The Fifteen Minute Novel is an attempt to take a single prompt and use the last sentence written each day as a start for the next day. This year I had several prompts circling around a similar story, so I have combined them. However, the story starts the same way each day, with the last line from the day before and a timer set for fifteen minutes. The hope is to end up with a complete, if very rough draft by the end of the year. Some stories are better than others, but I always learn a whole lot about my own writing when I do this so for me it is not only a nice way to work out a story, but it is a tool for helping my writing get better. And so, we continue this story for 2024 with…
Day 80: She splurged on a few more items and felt absolutely decadent as she made her way back to her apartment.
She splurged on a few more items and felt absolutely decadent as she made her way back to her apartment. While she liked to think of the splurge of fabric specifically for herself as her weekend treat, when Janine came by with movie plans, She couldn’t resist joining. On the way there, Sophie mentioned the dress she was making for herself and the need to find a place to wear it.
“Oh there is a new restaurant that just opened up. A friend of mine works at bar and I keep promising I will go. Maybe we can go together. I can keep my promise and you can wear your fabulous new dress,” Janine said.
“Sounds like fun,” Sophie told her. She made a mental note to finish her dress soon so it was ready when Janine made the reservations.
The movie was fun and Sophie enjoyed going someplace other than work or her apartment for a change. She reminded herself that she needed to make an effort to find things she liked and actually go to them. So often she saw things she liked and either forgot to follow up with them or was just to exhausted to bother.
‘But that is not the case any more.’
Work started as usual Monday morning and Sophie fell into what was her new routine. She worked in her cubicle listening to her podcasts as she plowed through her files and at the end of the day she delayed just long enough to not be stuck in the elevator with the others. At first Sophie thought that she was being cowardly in avoiding them. She thought about forcing herself to leave when they did, but decided that she wasn’t really avoiding them as she still passed them when she had to move around the office and offered pleasant greetings. She just wasn’t getting awkwardly stuck in an elevator with them.
Interestingly, the rest of the office seemed to be switching their pattern. Lunches were shorter and no one was staying late. If there were issues about finishing work, then they weren’t voiced out loud. ‘Even Kristen isn’t complaining.’
As Sophie enjoyed a steady work environment that had no drama, she was pleased. The only thing that had her curious was the lack of comment from Mr. Evers. After her assessment, he put her on probation and gave her a bad review. He then had his evaluation countermanded from above and went through his own evaluation.
He hadn’t spoken to her since. In fact, he didn’t seem to remember she existed. He never came around the corner to her cubicle and never mentioned her name. It was as though she fell off his radar. ‘But I guess as he is no longer my supervisor there is no reason for him to talk to me.’
It was still strange. ‘Maybe I should take the elevator with them and see if he says anything.’
It was a thought that circled, but for the remainder of the week, Sophie still found herself delaying and taking the elevator down after them. While she appreciated the calm, it had a strange waiting feel to it. She wasn’t sure why. Her evaluation was done and no one was bringing her any more work. No one was mentioning her and there were no complaints.
It still didn’t feel settled.
‘Maybe because the reshuffling from above hasn’t occurred.’
The week passed quietly. Over the weekend, Sophie worked on her own projects, forgetting all about the office. As her adventure out, she went to one of the museum exhibits and sketched some designs based on the inspiration she found there. Then it was back to work on Monday. Another week passed with the strange sense of calm waiting.
Ten til Midnight 