Share
Part II - Chapter 1
It was unusually cold and cloudy for mid-July. The gloomy weather perfectly mirrored Alex’s mood when he returned to work. His right ear throbbed painfully after being subjected for several hours to the monotonous, repetitious ringing of an unanswered telephone. Exhausted and frustrated, he’d finally fallen into an oblivious sleep sometime around two a.m., only to be awakened by an obnoxiously chipper radio dj a scant five hours later.
The usual routine of the day was transformed into an emotional roller coaster ride, with Alex the only passenger. Each time the front door opened, or the telephone rang, he felt a jolt of heightened anticipation, immediately followed by a sharp plunge into an abyss of disappointment when he realized that whoever it was, wasn’t Rachel.
Alex tried to put her out of his thoughts by concentrating on a variety of mindless chores as he got ready for his move to Albany. He organized his files, straightened out his desk and com
Related chapters
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 2
The glare of the early morning sun reflected off the smooth mahogany desk and shot straight into Alex’s face. He got up from the floor, where he had been trying to adjust the height of the massive desk chair, and closed the blinds. From the moment he had stepped into the ornate office, he knew it was going to take much more than a few slight modifications to the furniture to make him feel comfortable in his new surroundings.The shiny metallic nameplate that read “Alex S. Bentley, Director of Postal Operations”, looked as out of place on the antique wooden door as Alex felt sitting behind the hand-polished desk surrounded by the luxurious paneling, leather furnishings and plush carpet. He was only three hours away from his quiet rural home, but he felt as if he were in a foreign country. He had six months to adjust to his new surroundings, but for now, he needed only to adjust one piece of furniture.Alex continued to struggle with the stubborn chair
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 3
“Jane, did the mail get here yet?” Mark shouted into the hall.“That’s the third time you asked me in the last five minutes, and the answer is still no,” His wife walked into his office with a fresh cup of coffee. “I’ll check again.”“Dammit! It’s after three and I have to file those papers before five. I told that ass to use FedEx, but he’s too damn cheap.”Mark threw some files into his briefcase, slammed it shut, and began pacing the floor. Maybe Rachel was right, he thought, leaving all this behind to pursue a more relaxed, less stressful career. It had been wonderful to see her again, but when she began to ask questions about their relationship, he hadn’t been totally honest. Yes, he had walked out, abruptly, letting her think that the reason was because of her lack of interest in their profession, but that was only part of it. He had, in fact, been planning to break up with her w
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 4
When Alex arrived at his office the next morning, he found a huge stack of files waiting for him. Sighing in frustration, he sat down and began the seemingly endless task of reading through and sorting yet another pile of mindless paperwork. It was well past noon when he finally finished the last file and he was just about to leave for lunch when Brad walked in and dropped a new stack on his desk.“This is ridiculous!” Alex’s irritation was obvious, “Most of this stuff is just interoffice memos and application forms. I’m sure we can eliminate a great deal of this paperwork by sending e-mail. Brad, where’d Nate hide the computer?”“Mr. Richman didn’t use a computer, Alex. In fact, he refused to have any modern technology in his office at all. He was quite adamant about it, too. He’d mail letters to Washington, protesting the sales of stamps at ATMs and grocery stores, accusing these modern conveniences of steal
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 5
“Rachel, what kind of crap is this?” Peter practically threw the pages in her face. “Look, I read Legal Briefs, so I know you can write a helluva lot better than this. I suggest you take the next few days and show me I didn’t make a big mistake signing that contract,”Feeling like a little child being called to the principal’s office, Rachel collected the papers and meekly put them back into her briefcase.“I’m sorry, Peter. You know it’s been a very hectic week with the interviews and promotion..,”“I’m not interested in excuses, Ms Clark,” Peter interrupted her, which made Rachel feel even smaller. “I’m only interested in results. You have the weekend. Three of your best written chapters had better be on my desk Monday morning, or I may have to call your agent. Do I make myself clear?”“This homework assignment had better
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 6
On a normal work day, Cynthia Anderson would never have been rude to a customer, but this was no ordinary workday. So, when the woman had called looking for Alex, she had to quote right from the rule book. She couldn’t take the chance of her conversation being overheard by the two men who had walked in that morning flashing official badges from the US Postal Inspection Service.They told her that they were only performing a routine audit and asked to see the books, which she produced for them in less than one minute. The badges might be a new contemporary design, but the anxiety they created when shown to a postal employee was the same as it had been ever since they were first issued by Benjamin Franklin to William Goddard, the first post office Surveyor in 1776.Postal Inspectors performed their jobs efficiently and professionally, but so did the IRS. Even though the general public was grateful when their watchful eye put law breakers behind bars, no one e
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 7
Over the past six hours, Rachel’s emotions had run the gamut from anticipation, he’ll be here soon, to concern, he’s late. I hope he’s ok, to annoyance, it’s past eight. He could have called!, to disappointment, it’s almost nine, I don’t think he’s coming, and finally to relief when she heard the lobby security guard announce Alex’s arrival. Three minutes later, he was at her front door.“Rachel, I’m really sorry I’m so late, but just when I was about to leave, I got a call that one of our postmasters was in trouble and I had to get in touch with our association legal representative.He followed her into the living room and casually dropped himself onto her couch.“Make yourself at home,” she smiled.Even though he’d never been in her apartment, she was amazed at how comfortable he was. It was as if he’d been there many times
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 8
Dawn in Manhattan. Rachel stood by her window, mesmerized by the breathtaking mural of fiery shades in orange, radiant blue and luminescent yellow, set against the stark gray buildings of the most famous skyline in the world. A wallpaper of colors only nature’s artistry could paint.She never tired of the view, but this morning in particular, it looked especially breathtaking. Drinking her third cup of coffee, she watched the world come alive from her kitchen nook, eighteen stories above Central Park. Rachel felt a surge of confidence, strength, and renewal, not only coming from the rays of a brand new sunrise, but from her own feeling of accomplishment radiating from the 127 finished pages of Guilty Pleasures that lay in a neat pile on her kitchen table.Rachel had typed straight through the night. Dialogue and phrases which had stubbornly eluded her only days before were now flowing effortlessly from her re-ignited creativity, as her fingers typed page
First Class Male Part II - Chapter 9
It was past three when Alex rang the back door buzzer of his former Postoffice. Cynthia looked up from the desk, quickly put away the books and papers she had been reading and opened the door.“Alex! I wasn’t expecting to see you for another few months,”Cynthia sounded a bit nervous and Alex realized it might appear that he was checking up on her, so he explained his surprise visit.“I decided to come home for the weekend and was just going to drive by, but then I saw your car and wanted to see how you were doing. I didn’t know you’d be working late on a Saturday, but I’m glad you were,”Alex began his own tour of the Postoffice. It was all so familiar, yet in a way, a bit strange. He had only been gone a few weeks, yet already he felt as if he had never been here at all. The paperwork was stacked in a neat pile, the counter was perfectly organized and the rest of the office was spotless. At first he hadn&r
Latest chapter
- First Class Male Part IV - Chapter 7
- First Class Male Part IV - Chapter 6
- First Class Male Part IV - Chapter 5
- First Class Male Part IV - Chapter 4
- First Class Male Part IV - Chapter 3
- First Class Male Part IV - Chapter 2
- First Class Male Part IV - Chapter 1
- First Class Male Part III - Chapter 13
- First Class Male Part III - Chapter 12
