i did one thing right

14

"Good afternoon, ma'am," the guard said, making me smile as I returned his greeting. Some employees turn their heads to look at me, and I was getting so nervous that I had to walk quickly towards the elevator. When I got to the floor, the two ladies at the service counter stood up to greet me politely.

"Hello, good afternoon," I politely said. "Uh Regina asked me to send something from her office computer," I tried to inform them.

"OK, ma'am," the other says.

"Can I?" I inquire. This is my first time visiting without Regina or Ali.

"Of course, Ma'am," she said with a small chuckle, as if it wasn't something I should be asking permission for.

"OK, thank you," I said as I walked through the hallways. There are a couple of offices here, most likely for executives. There is also a bathroom, an employee lounge, and a conference room. I move in the direction of Regina's office. Her office is very neat and tidy and spacious. After all, she is the CEO. I approached her desk and began to open her computer. Even though I am uncomfortable sitting in a CEO's chair, I pull her chair and sit down. Her files are well-organized on her computer, so it was easy for me to locate the file and send it to her via email. When she received it, she texted me to say thank you and that she needed to go to another meeting, so she'd call me later. Before leaving the office, I turn off her computer and return the chair to its original position. I glance down at my phone as I walk down the hall to check the time.

"Narda?" I look up to see the company board member Regina introduced me to.

"Hello, Mrs. Cruz," I said politely as I came to a halt in front of her.

"I thought you went to France with Regina."

"Oh, I have work, and I'm also looking after Nathan," I explained.

"Well, I have children to look after as well, but you do realize Regina might take a while there, right?"

"Ali did tell me that she used to stay there for about three years before returning," I said, making her nod.

"Well, nothing is final. Regina did talk to the board members about squeezing her schedule so she can stay for only a month at most. Schedules are very tentative, especially for her as the CEO," she explained.

"I understand.. it's work after all," I nodded, "I just hope she'll be here before Nathan's birthday," which is in a few months.

"I'm sure she'll do her best," she said kindly, smiling. Our conversation was cut short when a man approached her with such urgency.

"Ma'am, good afternoon; I have the report-" Mrs. Cruz cut him off.

"Won't you also greet the CEO's wife here?" she asks, knowing that the guy probably did not recognize me.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Good afternoon, Ma'am," he apologized, struggling to catch his breath. Undoubtedly, he came running here to give her this report.

"Continue," Mrs. Cruz says.

"Right so, one group did not thoroughly check, so there are only eight trucks available for wine production tonight."

"Is this the new release?" Mrs. Cruz inquires. I'm not sure if I should excuse myself or not.

"Yes, ma'am, we tried contacting the truck shipping company, but they are fully booked. Products are supposed to be on the shelf tomorrow morning. We have 25 stores, the 8 trucks agreed to ship for two stores, but that's only about 16 stores," he said worriedly.

"What do you think, Narda? Should we inform Regina?" Mrs. Cruz wonders aloud.

"I don't think so... perhaps fix it first," I replied. Regina already has a lot on her plate, and I doubt she'll be in a good mood when she hears such news.