An Average Day at Laminax

Chapter 2

Waking the next morning, I slowly got out of bed, and I placed my feet onto the cold wooden floor. I left the bedroom and into the kitchen, where I got some cereal and slowly ate it. I looked up at the clock on the wall and nearly choked on my cornflakes. If I didn't leave now, I was going to be late for work. I quickly ate the rest of my cereal and left the bowl in the kitchen sink. I quickly got dressed into an casual white shirt with the MIT logo in the top right corner of the shirt and some jeans. I got my messenger bag, identification card and employee card and rushed outside to my car. I quickly unlocked it, and got in. I sped to work and was able to get a spot in the parking garage.

I walked quickly into the building, past the lobby and up the stairs to where staff meetings are usually held. Poking my head through the door of the room, I saw that there was nobody inside. Confused, I checked my watch, and then I looked back at the room. I exited the room and ran into Mr. Abel, who was holding a cup of coffee. "Hey, careful Oliver! This stuff is hot, and I just got this shirt last week from Old Navy, and this is the first time that I'm wearing it. Also, uh... in case you were wondering, there's no staff meeting today, kiddo." he said to me, patting my shoulder awkwardly, and continued to walk down the hallway, sipping his coffee. Letting out a brief sigh of relief, I walked over to my cubicle.

Midday came along soon enough, and I was getting close to finishing my research paper. I had gotten a few more ideas of what to add and what to finish off. I typed faster than ever, changing a few sentences here and there. When the clock ticked 10:56 a.m. I closed my laptop and went to the employee break room. Swinging open the doors, a group of people all clustered together turned their heads to me. They then turned their heads back to two people who were standing on a chair: Tomás and Emmet. Emmet announced "Alright, the results are in, and the votes have been counted. The thing that people here would rather fight is... 100 ant-sized bulls! Thanks to all that voted, and thanks to Chandler Vance from accounting, who bought in five boxes of donuts two days ago for us to share, which kept those who forgot their lunch from going hungry! To Chandler Vance!" "To Chandler Vance!' The crowd repeated. Tomás then said "Unfortunately, he isn't here today, as he called in sick today. That doesn't matter though, we can congratulate him again when he comes back!" The group of people cheered, and I continued to watch on in confusion.

"You all know who Charles K. Nagel is, right? Assistant Head of the Medical Department? Well, just yesterday morning, he landed at Bush Intercontinental after spending a whole two weeks in Los Angeles for a vacation. I'm sure it was a nice refreshment from Houston, but now, we welcome his return!" The crowd clapped, and I stood back, internally wondering if I should return to my desk, or continue to watch whatever was going on here. I chose the latter.  "Oh, honourable mention. A special thanks to Ha-Joon Park for fixing the light system in the Medical Department in less than twenty minutes, a new, unofficial record! Although he's a junior electrical engineer at the moment and recently moved here all the way from South Korea, he has the skills of a senior electrical engineer already!" Emmet said. "Alright, and now a shoutout to Anthony Jeffords from the Scientific Department. He just got married, and now he is currently in Europe, doing a food and wine cruise in the Mediterranean with his wife!" The crowd clapped. Tomás noticed me standing at the door and said "Alright, alright, final mentions, I promise guys. This goes out to Oliver Henry Davidson, in the Research Department. He's flying all the way up to Denver in a couple of days for a major, I mean major, conference. Congratulations, Oliver!" They all turned to me and began to clap, and I could feel my face go red. "Okay, and now a shoutout to the others who are going to the meeting: Kaylee Young, Brian Evans, Sandra Larson, Franklin Bauer, Carl Ramey-" Without warning, the door slammed open, and in walked Mr Abel. He gave the death stare to nobody in particular, and yelled "What's going on here? Get back to work, now!"

The crowd dispersed quickly, with Tomás and Emmet quickly getting down the chairs and onto the floor. Mr. Abel walked up to the two of them. Then, he spoke in a quiet voice, as if he was trying to be as calm as possible but still managed to sound incredibly infuriated. "Now, I've given you two a fair number of warnings, and I am on the edge of demoting you. If it continues, further than that, I will have you both fired. Do you understand me?" They both nodded. "DO YOU? How do I know that this isn't just another lie of yours?" He yelled, spittle coming out of his mouth. "W-w-we promise, s-s-sir." Tomás stuttered. That was a surprise. Tomás never called anyone sir, let alone Mr Abel. My guess is that he was either genuinely scared of Mr. Abel right now, or he didn't want to get fired. "Alright. Do not, anger me again." Mr. Abel spoke. The two nodded, and quickly left the room. Mr Abel scratched his moustache and left the room as well. I went over to the vending machine and got a Hershey's chocolate bar, sitting down at a table. I unwrapped it and took a small bite. After that small, unhealthy, and rather quick lunch, I went back to my cubicle to start work again. I typed letter after letter, word after word, and paragraph after paragraph.