Maybe she should just say she wasn�t feeling well, and leave. She raised her naked foot from the floor and discreetly pulled at her stocking again, which had rolled up to mid-calf. Finally, she got it rolled down to the tops of her toes and quickly slipped her shoe on to hold it in place. With one minor tragedy averted, she returned her attention to the interview.
It was a shame really, that the interview had gone so well. In other circumstances, she was quite certain that she would have been offered the position. She eyed Sasha across the table. For who knows what reason, this woman she had never met before had started playing footsie under the table, and then stolen the shoe right off of her foot. Now she was pretending everything was normal, continuing the interview in a disinterested tone while the CEO, Mr. Forester, sat next to them, unaware that he was probably just wasting his time. Her mind returned to the problem at hand, how to get her shoe back from this woman, or get out of here gracefully without it.
Sasha, the evil one, stared at her and smiled coldly, then rolled the marker across the polished walnut table top. �Perhaps you could revise your model to indicate that theory,� she said in a tone that revealed none of her malice to Mr. Forester.
Fine, Christina thought, lets just get this over with. If I�m going to get pitched out of here, lets just get on with it. She stood up and grabbed the marker, and walked to the front of the room. As she altered the diagram on the dry-erase board, she made no attempt to hide behind the table, standing off to one side where Mr. Forester could see her. As she finished, she noticed that he was looking directly at her stockinged foot, probably wondering why she was missing a shoe.
�Are there any questions?� she asked, knowing the obvious one would surface first.
�What happened to your other shoe?� Mr. Forester asked predictably
�I honestly don�t know,� she said simply. �I had it when we started the interview, but it was pulled off of my foot some time ago.� She stared hard at Sasha, daring her to contradict her. Mr. Forester looked at them both expectantly.
�Well I�� Sasha stammered, her voice trailing off weakly.
�I assumed it was some sort of a test,� Christina said, anxious to salvage some credibility with Mr. Forester. �In fact, I think I read something about a team building exercise they developed at Lucent, you know, put someone in an awkward situation and gauge how the team reacts.�
�Is that right?� Mr. Forester said, sounding unconvinced. �I�m usually up on these things,� he added, looking at Sasha expectantly.
�She�s right Mr. Forester,� Sasha said, seizing the opportunity. �I�m thinking of using this technique, or something similar, since we are pulling people from different disciplines for our team.�
�Well if it�s some kind of test as you say, how do think our subject has scored?� he asked.
�Very well. She maintained her composure very well,� Sasha said, but did not sound happy about it.
�Well then, I guess we have found the first member of your new international team then!�
Sasha looked stricken at his pronouncement.
�I�m not so sure about this new technique of yours though.�
�Well I certainly didn�t intend to break with office etiquette,� Sasha said, sounding defensive, as she reached into her briefcase and produced Christina�s shoe.
�No, no, of course not,� said Mr. Forester, �It just seems a little harsh that�s all, you know how particular some people are about their appearance and all.�
�It didn�t seem �harsh� as you put it,� Christina said, �A little unusual maybe.�
�Perhaps it just needs a little more research,� Mr. Forester said, smiling wryly. �Sasha why don�t you shoe Christina around, introduce her to some of the others being considered for your division, and come to some arrangement on salary as well.�
Sasha handed Christina her shoe, clearly unhappy with the outcome of the interview. She slipped it onto her foot, amazed at how quickly her fortune had turned. Sasha led her toward the double doors leading from the conference room, and as her hand touched the doorknob, Mr. Forester spoke again.
�Sasha,� he said, looking out of the window with his back to them. �I am intrigued with this idea of yours. Please leave one of your shoes here on the conference table.�
�But I�Mr. Forester, please I just��
Mr. Forester did not turn around. �We can meet here in the morning, say 10:30, and you can tell me more about your team building concept after testing the theory yourself.�
Sasha walked slowly toward the table, started to speak, but stopped short. She placed both hands on the edge of the table, and stepped out of her left shoe. She picked it up from the floor and held it in her hand, hesitating before placing it on the polished wood surface. The heel clicked softly as she set it down.
�Start in receiving,� Mr. Forester said. �I want to be sure Christina sees the entire operation, including data storage across the street.�
Sasha turned and walked unsteadily toward Christina and the double doors, balancing on the tips of her toes and her remaining shoe.
��He�s on the phone right now, would you like his voice mail?� Renee looked up from the switchboard as the young woman emerged from the conference room, and the dragon lady walked out behind her wearing only one shoe. Like most of the staff, Renee didn�t much like Sasha. Renee watched as Sasha closed the door behind her, balancing on one shoe as her stockinged foot pressed into the carpet. She was obviously very upset about something. �You will pay for this,� Renee heard her say to the young woman as she passed by the reception desk. Renee punched 641 on the board in front of her. �Connie? Guess what? The dragon lady just left a meeting with Mr. Big, and you are not going to believe this, she was missing a shoe! I don�t know what�s going on, but call me if you find out.
�Pay for what?� Christina said, struggling to catch up. In spite of being a head taller, and having twice the number of shoes, it was hard to keep up with Sasha. �I saved you butt in there!�
Sasha wheeled around to face her. �What is the idea of stealing my shoe?� Sasha demanded, glaring at her.
�Your shoe? You stole my shoe!� Christina fired back.
�You deliberately tried to embarrass me in front of my boss by stealing my shoe, then went up to the front of the room taunting me, wearing it like some kind of a trophy, even though your big foot wouldn�t fit into it. I only took your shoe because you left it under the table while you were up at the board drawing that diagram.� Sasha�s face was hot as her eyes bore into Christina�s.
�That�s not what happened at all,� she started to say, but as she looked at Sasha�s tiny stockinged foot next to her own, she suddenly realized what must have happened. �Oh no,� she said, hanging her head. �I�m so sorry Sasha. I took my shoe off for a minute just before you both came in, and I couldn�t find it under the table.
�You pulled it right off of my foot!� Sasha said, her anger undiminished.
�I touched the heel, and I thought it was my shoe, I just pulled it toward me. I�m so sorry Sasha. I think I should just go.� Christina took a step toward the lobby without looking at Sasha.
�Oh no you don�t, that will just make it worse. How am I supposed to explain to Mr. Forester that you decided to quit after only ten minutes?�
�Well I can just say that�� Christina fell silent, appreciating the problem. �What do we do then?�
�Give me your shoe.�
Christina stepped out of her left shoe. She had caused the problem after all, and if someone had to walk around without a shoe, it should be her, it only seemed fair.
Sasha dipped her toes into the shoe and picked it up, raising her foot to grab it with her hand. Christina watched helplessly as she opened the mail chute and dropped the pump down the opening.
�Off to receiving then,� she said, starting off down the hallway without looking behind her. �We�ve got a lot of ground to cover today so try to keep up.
Snowman
