One of the girls (942 hits)
Category: NoneRating: 1.31 on 16 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Saffron (View user info) at 2005-10-23 11:48:27 EDT
"They were only $400 at Bluefly ! Can you believe it ?!"
The girls cooed and wondered at Beth's terrific bargain as Cora started to pour water over her Oolong.
"$400?" she thought, "are you kidding me ?" she glanced down at her Earth shoes ( retail price $75.99) and back at Beth's strappy Cerulean heels. She noted the heels were dry, with several areas of obvious irritation. Looking around the herd she noticed all the girls had some bit of weirdness going on with their feet. A combination of not taking care of them and torturing them in the game of fashion. "I wouldn't spend $400 on a pair of shoes even if ...." She let the thought train off knowing that she could easily afford it. She made more than the herd did. "I wonder if that would freak them out. The 'secretary' making more than the designers". She grinned and went back to her tea.
"Aren't they the cutest ?! And the totally go with this fantastic bohemian skirt I found at the Gap."
"Bohemian." she grinned to herself again. Cora was one of those women who had set her look in high school. She liked to think of it as ageless and casually elegant. Long flowy skirts were a signature piece and it saddened her that the style of the moment made her commonplace. She made a casual sideways glance in Beth's direction. " I could never pull off that top though." Cora lifted the strainer out of her tea cup and stepped over the the trash can to dump the leaves. The herd tightened up as she approached and began to whisper. The burst of giggles behind her as she returned to her cup reminded her of High School.
"Let's go to Starbucks, I totally need a mocha !"
Cora stared down at her tea and wondered what it would be like to be part of the herd. Not that she would be that superficial; obsessed with possessions and cocktail hour. But it would be nice to have the choice. Feeling slightly annoyed at feeling dejected she headed back towards her desk.
Email had been light that morning. A job that is mainly re-active can be quite a tricky thing to manage.You find yourself with down times between emergencies where there is simply nothing to do but look busy and wait for someone to need you. Cora was fighting the urge to sleep in the afternoon sun streaming thru her office window. She sat in a 10x10 Glass box in the middle of cubeland. Beth's voice pulled her out of her light slumber.
"We're skipping out early for Mohitos, everyone is coming...."
The annoying flirty purr of confidence. The tone that no one says "no" to for fear of being excluded from the next round of invites. Heads popped up from behind walls like meerkats as Beth called out their names.
"Keith, Melissa, Jesse, Chris, come on guys !"
Beth continued roll call, person by person down the rows.
"Alison, Emily, Todd, Dave, are you coming?"
Beth walked past slowly, eyes locked with Cora who was slowly rising out of her chair in anticipation of an invite. She turned to the next row and continued her roll call, her smile widening, as another successful snubbing ended and a night of unending adoration began.
Cora lowered herself slowly back into her chair. "I didn't really want to go anyway." She felt the twinge of envy and was helpless to stop its melting into depression. "I wonder what it would be like to be one of the girls. I wouldn't be so exclusionary and spiteful. In fact I probably wouldn't even like hanging out with the designers that much, but it would be nice to have the choice.".
Monday morning and the routine of the week is reset. The girls from design are chattering about their weekend. A shot rings out in reception and they turn in unison, dumb animals drawn to the sound. Another casing breaks thru the re-circulated office air and the realization of what is happening becomes palpable. There are screams. Another shot. Panicked cries and the sounds of bodies stumbling towards salvation fill the air.
"Backbiting bitches !"
The sounds of sobbing and begging were only slightly muffled thru the cabinet door. There was a series of shots that mowed thru the design herd, leaving a well toned and tanned heap of meat in the middle of the kitchen floor. Cora smiled at the sight. She only had a sliver's view of the carnage from her vantage point under the sink, but she knew they were dead. They had stood there like a pack of morons and watched danger roll up. She heard footsteps turn slowly back towards the offices and saw a flash of strappy Cerulean heels. The sound of violence continued. She no longer felt sad thinking about what it would be like to be one of the girls.
User Reviews
Submitted by leilani (user info) at 2006-01-19 14:01:20 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
kick ass!
Submitted by inion_de_trua (user info) at 2006-01-19 13:57:44 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
cool. i can't think of flowy skirts and signature pieces as ageless and elegant. they remind me of middle aged art teachers and hippies that never stopped smoking pot. makes me think of that "bohemia chic" and then i hafta go puke.
Submitted by wookie (user info) at 2006-01-19 13:49:54 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Excellent! Even more so for working meerkats into it. God meerkats are cool.
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2005-10-24 16:28:45 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
good.
Submitted by Dead_0hi0_Sky (user info) at 2005-10-24 12:19:27 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
WTF im not reading all that...
wait, does it have lesbians in it?
Submitted by Saffron (user info) at 2005-10-24 12:05:00 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Ack!
Oolong is tea.
I will avoid the word "thru".
I still can't tell based on notes if the last paragraph is clear or not.But based on the words "postal" and "cliche" I will assume that I need to punch up the fact that Cora is not the shooter.
Submitted by missflibble (user info) at 2005-10-24 07:32:43 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
what's an oolong?
Submitted by apollo88 (user info) at 2005-10-24 07:09:15 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
thru?
jesus.
started off okay then took a trip down to clicheville.
Submitted by Berty (user info) at 2005-10-24 06:51:57 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
This is a common story, but it hints at a far more complex matter that lingers beneath the surface.
Lonliness of women is an utturly alien concept to most men. It just doesn't seem possible. A woman is sad and vulnerable so a man is drawn like a moth to a flame and the laydeeee is no longer lonesome. The idea of a lonely woman is akin to a square circle in my mind.
It happens though. Victoria Wood says so.
Anyway, someone (i.e. a woman) needs to write about this subject. Not going to happen though, lonliness is shamefull.
Submitted by phuzzygish (user info) at 2005-10-24 06:37:21 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I'm sorry. I read "pouring water over her Oolong" and for some reason just pissed myself laughing. I'll read the rest now.
Submitted by Bubba2341 (user info) at 2005-10-23 13:13:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Also, it should be, "You're better than I."
(the word "am" is understood).
Submitted by Bubba2341 (user info) at 2005-10-23 13:10:09 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
If you wish to be "old time" literate, you would
not use contractions. My problem, not yours. . .
Submitted by Circe (user info) at 2005-10-23 12:41:23 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
You can honestly say it doesn't make you cringe when you come across it in a story? You're better than me.
Fine, it's a word. It's seamlessly interchangeable with "through", let's hear it for the plummeting downfall of literacy.
To me, personally, it looks stupid and reads like a text message from a brainless teenaged girl. And this being my rating, I'm quite comfortable with giving it a 0 because it bothers me.
My problem, not hers, right I get it.
Submitted by Bubba2341 (user info) at 2005-10-23 12:12:05 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Merriam-Webster:
One entry found for thru.
Main Entry: thru
variant of THROUGH
Submitted by Circe (user info) at 2005-10-23 12:06:34 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Thru?
Submitted by Bubba2341 (user info) at 2005-10-23 12:05:31 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Yeah, you don't have to work for the
Post Office to go postal.