whining.
The laugh from Stewart Olson surprised her. “Ruin all my work? Think about it. You’re the one who has done all the work. The research and speech writing is all yours. The only thing I’ve done is reviewed and offered a few suggestions. I know you can do this.” Stewart paused for Elise to say some-thing. When she did not, he continued, “Okay, how about this? Think about it over the weekend. If you decide you can’t do it, call to cancel the meeting and then get a hold of Tom Stephenson in Los Angeles to see if he can come up to do it.”
“I’ll think about it,” Elise finally said with enthusiasm.
“Thanks,” Stewart replied. “That’s all I want. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”
The call ended and Elise stood there staring at the phone for long time.
She had made her life into well-planned routines. Elise hated the idea of not knowing what she was doing at every moment and not knowing what she was going to be doing in the future. Surprises had never been something she enjoyed. The young woman was immediately reliving a surprise party thrown for her thirteenth birthday.
It was a Thursday night, and, just like on every school night, Elise had eaten dinner and headed upstairs to her bedroom to study after helping clear the table and load the dishwasher. The thing that made this night different was that about 7:30 the doorbell rang.
At the first ring, Elise sighed with annoyance but continued to focus on her history book. The second ring caused her to roll her eyes and yell, “There’s someone at the door!” Finally, the third ring brought her to her feet and down the stairs.
The emptiness of the living room and kitchen caused her to pause for a moment. Before she could give it too much consideration, the doorbell rang again. The 13-year-old Elise spun around and marched to the front door. She let out a deep breath of exasperation as only a teenager knows how to do and yanked the door open.
“Surprise!” came the explosion of sound from doorway. Elise’s knees almost buckled from the shock.
Standing on the front porch were four of her classmates, staring expectantly at her. Two girls were in her Algebra class and two boys from her English class. Never having been very social at school or otherwise, Elise was not sure that she knew all of their names. She looked out at them and wondered two things. First, she wondered how they knew where she lived. Second, how they could have the bad manners to arrive unannounced.
The awkward tableau remained frozen for a few seconds until Elise’s family appeared behind her.
“Happy birthday, honey,” her mother said, putting her arm around Elise’s shoulder and pulling her close. She tried to kiss her on the cheek, but Elise pulled away.
“It’s a school night, Mom,” she replied flatly. “I have to study for a test.”
With that, simply turned and went back upstairs to her room, leaving a house and porch full of very confused people.
Chapter 4
Elise spent the rest of the weekend preparing for Monday afternoon’s meeting. By the time Monday rolled around, she was feeling a bit better about the presentation and life in general. In fact, she never even considered calling Tom Stephenson to come take over the job.
She got into the office early as usual and sat in her office reading and rereading her notes as well as rechecking the PowerPoint slides with graphics to show the benefits of allowing a Smart-Shop in the neighborhood.
A few minutes after eight, Elise heard Sara in the break room making coffee. Sara was Stewart’s personal secretary and had lately been assisting her with some of the typing and copying. The chubby middle-aged woman with unnaturally dark hair stuck her head in the door and said, “I just heard my voicemail from Stewart. What a shame. Do you need anything?”
“Sure, you want to give a presentation?” Elise asked without much humor or enthusiasm.
“C’mon, Elise. You’re going to be fine,” Sara encouraged. “You know this stuff back to front.”
“I know, I guess I just need to whine a little.”
“Okay, how about this,” Sara offered. “Go for a long walk this morning. That’ll get you out of here for a bit, clear your mind, and put you back on track.”
Elise considered the idea for a minute. She had been thinking about stopping by the building site before the meeting at city hall. That might be the break from the office Sara was suggesting.
“I think you might be right, Sara. I’m going to take a walk around the store site before the meeting.”
“Great!” Sara replied. “I just know you’re going to be fine.”
Elise appreciated the encouragement and did feel better as soon as she got away from the office. The traffic was lighter than usual as she drove to the Haight-Ashbury. She parked near Cup of Love and started walking to the construction site.
Passing the coffee shop, she could not help thinking about Penny and Cody. The memory brought a smile to her face. She tried to see inside the shop, but the glass simply reflected her smiling face back to her. The way she had
ended their meeting suddenly flashed into Elise’s mind. Until then, she had not considered how it ended. The scene of her jumping up to answer her phone and leaving the shop played in her head. The smile faded completely as she imagined Penny’s confusion at the abrupt exit.
“Stop it, Elise!” she scolded herself. “You need to focus on what’s important.” Just as this was going on in her mind, a glimpse of something caught her attention.
It was Cody, getting out of an old brown SUV. Elise hesitated for just a second as she considered going over to talk. The sight of the faded blue surfboard on top of the car made her grin. Almost by reflex, her legs began moving again, and Elise brushed away all thoughts other than those of her upcoming meeting.
As she got closer to the construction site for the new store, a group of five or six people could be heard. “Keep the Haight free! Say no to chains! Keep the Haight free! Say no to chains!”
While the protesters had been there on other days, Elise had not really looked at them. Today, for the first time, she was curious about who they were. She wondered why anyone would be opposed to progress and opportunity coming to their neighborhood. To her surprise, Elise saw that two of the protesters were the older businessmen she had seen talking in the coffee shop. She moved quickly through them and into the nearly finished store.
“Maybe we could get a firehose and wash those losers off the sidewalk,” Vic Larsen, the construction foreman, commented as she came in.
She had heard similar remarks from the construction workers before. For some reason, this time she felt the need to respond. “I don’t know, if you had a business around here, you might feel the same way.”
Larsen just grinned at her, shook his head, and said nothing. He simply went back to putting up sheet rock at the wall nearby.
Elise wondered at her own behavior. It certainly was not like her to defend people trying to stop her from doing her job.