Tim & Chuck

CH 10 There's a Nettie Loose in the Office

"It will make you very happy to know that everything is just as I found it. Minus a few feelings."

Nettie was excited.

Tim called her on a Wednesday afternoon to ask if she would be willing to give "etiquette pointers" to one of his newly appointed managers the next day.

Nettie had heard about Perry Johnson, the innocently troublesome but brilliant intern-turned Accounting head manager. It's not every day that someone jumps from a coffee errand boy to a department head in less than 24 hours and Tim had stressed over the phone that Perry was perfectly intelligent and fit for the role minus his...clumsy mannerisms.

That is exactly where Nettie would come in.

On paper, she wasn't technically the person you would first call for something like this. A junior at Pratt Institute for fashion design, Nettie had big dreams of establishing her own fashion designs in a brand that belonged to her. But the Gallagher siblings were no slouches when it came to etiquette, Nettie more so than Tim. Marisa Gallagher had drilled mannerism and posture into her children from a young age. Nettie knew how to appear a businesswoman even though she was not one. Yet.

Nettie loved to have fun and she considered herself less "uptight" than Tim, but if she had to, she knew how to assume the posture of a confident woman of prominence, whatever that looked like. This is exactly what Tim wanted her to pass onto Perry.

"Please, Nettie. I know you can do it. I could call in someone else but I figured that you may as well put to use all of those tea time lessons Mom put you through."

"Yeah right. As if I don't have to do that everyday at school." Nettie held the phone between her shoulder and her ear while she cut some fabric off her model mannequin's outfit. "I'll do it but you owe me."

"Sure. Dinner at Quincy's tomorrow night after I get off?" Tim offered.

"As long as I get to order the steak, done." Nettie grinned.

"Perfect. Oh, and Nettie? Try not to make him cry. I know how blunt you are but just try to be a little more gentle with him. He is still nervous about his new role."

Nettie sighed. "Aw you're no fun. He'll be fine, I'll take it nice and slow. Don't worry Tim, you're talking to a professional."

"...Right. A professional crusher of souls, maybe." She could hear the teasing in his voice before it shifted to a more serious tone. "I am serious though. I better not see any kind of facial moisture when I debrief with him afterwards."

"Not even sweat?"

"Ned..."

"KIDDING, kidding. I will do my best. Sounds like you want to see this kid succeed so just you watch. I will make a man out of him." Nettie sang the last little bit, knowing that it would make her big brother laugh.

And of course, she was correct. Tim chuckled, recognizing the Mulan reference immediately. "Ok Li Shang. Love you, I gotta go. Be here by 2:45pm. I will go over what I want you to cover relating to his job then the rest is up to you. And I will show you where you guys can meet."

"Okay. Sounds great, Tim Tim. I can't wait to see your new fancy workplace. See you tomorrow." Nettie hung up the phone before turning back to her mannequin.

Lucky for her, she was at the perfect stopping point in her project. The dress was almost complete for her nature theme per the stringent instructions of the brief. Nettie had worked hard to incorporate the texture of what looked like dew-dropped spider webbing across a bronze-colored georgette and organza dress. The ensemble came complete with a black birdcage veil that tilted elegantly over the left eye of her lifeless model.