4

Arabella

Today is the day I start working with my partner, who unfortunately is Miguel. I don't know what to expect from this teamwork story, but regardless of any obstacle, I will work hard because this is a golden opportunity and I will not lose it for anything.

I'm going to be smart and learn everything I can by watching Miguel closely. The guy's one of the best in our field, not that I'm going to take it out loud, but I recognize his talent.

I do the ritual every day, pass the id card, cross the reception and go to my living room. Upon entering I get a fright to see Miguel sitting in the place that was once Rafael's, working on something on his computer. I knew he'd be there but it was so weird, it seemed like something was out of place. As soon as he saw me, he stopped typing and greeted me with a good polite day and went back to what he was doing.

I sat down and turned on the computer, opened my mailbox in my e-mail box and found what I was looking for. The e-mail Anthoni had sent explained what should be done. The campaign we would create should basically be as we always do the other ones, except for the part that ESSA has to be exceptional, because we would be being evaluated. Goals:

1: Let the promotional message reach your target audience.

2: Let the message be understood by the public.

3: May the message stimulate the receivers to take action.

And since everything in life needs planning, we would need to come together and establish a goal plan that involved: Evaluating marketing communication opportunities; What communication channels would be used, determine our objectives; Determine the 'Promotion Mix'; Develop the promotional message; Develop the promotion budget; Determine the effectiveness of the campaign.

It was a lot, but I was confident. As soon as I finished reading the e-mail I turned the chair toward Miguel and saw that he continued to type and key frantically on his computer. When he realized I was watching him, he stopped what he was doing and looked at me.

- I've been looking at some ideas and I'd like to know your opinion. That's not all, but it's a good sketch to start with. - said when you got up and brought your notebook to my desk.

He pulled out his chair sitting next to me and started showing me a few pages of his planning. For a moment I thought he was working alone, because the guy had already advanced a lot and was very good, only he must have forgotten that we should be doing this together.

That way it would look like I didn't do almost anything, because I really haven't. The project would be practically his. So I'd make some small changes so that this project would also have a face of mine.

When I finished presenting the sketch, I began to indicate the modifications we would make. I confess that I thought Miguel wouldn't like my remarks or think I was implying that it hadn't turned out to be good, I don't know, I waited for some backlash, but he didn't.

We started to modify one thing and another and so we went to the end of the day. We hadn't finished yet yet we were well ahead of schedule. The sketch was reshaped and ready, now we had the most laborious part ahead, the creation had to come out of the sketch and create life.

***

We're already in the fourth week we're working together. And by God, how stubborn Miguel is like a mule! Although he is talented, he can be annoying in the extreme. Sometimes I want to jump down his throat and rip every golden thread out of his beard with tweezers to see if he was no longer unbearable.

The guy's persistent as hell and tries to be persuasive about me. We disagree on a lot of things all the time and after so much hard work, we are finally in the final stretch to finish the project.

Oh, but if life were that simple, it wouldn't be life. Something had to happen, it wasn't possible to end it that easy.

As soon as we arrived in the morning and we were already buried in work only once again, which is nothing new, we disagree on one more thing. Now we're at a standstill. No one wants to give in or agree with the other. There's so little left to finish, but this creature doesn't understand.

I want to do it my way because I'm sure it's going to get better, more modern and attractive. However this thing does not understand. Miguel wants it to be his way, sexist , just because he's a man he thinks he's better than me. And being the boss's darling, you think I've got to abide by what he wants. Only he's sorely mistaken if he thinks I'm going to give in to his whims.

And we are discussing again only that this time the discussion was more heated, because both are in very exalted spirits. Miguel was sitting on the wall between his desk and mine and constantly passed his hand on his hair as a sign of stress.

I, on the other hand, was running around the room, trying to think of a way to calm me down and civilly resolve this situation. However nothing came into my mind and every time I heard the voice of the lord-I-i-do-owner-of-reason I would be more irded.

Why did he have to be so hard-headed? Just agree and we'd get it over with. But no, he had to make it difficult!

- Look, why do we have to keep prolonging this? You know I'm going to get my way. You practically did the whole sketch, why can't you agree with me now? I told you.

I know we changed a lot of sketchstuff, but I tried my luck to see if he cooperated with me.

You don't even come up with that talk on me. We redid it again, so this one doesn't stick. And no, I don't agree with your way, let's not do it like that. You know it's not the best option. - he said staring at me with a serious countenance.

Oh, you! You think you're the owner of the truth and I must blindly obey you. I'm the one who doesn't agree with you and not the other way around, you arrogant.

You're crazy, you can only. I never said I was the owner of the truth. And i never, at any time have I overlaptided with you. I don't know where you got those ideas. -he raised his tone of voice.

You overlapped. All the time he talked to me like I didn't know what I was doing or worse, like I was stupid. - said stop wandering around the room and staring into his eyes.

He looked at me with an indignant countenance. Your eyebrows arched so much, I thought you'd find your hairy choir.

You're impossible! I'm not going to waste my time arguing with you anymore. I'm going to talk to Anthoni. Because there's no way with you. I said.

Miguel couldn't tell Anthoni, because this idiot and I would lose points in evaluating the performance of teamwork, because we haven't reached an agreement and we're still fighting.

That would suck. And I couldn't let that happen, not after I've put up with that bag all this time. He's not getting out of here if I really have to stop him.

When Miguel was on his way to the door I called him, he was still holding the doorknob when he turned to look at me. So I ran and jumped on it. I locked my legs at her waist and with the impact of the weight her back slammed against the door.

He looked at me like I was a seven-headed animal, but I didn't care. I grabbed his neck with as much force as I had and wouldn't let go until he gave up going to anthoni. I don't know what happened to me at the time, I just know that when I realized I'd already done it and now I couldn't go back.

What are you doing, lost your mind? What good do you please leave me! - asked exasperated as he pulled me by the waist trying to get me off him.

- I'm not going to let you go until you give up on going to Anthoni. I said desperate.

Of course I'm going to talk to him, we haven't got anywhere so far and you can't stop me. - he said angry.

That said, I've increased the grip around your body even more. Already out of the way, he pulled my arms from his neck and spun us so that I would have my back to the wall near the door. Miguel easily held them aloft against the wall with one hand and with the other tried to release one of my legs from his torso.

That's when it all went off. It happened too fast so we could avoid it. In fact, this could have been avoided if I hadn't acted so irrationally.

While we were starring in our little show, the door of the room was suddenly opened and, Anthoni with the presence of three more pairs of eyes caught us in the act.

They were three women, the oldest appeared to be about forty-five years old, but had a very well-maintained skin to envy. The other two women appeared to be in their early thirties.

I observed everything frozen in the same position, but I had forgotten that it was still stuck in a certain person. As we went into shock because we were surprised, literally not moving, we seemed to be petrified.

Then returning consciousness I let go of my legs that were around him, and Miguel also seemed to come back to himself and let go of my arms and we got as far away from each other.

I didn't know what to do, I was speechless and it looks like the drooling too. Miguel said nothing to fix the damage. Anthoni, who seemed extremely shocked by our behavior, interrupted the awkward silence by saying he would have a conversation with us at another time.

I froze at the time because I knew what he was thinking. Even if nothing really happened, it didn't seem like it. Anthoni always valued discipline and decency in the workplace, meaning we were both very screwed.

However before anything else was said, one of the women, the oldest of the group, questioned our boss.

Well, what's that Anthoni? Don't tell me you're going to scold the lovebirds just because they were making out? Back in college you never thought it was bad when we did the same thing between library shelves. And look, there was a sacred place for literature lovers just like you. - she said without even caring that she was exposing her personal lives.

- This is not the environment for these things. By God, this is a serious company! Anthony answered it while talking to us.

Oh, spare me the good sermon. They are young, beautiful and have all this sexual tension hovering in the air. Besides, they're on lunch time, aren't they? So they can do whatever they want in that time. - she retorts without being shaken.

Anthoni frowned, disgusted by the course of the conversation.

I know how we're going to make a deal and close the deal. I've got a great idea, and I bet you're going to love it. - she said it and pulled him by the arm toward the door.

After everyone was left but me and Miguel, we faced each other in a strange and embarrassing way and, as nothing could be undone we sat in our respective places and waited until Anthoni called us to solve this situation.

We didn't continue the project, I think we were both too tired and apprehensive to do anything. The hours passed and we had not yet been called. I was scared to death what would happen and all this waiting wasn't helping at all.