"I really think I should cut down on the number of meetings I have in a day, '' Noel said to his secretary beside him, who was finding it hard to keep up with his pace.
"You really should sir. That way, you would have more time to concentrate on other things" the secretary responded.
"By 'other things', what exactly do you mean Magdalene?" He asked, raising an eyebrow
Magdalene hesitated before speaking. She knew her boss didn't like hearing such things but she was the only one in the office who was brave enough to tell him..
"By other things, I mean going on vacations, enjoying the beauty of life and even possibly finding a wife. You work too hard sir"
Magdalene was interrupted by the beeping her boss' smart wristwatch
"Aheem Magdalene. I would have to stop you right there. I have a meeting in the next ten minutes. Please see to it that the hall is prepared" Noel said, walking out on Magdalene.
Noel, the British bachelor, loved nothing more than a cup of coffee every morning. He, however, never had the time to make one for himself. He was always at one meeting or another every single time. He briskly walked into his office, still thinking about what his secretary had just said. He was a hopeless romantic as all the ladies he approached kept leaving with the excuse of "you would choose your work over me!"
"Yes, ladies! I will choose my work over y'all" he said out loud to no one in particular.
"Ten minutes. Ten minutes. Let's see what's making the headlines on the news today"
~Man wakes up to a snake in his house.
~From nothing to something. Woman becomes a millionaire overnight.
~Scientists rejoice as they discover a new form of sortable coffee.
"A new form of what now?" Noel said out loud once again."These scientists are just something else."
He was interrupted by a knock on his door.
"You may enter," he announced. Magdalene walked in
"Everything has been put in place sir. The guests have arrived."
"Marvellous. How about the refreshments?"
"We ordered coffee from your favourite cafe for the guests and for you too sir."
"That's amazing Magdalene, I just hope they like it. Thank you very much. I will see you after the meeting."
Noel starts trudging towards the meeting room. As he opens the door, he finds all the guests seated but something was off as they were all smiling. They never smiled.
"Oh Noel, you have been keeping this from us for so long" one guest said point at the cup of coffee in front of him, all smiles.
"I..I do not know what you're talking about" Noel stuttered. He started to think that this was some form of prank. The strictest and most tightfisted company representatives in the world were in his hall, all smiles. This was going to be an easy deal, he said.
"Welcome ladies and gentlemen. Let's get straight to the point. Your company has something and my company wants that thing. I know that a million companies out there also want it but we are ready to…"
"It's all yours" the man in charge said, interrupting Noel.
"It's all mine? We didn't even bargain the price"
"Like I said, it's all yours. Or would you like me to take back my statement?"
"No. Not at all" Noel said, trying to hide the imminent happiness in his tone."I would like you to sign a few documents and we're done". He said, passing the document to the man in charge. In less than a minute, all the documents were signed.
"Alright ladies and gentlemen, we can now enjoy our coffee as this was the best deal I have ever signed." Noel said.
He made to carry his coffee that he had been ignoring for a while and right beside his coffee cup was a little note.
I know you must have seen the news about the new development in the coffee world. Trust me, this is the best thing that has happened in ages and I'm certain you would love this coffee. Give it a try. –love, Annabelle
Annabelle was his very good friend. More like, the only friend he could trust and she was in charge of his coffee. She worked at the cafe close to Noel's office.
Noel looked up to the guests in the room, they were all so happy and joyous but in a different way. He brought out his phone to read the news again …"Ahah! There it is.…snortable". Noel always liked that word to drugs. Maybe one chemical constituent was coke.
"Ladies and gentlemen, it has been a great time with you but I have to take my leave." Noel announced before storming out of the hall. His joy dissolved gradually.
"Magdalene!" He yelled. Magdalene appeared
"Send a message to Annabelle. Tell her that I didn't like the coffee served today and I would like to go back to the regular and 'old' coffee. And come back with a cup of the 'old' type of coffee for me. You're dismissed"
"Yes sir" Magdalene said as she hurried off.
At his office, Noel didn't know which feeling was dominating. Was he happy that he had just bagged a deal that many other companies wanted or was he sad that the coffee Annabelle sent may have influenced the guests decision . Nothing that a sip of his favourite coffee cannot solve, he thought as Magdalene brought in his cup of coffee.
"We would figure this out, Noel. We would." the little voice in his head said as he took a sip. Genuine.