Surprise Love-a short story by Austin Mitchell

Surprise Love

by

Austin Mitchell

          There couldn’t be two people more different than Chloe Bryan and Dennis Reid.  It wasn’t their height or their complexion or their body type. Truth to be told he was tall and she was tall and both were thin. They were both working for Obrien and Charley, Public Accountants.

            “Dennis Reid, why are you looking at me like that?” Chloe asked.

            “How am I looking at you, Chloe?”

            “As if you’re angry with me because I told you to stop drinking and smoking.”

            Both had just finished having lunch and were sitting outside under a large tree in front of the company’s offices.

            Marjorie Reece and Jack Beacon came and sat beside them.

            “I’ve never seen you two and you’re not quarrelling,” Marjorie remarked.

            “They must be in love,” Jack put in.

            “Dennis doesn’t need a girlfriend. He takes out his sorrows in liquor and cigarettes. I doubt if he know what the inside of a nightclub looks like,” Chloe jibed.

            “So I smoke and I drink. Do you think I used to do those things by myself. I used to go around with a lot of friends. It’s just because things are so tough now why I’m not partying all that much.”

            “Even if things weren’t that tough you still wouldn’t be partying, Dennis,” Jack said.

            “What do you know, Jack? A bar’s as good as a nightclub. Sure, you might not be dancing, but at least you’re meeting people and enjoying yourself,” Dennis put in.

            “In a nightclub you have more atmosphere and lots more people.  I would never go to a bar. If I wanted to enjoy myself, I’d go to a party or a nightclub,” Marjorie opined.

            “Some nightclubs can be quite stifling because of the crowds,” Jack countered.

            Just then Bridget Charles joined them. She was tall and very pretty and was going on twenty five years of age.

            “Weston, Lurline and Rene just got their letters of dismissal,” she told them.

            All of them were expecting it.

            Weston Geddes had worked with the firm for under a year and there were numerous complaints about his work. He drove a car and the back was always full of files, but he had never managed to complete a job on his own, which was a bad sign. He had gotten numerous warnings about his performance. Lurline Gabay and Rene Distant were just finishing up their probationary three month’s period and it was generally agreed that they had both performed below expectations.

            “Weston came here as a senior from one of the big four firms in the island. I just can’t understand why he can’t do a job,” Jack remarked.

            “It’s Lurline and Rene I’m sorry for,” Bridget put in.

            “I saw both of them just sitting there staring into space. If they didn’t understand why didn’t they go to a senior,” Marjorie said.

            Lunch time was up and they all went back to work. That Friday, Weston, Lurline and Rene all left the organization without ceremony.  Several of their colleagues had an unofficial send off function for them at a nearby sport bar.

            On Monday, new replacements came in. They were Byron Roberts, Philbert Quarry and Allison Garfield.

            Chloe Bryan and Dennis Reid had a bitter quarrel almost resulting in both of them getting fired.

            “I’ll never speak to that guy again,” Chloe said, referring to Dennis.

            “I can’t see why both of you are so angry with each other,” Marjorie said.

            “He wanted all of the new recruits and when I told him I wanted one of them he got angry and told me that I’m behaving as if I own Obrien and Charley,” Chloe complained.

            They saw Dennis coming over, and Chloe left and went inside.

            “Why are you and Chloe at each other so much, Dennis?” Marjorie asked.

            “She’s too stubborn and wants to get her way all the time,” Dennis replied.

            Chloe came outside and heard what Dennis just said to Marjorie.

            “Dennis I’m no more thick headed than you. I’ve worked at places before and didn’t talk to several persons. I think I’ll start it here and you are the first person I’m putting on my list.”

            “Go ahead and do that as if you didn’t know that I’ve resigned.”

            “Are you going abroad to study like June and Reedy?” Marjorie asked and before giving Dennis time to answer she continued.

            “Did you hear what happened to Reedy?  Ruddy Maxwell, his girlfriend, Sylvia’s  boss, threw this big party for him when he was going away. It’s six months  since Reedy’s been away and Sylvia is pregnant for Ruddy.”

            The others turned around, shocked.

            “My God, I feel it for Reedy and he’s such a quiet guy. I hope it doesn’t interrupt his studies,” Chloe said.

            “I know Reedy did a lot for that girl. It wouldn’t surprise me if it was he who got that job for her,” Dennis put in.

            “Men can be bastardly too. Ruddy knew that Sylvia was Reedy’s girlfriend. He didn’t have to go fooling around her,” Marjorie remarked.

            “Far as I understand it, they were friends before Reedy went away. They were certainly happy to see him go,”Dennis said.

            “So, Dennis, you’ve resigned. I sure hope it wasn’t because of me,”Chloe told him.

            “Nobody can make do anything against my will. I just want to go on my own. I have about thirty clients and more will be coming my way pretty soon.”

            Six months later Dennis migrated.

            “He just left for the United States without a word to any of us,” Chloe lamented to Marjorie as they sat under the big tree in front of the office.

            “You had strong feelings for him, Chloe?”

            “We used to quarrel a lot, but I still liked him a lot.”

            “Suppose you never hear from him again?”

            “That would mean that he has found a better girl than  I. If that’s the case so be it,” Chloe said resignedly.

            A year later and Chloe left for the States. Nine months later there was pandemonium in the office as who should stroll in arm in arm, but Dennis and Chloe both sporting similar married rings. There were smiles all around for the happy couple. It was also revealed that Reedy hadn’t returned to Jamaica but had in fact married an American woman and migrated to that country. The End.