Non-regulation shoes -- Gillian (38)

I leaned back against the cubicle wall. My hair was out of place, my shirt was wet with sweat, and one shoe had fallen off somewhere. I hit my head softly against the wall. So much for seeming cool and collected.

There was a gentle knock on the door. I looked throught the crack in the door and saw Ellen standing outside in her black suit. Standard recruiter gear. I looked down and caught sight of some definintley non-regulation shoes. They were pointy-toed.

I stood up and slid back the lock. The door openned to reveal Ellen, standing holding my shoe.

"Thanks," I said quietly, taking the modest flat and sliding it onto my foot. "I have no idea how you'd run in those boots." I laughed, gesturing to her shoes.

Ellen lifted a pant leg and twisted her leg, revealing one of the coolest pairs of boots ever. Also one of the most uncomfortable looking. She must have noticed the lok on my facebecause she laughed. "The future is awesome in more ways than one," she said, dropping her pant leg.

Sensing an uncomfortable silence, I walked over to the sink and turned it on, splashing some cool water on my face. There was a cup dispenser on the wall, so I grabbed a cup and filled it with water. Ellen sat down on the granite counter and leaned against the mirror. She narrowly missed hitting her head against the old-fashioned light fixture on the wall. Crisp, white towels were hanging in stainless steel rings near the sinks. I grabbed one and dried my hands.

"I did the same thing," Ellen said suddenly. I was confused until she continued. "Those advortuans just set my stomach over the top," she swallowed hard, remembering. 'They do squirm on the way down, don't they?"

"On the way up, too," I said, making her laugh.

"Well, let's hope that these ones aren't as squirmy," she said, opening her fist to reveal two of the advortuans. "C'mon," she encouraged, "I got you some smaller ones. They don't squirm as much." She produced a croisant and handed it to me. "I added jam, since you seem to like it," she teased. I openned the croisant and stuffed the advortuans in on top of the blackcurrant jam.

"See?" said Ellen once I'd swallowed, "They don't squirm as much."

I smiled grimly. "Relatively speaking," I replied.

Ellen hopped down from the counter. "You ok to go now?" she checked her watch. "We don't have a lot of time..."

I forced a smile onto my face. "I'll survive," I said brightly.

"For the next five minutes, anyway," Ellen replied, holding the bathroom door open for me.

* * *

Once we got to the end of the hallway, Ellen stopped. "I'll get your things," she said, "but you should go straight to the departure lounge." A woman in a suit identical to hers stepped up to us. "Narien will take you there. I'll see you a few minutes." She walked away, toward the dining room.

"This way, please," Narien gestured down a hallway to our left. I followed her down the hall. "Is it a long walk?" I asked her. She shrugged. "Not really. Depends on how short your legs are." Her eyes were laughing. This must have been one of Ellen's friends. I hadn't met many recruiters, but they didn't usually make jokes.

I looked down at Narien's feet in front of me. Sticking out the back were thin, black heels. I smiled, thinking of Ellen's comment about the future. I couldn't wait.