wanted the girl.
“Marie, I’m not going to talk to you anymore,” a male voice said sternly from an office nearby. On the front of the door was a sign: Program Director.
Marie was a large woman, easily over three hundred pounds. She was older than Ollie, probably twice his age; and she wore large glasses with thick lenses. She paced up and down the hall, favoring her left leg, walking with a heavy limp. Her size, her bellowing voice, her obvious appetite for attention— and seeing how she grew more flustered with every step— made it hard for Ollie to keep his mind and his pen on his job application.
“You don’t even care about me!” Marie yelled into the Program Director’s door. “I’m just going to run away!”
Ollie raised his eyes from his paperwork again to see her limp heavily toward the front door of the office. She stood staring out the glass front door with her hand on it, scanning the parking lot. She was waiting for something.
As the seconds ticked by in tension, it became clear to Ollie that she was waiting for the Program Director to come out and stop her attempted escape. She was waiting for any kind of attention at all.
Finally, without ever opening the front door, she hobbled her way back toward the office door and stuck her head back in. “I really am. I’m going to run away,” Marie yelled into his room. “I really am!”
“You already told me that,” he said. “You’d better get going then, before your manager gets here to pick you up, or you’ll never get away in time.”
“I’m never coming back!” Marie said as she stomped back toward the front door again.
This time she went farther. She made as much noise as possible marching through the door and out into the parking lot. She stood there, one step on the pavement, glancing around at the free world.
Ollie felt pretty sure the director would have never let her out the front door if she was really going to take off. He was right.
She lasted only a few seconds before barging her way back into the building, barking into the director’s door again. “You just don’t want me here!” Marie yelled. “You just want me to run away so I’ll get hit by a car again and maybe die this time.”
“What I want,” he replied, “is to be able to get my work done. Maybe tomorrow you’ll go to work during the day like you’re supposed to. Perhaps then you won’t be so bored here at the office.”
Uh oh, Ollie thought, Marie’s getting attention, but it’s not quite the kind she was hoping for. He cracked a little smile as he continued to try to concentrate on the job application.
As Marie turned her back on the office, she just caught Ollie’s smile fading. Then he became her new favorite toy.
She planted herself in the only open seat in the office lobby. Right next to him. “I’m Marie.”
Ollie really wished he had Sparks with him. All he wanted to do was run screaming for the exit. “I’m Ollie,” he said politely, hoping she wouldn’t extend the conversation beyond that.
“Maybe you should take me home, Ollie,” Marie said.
“I think your manager is coming pretty soon. I bet he’d be happy to take you.”
“But you’re here now and my manager isn’t. I don’t know when my manager will get here. Maybe my manager forgot about me.”
“You’d probably better wait.” He was almost done with his job application, but the job had already proven itself to be stressful before he was even hired. Lynn had told him she was going to meet him at the office to help him finish up the paperwork that followed the application, but she wasn’t there yet. Ollie wanted her to arrive so that they could leave and go wherever it was Lynn worked. She had spoken so highly of the girl she worked with. Sure, she told a few stories that increased his anxiety about the job, but it was clear how much she loved her job. That made it easy for Ollie to deduce that the girl Lynn worked with was going to be much easier than
“Marie, I’m not going to talk to you anymore,” a male voice said sternly from an office nearby. On the front of the door was a sign: Program Director.
Marie was a large woman, easily over three hundred pounds. She was older than Ollie, probably twice his age; and she wore large glasses with thick lenses. She paced up and down the hall, favoring her left leg, walking with a heavy limp. Her size, her bellowing voice, her obvious appetite for attention— and seeing how she grew more flustered with every step— made it hard for Ollie to keep his mind and his pen on his job application.
“You don’t even care about me!” Marie yelled into the Program Director’s door. “I’m just going to run away!”
Ollie raised his eyes from his paperwork again to see her limp heavily toward the front door of the office. She stood staring out the glass front door with her hand on it, scanning the parking lot. She was waiting for something.
As the seconds ticked by in tension, it became clear to Ollie that she was waiting for the Program Director to come out and stop her attempted escape. She was waiting for any kind of attention at all.
Finally, without ever opening the front door, she hobbled her way back toward the office door and stuck her head back in. “I really am. I’m going to run away,” Marie yelled into his room. “I really am!”
“You already told me that,” he said. “You’d better get going then, before your manager gets here to pick you up, or you’ll never get away in time.”
“I’m never coming back!” Marie said as she stomped back toward the front door again.
This time she went farther. She made as much noise as possible marching through the door and out into the parking lot. She stood there, one step on the pavement, glancing around at the free world.
Ollie felt pretty sure the director would have never let her out the front door if she was really going to take off. He was right.
She lasted only a few seconds before barging her way back into the building, barking into the director’s door again. “You just don’t want me here!” Marie yelled. “You just want me to run away so I’ll get hit by a car again and maybe die this time.”
“What I want,” he replied, “is to be able to get my work done. Maybe tomorrow you’ll go to work during the day like you’re supposed to. Perhaps then you won’t be so bored here at the office.”
Uh oh, Ollie thought, Marie’s getting attention, but it’s not quite the kind she was hoping for. He cracked a little smile as he continued to try to concentrate on the job application.
As Marie turned her back on the office, she just caught Ollie’s smile fading. Then he became her new favorite toy.
She planted herself in the only open seat in the office lobby. Right next to him. “I’m Marie.”
Ollie really wished he had Sparks with him. All he wanted to do was run screaming for the exit. “I’m Ollie,” he said politely, hoping she wouldn’t extend the conversation beyond that.
“Maybe you should take me home, Ollie,” Marie said.
“I think your manager is coming pretty soon. I bet he’d be happy to take you.”
“But you’re here now and my manager isn’t. I don’t know when my manager will get here. Maybe my manager forgot about me.”
“You’d probably better wait.” He was almost done with his job application, but the job had already proven itself to be stressful before he was even hired. Lynn had told him she was going to meet him at the office to help him finish up the paperwork that followed the application, but she wasn’t there yet. Ollie wanted her to arrive so that they could leave and go wherever it was Lynn worked. She had spoken so highly of the girl she worked with. Sure, she told a few stories that increased his anxiety about the job, but it was clear how much she loved her job. That made it easy for Ollie to deduce that the girl Lynn worked with was going to be much easier than
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