Page 183 of Steeling Her
As I do, I’m met with her brother standing by the door, watching me. I look away and continue to leave the room she’s in but I’m blocked by his meaty frame. I have no choice but to look at him, so I brave it once more. I stand my ground and stare into his eyes, which are similar to his sister’s, and he bobs his head. I don’t know why he did that. It was something I wasn’t expecting. I was anticipating a warning from him, but that never came.
Moving to the side to let me pass, he moves around me to get inside and I leave for him to take care of her. I inaudibly wish it was me. I walk down the way I came up and hurry back to everyone else, who were talking in the kitchen. Danielle must be still upstairs. I would say she could be embarrassed by me walking in on her and Chris having a moment, but I don’t think she realized. Chris, however, did.
***
Carter
Dear Miss Carter Steel,
We’re glad to inform you that we’re currently recruiting new physical therapists for the Los Angeles Charger’s National Football League Team this year. You have been selected to arrange an interview if you choose to do so.
Your growing clientele has caught our eye, along with strong reviews of your aid for past and present athletes that have visited your clinic.
Our contact details are highlighted below, and we look forward to hearing from you sometime in the near future.
We would be delighted to make you a part of the team.
Lynn St. James.
Lead Recruitment Agent.
That letter is the only thing I’ve read this morning. Over and over in my head, I scan the words mindlessly, hoping that it’ll sink in, but I know it won’t. I’m still standing over my desk and still reading the words that are in black ink telling me the LA Chargers want to interview me.
This has been my dream.
My one dream. Not to work for the Chargers, but to work in the NFL as a physical therapist. I get work in the sport that I absolutely love to watch and know inside out. It’s the one thing that I’ve wanted, and now it’s right in front of me; literally and figuratively.
“Knock, knock,” Candice says through the door and leans on it. The shock on my face still hasn’t worn off and Candice picks up on this instantly as I sit on my desk with the letter in my hand. I need to sit before I collapse onto the ground. “Either you’re pregnant or have a ring on that finger,” she jokes. I snort and stand on my own two feet.
“It’s neither. Here, read this.” I let her come into my office and hand her the letter. She greedily takes the paper. I watch her eyes roam over the black ink. As she reads, her eyes become wider and wider until she starts hopping from foot to foot, laughing.
“What! Are you serious?” she yells as she bounces up and down beside me. I couldn’t help but laugh at her expression because that’s exactly what her kids do when they’re excited. We’re both so excited over this letter.
“It looks legit, right?” I ask her. She opens the paper again to look at it, then sniffs it and holds it up to the light. I couldn’t stop laughing at her dramatics. I smack her in the upper arm playfully while we both chuckle at this news in my office.
“Oh my fucking God! I’m so jealous! So, so jealous. You’ll have all the hot, sweaty athletes all up on you, girl! You have to put me on the visitor’s list!” She laughs and hands me back the letter. I store it in my drawer and lock it. I can’t trust most people who work here. Most of the people here trample on each other so they can get ahead in life. It only works for a short amount of time until you start to fall back into your place.
“I haven’t gotten the job yet.” I smile.
“Yet? You going to try then?” she ask and gestures her head outside the door, signaling we should get going to our morning meeting with the boss himself. We have a staff meeting for this morning that we hold every month as well as a quarterly report. I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had much time to look at any of our progress, but everyone is back in work. I was planning on doing some work yesterday, but I still had a very bad hangover with a hint of embarrassment. Actually, a lot of embarrassment.
I woke up at Chris and Danielle’s house, mortified and sick as a dog. Dear God, that had to be the worst I’ve ever felt. I couldn’t move out of bed until dinner time came around. I was so bad that I stayed at their house until Sunday. Chris then dropped me home and stayed with me for a little while until I was feeling a little better. I still haven’t managed to eat a solid meal without feeling queasy. Ted wasn’t happy that I had canceled on him when I learned that the football game wasn’t until next Sunday.
I will never drink that much again.
Never.
“What have I got to lose? If I don’t try, I will be kicking myself for not trying in the future. I could love it if I get it, or I could hate it? I’ll never know until I give it a shot.” I shrug but start to plan when I will call the sender to arrange the meeting. I’m determined to get this job. I’d love if I can get it, but I wouldn’t get upset if I don’t. Only the best is hired, and being the best comes with a ton of experience, which I will get if I keep working hard.
“Right! I’m so proud of you!” She hugs me and I wrap my arms around her too.
“Thanks.” I squeeze her back, tightening my shoulders up in the process.
“Let’s go before we get into trouble for being late.” She rolls her eyes and we enter the canteen where everyone has gathered for our meeting. People are seated sparsely up against the wall with their arms folded over their chests, and others wander in behind me and Candice as we walk through the door. We both take our spots near the back of the canteen under the TV hanging high on the wall. It’s the only room in the building that allows all of the company’s employees to fit, so we usually have meetings in here.
Our owner is here today and is ready for the meeting. When he’s here, it’s not as bad because he’s quick with informing us on what we need to know, whereas with Dallas, she and Jody would take years to speak and it usually reverts to their own successes and not others.
So everyone is in good spirits because John McKane has arrived into the office. For someone who owns many physical therapy clinics, I admire that he has time to visit them all. When he comes to update us on performance and to speak about our future targets for the month, quarter, and year, it’s usually very tense. But that’s needed in this industry.
