“Yes, come with me,” she said leading me toward the conference hall.
She told me to close my eyes as she led me through the doors.
“Are you ready?” she said excitedly.
“Yes, I’m ready,” I replied with anticipation.
“One, two, three, open!” she said in excitement.
I opened my eyes, the hall was decorated in company colors, and the silk material was hanging from the ceiling, and there were hundreds of balloons high in the air close to the ceiling.
“It looks fantastic. I hope they enjoy it,” I said with a broad grin on my face.
“Look behind you,” she said as she turned me.
“Wow, you managed to get 10 pin bowling here? Wow, Kendall, how did you manage that?” I asked in awe of what she had done.
“I found one mobile company who was available. I thought why not combine both? It may be a better way to introduce a league into the company rather than doing it straight off,” she said pleased with herself.
“Good job, well done,” I said congratulating her. “Come on you deserve a rest, let's grab a drink and sit in the office for a while,” I said urging her toward the bar.
I grabbed the drinks, and we entered the office, we sat on the couch, and Kendall kicked off her shoes.
“I’m exhausted, it has been a long day,” she said as she scrunched her toes up to get her circulation flowing.
“So, you think this will win the employees over, and so they will see I’m not the person from before?” I asked quizzically.
“There is a good chance it will do, a few may think you are still a douche and that the party is just a scam, but I think even they will come around after a while,” she said.
“Tell it like it’s, why don’t you,” I said with a smile on my face. “So, did you ever think I was a douche?”
“I held no reservations, people are what they are and have reasons for being so, but, yes you said hurtful things, but that doesn’t make you a bad person. Maybe just misdirected; someone who has lost their way in life,” she said.
“Wow, that was deep, I wish everyone could have your insight and understanding, then the world would be a better place I think, and most of it should come from people in my position. If the bosses can’t appreciate their employees, how can they expect any respect back from them?” I replied as I felt the warmth of her company.
“Now who is being deep? I didn’t know you had it in you,” she laughed hard at her cheeky comment.
I told Kendall to rest for a while, the party wasn’t due to start, and she had time to nap. There we stayed as we laid our heads back on the couch and placed our feet on the coffee table and closed our eyes. Our conversation regarding the party continued as we discussed how the employees would feel as the night went on and they became more relaxed.
“As long as you are cool with them, I think they will be cool with you,” Kendall said as she slipped into a light nap.
I laid and thought of the party and felt nervous. Fuck, what happens if I can’t pull it off? Or if I end up saying something that makes them defensive toward me? Only time would tell, and that time was nearly here.
I gently shook Kendall, she opened her dark green eyes and looked at me.
"What time is it?” she asked a bit groggy.
“It’s party time!” I replied as I laughed at her sleepy face.
“I nodded off, I think,” she rubbed her eyes.
“That you did, I was left talking to myself for a while before I realized. Shall we?” I offered Kendall my hand.
***
We entered the conference hall. The disco lights were just about to gather momentum, then suddenly patterns set the walls ablaze with colors and shapes, the music starting to pump. We stood by the door and greeted the employees as they began to arrive with their partners.
“The bar is over there," I said as they arrived.