First Impressions

My boss had given me a very ambitious deadline and I was trying to figure out how I was going to meet it. Patrick came over and introduced me to his replacement.  Wouldn't you know it, it was Sharon?  I have a very bad habit of being too focused on my tasks.  I was preoccupied as we were introduced.  But to this day I still remember that smile that seemed to light up the entire room.   Her smile could melt a glacier.  I was short and to the point and knowing myself, I probably said something that I thought was funny.   Patrick told me that she would be coming to me for her training.  I was responsible for the financial systems and I also doubled as the trainer.  I told Patrick that he could also train her, but that I would make time.  So I scheduled it with Sharon.

So I guess I really made an impression on her.  Some time after they left, Patrick came by to see me.  He said, "Great going, Sherlock.  She wants me to train her as she thinks you are too arrogant and over confident.  But I told her that you are an excellent trainer."

Later in that day, Sharon came by for her training.  We started to talk and she noticed my pictures on my desk.  There were three, my family, my current soccer team that I coached and the little girl that I took care of.  She told me that she was Hawaiian, Japanese, Chinese, and English.  Sharon told me about her large Hawaiian family, about her Mom and Dad, her brothers, and cousins.  It was supposed to be a two-hour training session, but it lasted until it was time to leave.  Time just flew by and I was surprised at the ease at which we both were.  I was impressed by how she spoke of her goals and that she knew what she wanted. She told me she wanted to buy a house or condo in Westlake Village.  But I was I really touched by how she spoke about her family and how important they were to her.  Sharon was beautiful, but what struck me the most, was the more I got to know about her, the more beautiful she became.  As she said goodbye, I couldn't help think that in all that time, never was there once a mention of a boyfriend.  That night I couldn't help but think about her and wondered if was thinking about me as well.  I had this feeling in the pit of my stomach that I just couldn't shake.

Our First Glance

It was late October and there was a buzz around the office today.  Everyone was talking about the young woman in the lobby, especially the guys.  She was supposed to be transferring in from one of our other offices.  I happened to walk by our CIO's office and there she was.  I smiled at her and she smiled back.  She had an incredible smile, it would light up an entire room.  There was something very different about her.  She was wearing a flower pattern outfit,  I believe the correct term was a skort (part shorts/part skirt).  She was tall, mostly legs with shoulder-length brown hair.  By looking at her, she could have passed for a multitude of nationalities.  She looked exotic, like she was a mixture of Asian and Caucasian.   One of my friends asked me, "Isn't she beautiful?".  I quickly remarked that I thought she was ok, not wanting to reveal what I really thought.  He shot me a quizzical look to let me know he didn't believe me.  As I walked away, I couldn't help feel that there was something familiar about her and I was certain that I had seen her before.

Later that day, I saw her with Patrick, who was the assistant to the CIO and was transferring to another area. I asked about her.  He told me that her name is Sharon and she would be taking his place.  He also added that she was taken and was engaged to someone high up.  I kept thinking about her and how beautiful she was and thought to myself, it’s too bad she is taken.