Thrailkill

This is the work of N Thrailkill.

Author's Note: Hello, my name is Nick Thrailkill and I am a junior here at Bishop Shanahan. I like to read and to write, my favorite band is Fleetwood Mac, and my favorite book is //Gone With the Wind.//

I have been writing semi-professionally since I was thirteen, and as of November 2007, I've been writing my first hopefully soon-to-be published work, //Hawaii South.// I have included samples from Chapter 2 and 3 of the novel.

In order to understand this chapter, you have to know that the narrator and protagonist, Randy Deskman, has recently "abandoned" college and has gone to Hawaii to find a job and a new direction in life.

II “Ransom Deskman, right?” Madam Portston had just sat down at her desk and already she was flipping through my résumé, which had been placed there presumably by Janet. “Yeah… I mean, yes, that’s my name.” I squirmed a bit. This was my first interview, after all, and that was what made me so nervous. “Do you prefer Randy or Ransom?” “Randy is fine.” “It says on your résumé that you’ve had separate geography classes for three non-consecutive years of school. How well did you do in them?” “I had high averages in them,” I said with increasing confidence. “In eighth grade I didn’t have a grade below ninety in class. I also got a four on my AP test.” “It also says that you were the runner-up for the school level of the national geography bee. I’m impressed.” Madam flipped through the rest of the pages and nodded as she read them. I wondered if that meant something good or something bad. “One more question, Mr. Deskman.” “Yes?” “Why is there no college listed on this résumé?” “I’m only seventeen, and I was planning on working here for a couple of months to save up money for college.” Madam let out a little “hmm” and reread the résumé. “Other than the college, I have to say that this is very good, Mr. Deskman,” Madam said after several minutes. “I believe you fulfill all the qualifications of our businesses. I do, however, have one more question for you, and it is more of a technicality than anything relating to your abilities. What would you, as an employee, bring to the workplace that would differentiate you from the other applicants I would be interviewing for this position?” “I enjoy recycling,” I said. “Maybe we could establish recycling here.” “There was a policy for recycling here a few years ago, but it fell out of use due to the desire to maintain status quo by my superiors.” Madam paused for a second before continuing. “So you can see from that how far we’ve advanced since the 1800’s. But if you could establish recycling here again, I could see many opportunities for you in the years to come. Thus, I welcome you to our work force. You may begin work on Monday.” Madam stood up and took my résumé. I also stood and shook Madam’s hand. “Before we leave, Mr. Deskman, I need to give you something.” Madam walked to her filing cabinet, took out a small booklet, and gave it to me. It was the code book for the agency with a list of pay days for the months of June, July, and August on the back of it. Reading the list, I found that I would receive a check biweekly, which would support both my stint in the hotel in Poipu and my college fund as well. “Follow me, Mr. Deskman.” Madam Portston opened the door to her office and led me out into the hallway. After closing the door, Madam walked down the hallway into the main work area. I stared around at the desks, noticing all the other people who would become my co-workers. They were all far too busy then to notice me entering. Madam pointed out a desk on the north wall of the room. “There is your work station, Mr. Deskman,” she told me. “I expect to see you there on Monday.” Madam then left to return to her office. I walked over to my desk and sat down. It was smaller than I thought, but I figured it would still accommodate what I needed to use as a travel agent. I opened the drawers and tried to figure out where I would put my stuff. But that was something I could think about later. I stood up and navigated myself back through the building to the front room. “Did you get the job, Randy?” Janet asked as I walked into the room. “Yes, I did. I’m starting on Monday.” “Good. I’ll look forward to seeing you then.” “I’ll see you too,” I said, heading out the front door. Outside the office, I entered my car, drove back to my hotel, and walked up to my room. After unlocking the front door, I walked to my bedroom and set my bags in the closet. I took the rulebook out of one of my bags and sat down on my bed to begin reading it. Most of the items mentioned were a part of standard work ethic, but there was a keen emphasis on restraining gossip. When I learned a little more about Madam Portston later in my career at Hawaii South, I discovered that Madam strongly opposed gossip in the workplace because she had been exposed to so much of it during her years working there before she was promoted to boss. “My third boss, the last one I had before I was promoted,” she later told me during one of my relatively frequent trips to her office, “would always get angry when employees talked about each other behind their backs, but she was the worst offender of that. So, naturally, all the employees besides me refused to listen to her, and she did nothing to stop them. When I was promoted to boss, I made it my first priority to cut down on the amount of gossip in the company, and it’s seemed to work.” When I finished reading the rule book, I placed it back in my bag. Then I sat down on my bed again, took a piece of paper and a pencil off the nightstand that I had left there the night before, and wrote “Accomplishments of Randy Deskman in Hawaii” in large letters on the top of the sheet. There was one so far: getting a job. I put the list back on the table and resolved that there would several more things on it before Devon’s school year began.

And this is Chapter 3, where Randy begins work. Ted and Phil are Randy's closest friends from high school.

III It was Monday morning at 6:35. I woke up and yawned, then turned my alarm clock off. I didn’t need to be at work until 7:45, and the agency was only a few miles from my house, but I wanted to make a good impression on my first day at work. I took my shower and headed out to the kitchen for breakfast. All I had to eat was a small nutrition bar. Afterwards, I brushed my teeth and put on khakis and a button-down shirt. Since it was still rather early, I stepped out onto the terrace and felt the warm summer air. The large tree just beyond the terrace showed its light green leaves in the early morning sunlight. Underneath the tree wove a winding pathway that crossed the parking lot, a rock garden with a few koi ponds interspersed between the various plants, and the main road that ran parallel to the beach. After relaxing on the terrace for about half an hour, I headed back through my hotel room and gathered my stuff for work. Then I walked down to my car, set my stuff in the passenger seat, and drove to the travel agency. I exited my car after parking just in front of the office, and, after collecting my supplies, entered the building. Janet greeted me and I said hello to her. I once again navigated myself through the office to get to my desk. I sat down and opened the drawers, placing my supplies in separate drawers so I would remember where to find what I needed. I placed a pencil and a notepad on my desk and closed the drawers. Soon, I noticed other workers taking their places at their desks and preparing for another work day. One guy, who looked about eighteen years old or so, sat at a desk near me. “Hey,” he said to me. “Are you new?” “Yeah, it’s my first day here.” “Cool. My name’s Dan. What’s yours?” “Randy, Randy Deskman.” The phone on Dan’s desk rang. “Hold on, I’ve got to take this call,” he said as he answered it. I nodded in agreement. “Hello,” Dan said. After being silent for a moment, Dan continued, “Pennsylvania for an anniversary? Okay, I’m not too sure about what’s there; I’ll have to look it up and get back to you on that.” “Dan,” I whispered, “I used to live in Pennsylvania. I know what you can tell them about things to do there.” “Excuse me, I’ll transfer you to the Pennsylvania expert,” Dan said to the person on the other side of the line. Dan handed me the phone. //What are you doing?// I thought for a second. //I’d rather just tell you what to say instead of talking to them myself.// I wasn’t much of a people person, but I decided to take the phone anyway. “Hello. I’m Randy Deskman, the Pennsylvania expert. Gettysburg National Historical Park, Valley Forge Park, and Lancaster County are some places you might want to visit. It depends on where you plan to stay. Okay, so I would suggest Gettysburg then. Thank you. Goodbye.” “So, what did they say?” Dan asked me. “They’re planning to stay in Harrisburg, and they say they think they will visit Gettysburg.” I was surprised. Despite the fact that I was not that much of a people person, I was able to help the couple find the right anniversary location and an abundant amount of things they could do there. There was another accomplishment for my list. “So, you’re from Pennsylvania?” Dan asked me. I told him all about how decided to move to Hawaii and about the things that had happened to me in Hawaii so far. After I had finished my story, my phone rang. “Sorry, Dan. I’m just going to take this call.” I picked up the phone. “Hello. My name is Randy. How may I help you today?” The voice on the opposite side of the line said, “Yeah, is this the travel agency that was supposed to book my flight to Kentucky?” “Yes,” I answered, but I had no idea what he was talking about. “Yeah, so my flight was cancelled for some reason, and I never got a call back to tell me why. I want--no, I demand--some answers.” “I’m new to this company, so I can’t help you with any previous problems you might have had with us.” I tried to keep my voice consistent so that I wouldn’t sound like I was afraid of him. “Well, what am I supposed to do to get some answers around here? Tell me now.” I guess the conversation had got loud enough for Dan to hear, as he took the phone from me to talk to the person. “If you’ve got any problems with our service, I’m sure you’re mature enough to talk to me instead of getting angry with the new guy. Look, you should calm down before asking another question. Sir, if you’re going to continue yelling, I’m not answering any questions. Goodbye then, sir.” Dan slammed the phone back onto its receiver. “Don’t worry, Randy,” Dan said in an unusually calm tone. “We get people like that a lot.” I wished I would have told that person off rather than having Dan do it for me, but I suppose accosting people was more suited for Dan’s abilities than for mine. By the time the lunch break had started, Dan and I had helped several more people to perfect their plans for vacations, and, inevitably, had to deal with more troublesome clients. Dan shut off his computer. “I’m so hungry right now. Aren’t you?” “A little,” I said. “I’ll probably just get takeout somewhere on my way home.” “Nonsense,” Dan said. “I’m going to go to an outdoor café a few blocks from here. Come with me.” “That’s fine. You don’t have to invite me along.” “Come on; it’s no problem.” “All right, I’ll go.” Dan and I got up from our chairs and walked out of the work area, through the main hallway, and into the front room. Janet was sitting there, taking her lunch out of a paper bag. She told us to enjoy our lunch as we left. Outside, Dan and I walked out past the parking lot and across the street, then continued for three blocks to get to the café. Along the way, I stopped to view the lilies in full bloom, accented by the warm afternoon light. When we entered the café, Dan walked over to two girls and greeted them. Dan called me over. “Randy, this is Michelle and Megan.” Michelle was tall and brown-haired, while Megan was shorter, although brown-haired like Michelle. “Hi, Michelle, Megan.” “So, you’re Dan’s friend?” Megan asked in a seemingly sarcastic tone, thought it was directed more towards Dan then me. “Yes; he and I work together.” “That’s good.” I heard Megan whisper to Dan: “He’s way better than you, and I just met him.” “Why do you hate me so much?” Dan asked. “Dan, I don’t hate you. I just have an overbearing dislike of you.” “Guys, our table’s ready,” Michelle pointed out. All four of us walked over to the table and sat down. “Oh, look at that painting!” Michelle said, staring at the designs on the Oriental painting hanging behind her seat. “It reminds me of Vaiyim!” “Dan, what is she talking about?” I whispered. “Vaiyim is a band that Michelle is in love with.” “Oh, that is so true,” Michelle added. “I love them almost as much as Johnny Yong Bosch.” I just stared at Michelle. “Don’t worry, I won’t hold you accountable if you don’t understand me.” “Um…so, what’s on the menu?” Dan interjected. It took only a few minutes after we had ordered for our food to get to our table. We ate quickly and talked just as quickly as we ate. While we ate, two sixteen-year-old girls passed by us on the way back to their table. They were talking about someone they knew and were getting angry over it. What was most notable about this conversation was their rather liberal use of the F-word. They didn’t seem to care whether or not anyone heard them because they were too caught up in their unexplained anger. Once they were out of our hearing range, Michelle said, “My mom would have hit me as hard as she could if I used that word that many times. And I’m not exaggerating.” “I know how you feel,” I said. “I was never allowed to talk like that to anyone, even to my friends. Those girls should really show some restraint with their language.” “It only weakens their argument, really,” Dan said. “Isn’t that right, Megan?” “I may be a little rude at times, but I never talk like that.” Megan took another large bite of food and urged the rest of us to continue eating. In half an hour stood up and said goodbye to each other. Michelle hugged Dan and then hugged me. “What, no hug from you?” Dan said to Megan. “I don’t think you need one,” Megan said back. “Oh, Randy, we’re going to be late if we stay any longer.” Dan stared at his watch. I stared at it too, noticing that we needed to be at work in three-and-a-half minutes. “We really need to get back to the office,” Dan said to Michelle and Megan. “Sorry to stick you with the bill. I promise I’ll pay you two back the next time we go out together. We’ll see you later.” Dan and I then ran out off the side of the deck our table was on. We got back into the office with a half-minute to spare. Janet looked up from her paperwork and said, “You got here just in time. Madam is pretty angry right now. I suggest you try to avoid her when you pass her office.” Dan and I took the advice and managed to get to our desks without having to face Madam, although we did see what was happening in Madam’s office. Apparently, one of the employees had received a call in which the client had demanded to talk to Madam after finding out the day she wanted to leave on the plane was a blackout date. Madam and the client had fought for a while before Madam had hung up. “No one can be that rude to my company and can get away with it,” Dan and I heard her yell. Dan later told me that Madam rarely showed that strong an emotion. After a while, some employees managed to finally calm her down, and she announced over the intercom that the crisis was over. The rest of the work day passed without incident. The customers Dan and I helped were satisfied with our help, and I drove home smiling all the way. When I got home I made dinner and started up my laptop. Someone had sent me an email. I opened it and read:

From dutoeted@tedan.com Randy, //How’s Hawaii? I just wanted to know how everything is going, since we never really got to talk after you left the café.// //Rocket 88’s got a gig in New York this month. Almost everyone in our graduating class is coming to it. Phil’s down working at the beach now, but he says he can come up (so he says, because you know how unpredictable Phil’s schedule is). We both want you to enjoy Hawaii. Good luck.// I sighed lightly after I finished reading the e-mail. I was having a great time in Hawaii, but I felt homesick. I missed Pennsylvania and my family and all my friends at Devon, no matter how varied my relationships with them were.

I thought of what I wanted to write back to Ted, but decided not to type it, at least not until there were a few more items on my accomplishment list on the nightstand in my room. I closed the laptop and cleaned my plate. Then I headed to my bedroom for what I knew would be a troubled sleep.