“Being such a huge firm, the company’s pool of diversity was, of course, going to be much larger than that of a smaller company,” he recalled thinking on his first day. Just as countless others were on their first day, he was uneasy. He had completed an internship with the company a summer ago, and had done so well in pleasing his employers that he was gifted with an offer to return for a second one. He knew that there was nothing to worry about so long as he minded himself and did the work assigned to him.
A well-dressed Black gentleman calmly approached him.
“Steve Tyson?”
“Yes sir.”
Steve, having lived in North Carolina for a good majority of his life, gained an understanding of the importance of politeness and a respect for authority.
“Hi, I am Roy Caset, your supervisor for this summer. Nice to meet you in person. I believe we had spoken on the phone a month ago” the gentleman replied as he extended his hand.
Steve shook his hand with some anxiousness (he had not yet rid himself of the “1st day Jitters”.) Roy was not as he had pictured him in their conversation: Steve thought that he was going to be a short nerdy-looking accountant; however, standing tall and athletic, Roy looked more like Terry Crews than Steve Urkel.
“Yes sir, we had. It is nice to meet you too, sir. I can’t wait to get started.”
Steve followed Roy to the golden elevator, and watched as his boss pressed the 12th floor button. As the elevator rose to its destination, Roy noticed the stern look on Steve’s face and the slightly shakiness of his leg.
“Don’t worry son, we don’t bite.” Roy joked,” Seriously, we are
Steve immediately wondered what the rest of the team looked like and how he, being a tall but rather stocky 20-year-old, would fit in. Steve tended to classify himself as a nerd; despite his appearance, he was rather shy and quiet. Also, he tended to do things such as play Pokemon and watch anime. Plus, he knew that accounting internships were not particularly something that most “cool kids” did during their summers. Therefore, he thought, that hopefully Roy was right, and the accounting team was going to be very kind and welcoming. They walked a few yards, towards the cubicles in the corner of the building. Roy stopped at a corner cubicle located in the middle row.
“Here is your desk; feel free to leave your stuff here while I introduce you.” Roy stated.
Steve placed his backpack in his chair and followed Roy so more. Steve met too many people that day, to the point that he stopped trying to remember names about 3 hours in. He knew that Roy was going to introduce him to their team, but he was unaware that Roy was going to have him meet EVERYONE on the floor. All the people that Steve met seemed to blend together, except for one individual.
Funny enough, she was sitting in the cubicle right in front of his own. He kept replaying the moment they met in his mind as if his brain was a remote control with the rewind and play buttons stuck.
“Steve, this is Beth.” Roy said as he extended his arm in a presenting manner.
When Beth stood from her seat, Steve, in a slightly astonished manner, cranked his neck upward to make eye-contact with the amazon. Beth towered over him at a staggering 6’3, in flats no less. Her skin held a pale complexion and her arms had a slightly red tint. Her body was more earthly than most women, but in an attractive, voluptuous way; while she was no “perfect 10”, she was certainly very attractive. Her face was carved with short brown eyes, bright red cheeks, and a smile that expressed her slightly awkward personality.
After they exchanged greetings, Beth returned to working on her Excel spreadsheets. Meanwhile, Steve, who was smitten by her earthly beauty and her dominating height, kept thinking about her for the rest of the day.