Stumbling Through It {C.H}

Chapter 15

The elevator dinged as it reached the sixth floor of the office building. I stepped inside, jittery with a mix of excitement and nerves. Inside was quiet, except the clicking of a keyboard. I entered the small lobby, walking up to the front desk.

"Um hi, I'm Ellie Benson, I'm supposed to meet with Fran." I said almost as a question.

"Alright, I will let her know you are here." The receptionist pressed a button on on the Bluetooth device in her ear, "Hi Fran? Yes, a woman by the name of 'Ellie Benson' is here to see you. Mhmm, okay." She finished her Bluetooth conversation and looked up at me, "She will be right with you."

"Great." I made my way to a chair and sat back. I bounced my leg up in down, as a nervous habit. I glanced at the coffee table in front of me. It was littered with Parenthood Magazines. The covers showed pictures of babies, expecting mothers, and couples with young children. Bright colored text showed the highlights and articles of the magazine. I hoped that someday an article I wrote would be on the cover in bold text.

"Good morning Miss Benson."

I pulled my eyes up from the magazines, "Hello." I stood up to shake Fran's hand. She wore a business blazer with a pinstriped pencil skirt, her hair pulled into a tight ponytail. I felt underdressed in my teal polo shirt and skinny khakis. I looked more like a tourist than a journalist. I fiddled with a strand of my auburn hair, that had come loose of my braid.

"So if you follow me this way to the office." She strode through the door behind the desk. She gave me a quick tour of the office which reminded me of the office from True Jackson VP, or maybe more of 13 Going on 30. Kind of a mix of both.

"...and here is my office, where you can usually find me. Over there is the break room, there is hot coffee all day so feel free to get some whenever you are in need of an energy boost. And that is about all for the office. Any questions?" Fran finished the tour.

I shook my head, "Nope."

"Great! Now there is someone I'd like you to meet." I followed her down a hall of private office rooms. She stopped and knocked on one of the doors.

"Come in!" A muffled voice called from inside. Fran opened the door and lead me in. A middle aged woman spun in her wheeled office chair to face us.

"Good morning Fran. This must be the new recruit!" The woman chirped cheerily.

"Yes, this is Ellie Benson." Fran motioned to me. I gave the woman a small wave.

She stood up to shake my hand, "Nice to meet you Ellie. I am Giana, head reporter here at Parenting."

"You will be assisting Giana. She will mentor you and show you the ropes of the magazine." Fran informed me.
Giana nodded happily. "I will leave you to it then." Fran turned on her heel, exiting the room.

"So is Ellie short for anything?" Giana asked me as she pulled up a wooden chair next to her desk.

"No, it's just Ellie." I told her, taking the seat she offered.

"Interesting." She quickly jumped to the next topic, "So are you excited to start working here? I remember I was!" Her mouth moved quickly, spitting words out rapid fire.

"Yes, very!"

"You will love it! Absolutely a lovely place to work. Everyone is very friendly. You are interested in journalism, correct?" The crinkles by her eyes deepened as she smiled.

"I am." I nodded.

"Well if you work hard enough, soon you will have your own office, just like me! So let's get you to work!"

-

The rest of the day I followed Giana around. I filed papers, made copies, and learned about certain software the magazine used for printing and writing.

"You did great today!" Giana congratulated me after finishing my first day.

"Thank you." I returned her usual bright smile.

"I have one last thing to give you." She dug around her tote bag and pulled out a lanyard, "Here is your ID!" She handed me the lanyard. Under the plastic casing was a thin card with name and a picture of me that we had taken earlier. The Parenthood Magazine logo embellished in the corner. Holding it gave me a sudden boost in confidence and excitement. This was my first real job. Not retail, or dishwashing, or anything like that, but a proper office job. It was the first step in my future of journalism. I slipped it around my neck, feeling a sense of professionalism. No longer was I a Toys R Us employee. I worked at a magazine publisher now. Being an adult was starting to get better.