.  .  .May .  . .  Monday 23rd  .  .  .

Joy strolled out the elevator door more wary than she had been before. You’ve kept this power forgotten,Joy reminds herself, you can control it at free will.She strides past Ginger who was chatting with Tara Biker. Joy walks backwards back to the duo.

“Is there something up with the lunch room?” Joy asks.

Tara laughs at her.

“Nope.” Tara said.  “We’ve got one thing in common.”

“Which is?” Joy said, raising an eyebrow.

“Laufeysun.” Ginger said.

Joy rubs her chin, with a questionable look on her face towards the duo.

“.  . . Are you intentionally saying his name wrong?”  Joy asks, tilting her head to the side. She straightens her head upwards momentarly after. “I know you are not from another country, Ginger.”

“That’s what his name spells.” Ginger insists.

“No it spelled Lau-fey-son.” Joy said. “L-a-u-f-e-y-s-o-n.”

Tara takes a sheet of paper out of her back and then slides it forward on the table. There is this ‘I have proof’ determined look in her eyes. Joy looks down still unable to believe what they were saying is perhaps true. Loki had spelled his name incorrectly despite how often he corrected people saying his name wrong. Joy rubs her eyes then looks back at the paper.

“Hey Joy.” Hank said. “Your Jeep’s flying in the internet.”

Joy turns her head towards the direction of Hank’s voice.

“I don’t follow.” Joy said, blinking.

What the hell is up with Hanks hair?, Joy notices Hank’s hair is different; very different, very spikey. Though what really startles her is the new hair color Hank has changed his hair.Has the world gone mad? That’s probably what happened after being dumped into the ocean with a 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

“Your Jeep has a ‘z’ marking engraved on the side.” Hank said, taking out a flat easy to carry device from his desk drawer. He holds it up in her view.  “I don’t forget when a woman single handily ruin their vehicle with car keys while under the influence.”

Joy slides the paper forwards towards Tara with wide eyes.

“So  Farrell didn’t do it.” Joy said, in a low ashamed voice.  “That’s the internet.”  She points at the screen. One way to deny it’s her vehicle is by pointing out facts.  “You can’t always believe what’s on the internet.”

Tara and Ginger were giggling at her unwelcome moment of self-realization.

“So someone on the internet has done the impossible?” Hank asks. “That’s not possible.”

“Photoshop.” Joy said, turning away with  the black bag loosely hanging over her  right shoulder somewhat.  “That’s what makes it possible.”

She heads down the wide space between the rows of cubicles—work hour hadn’t officially started yet—with co-workers socializing. Thank goodness I didn’t get a cut on my forehead, Joy thought heading down towards her customized cubicle. She had a black bag with her. When she reached the cubicle; Joy put the bag on the table first; took out a pepper spray, a desktop cover that was a big yellow bird, new paper, and new set of pens.

“Why did you leave me your candy box?” Loki asks, standing at the side of the cubicle.

Joy lifts her head up towards Loki; The man who Odin claimed she had met before. Gods did have an odd way of introducing themselves to her. I don’t believe it for a second, Joy thought while taking off the lion king decoration off the computer.

“Well, you were groaning in the backseat,” Joy said with a sheepish shrug.  “And I figured since men do like candy like women do; why not?”  Loki’s eyebrows met each other like a bridge. “At least you didn’t complain after I threw it.”

Loki lowers one of his eyebrows as though doing a ‘eh?’ look.

“You threw it?” Loki asks.

“I threw it over my shoulder and it hit your back.” Joy said, putting the lion king decoration on the table. “Your face was on a spare pillow in the backseat.” Joy puts the yellow bird decoration over the computer then puts the lion king item into her black bag. “I didn’t figure men drooled that much when unconscious.”

Loki puts one hand on his chin.

“I do not drool.” Loki objects.

“Mr.Laufeyson, I can bring the drool stained pillow.” Joy offers, as Loki’s hand lowers away from his chin. She pressed the power button to her computer.   “And then you can see it.”

“Rather not.” Loki said.

“Good for you.” Joy said, sitting down completely in her chair.

The chair’s dark purple cushion felt cozy to Joy.The hard black stiff metal arms to the desk chair with five wheels at the bottom had the same effect to Joy. This cozy cushion made the unpleasant mixed feelings Joy had from the Jeep and the disastrous Saturday wash away.

“And thanks to your ‘yuck’ prank,” Loki goes on. “I have a stubborn woman popping up on my screen for a male role model job.”

“Oh?” Joy said. “Isn’t that a good opportunity for you, Mr.I-spell-my-name-wrong?”

“I do not spell my name wrong.” Loki said, folding his arms.  

Joy laughs shaking her head.

“I meant your last name.” Joy said, with a giggle as the business screen came to life. “Instead of completing the ‘o’, you leave it as ‘u’.” Joy refills the black curly pencil stand with the pens and slides the pepper item close to the computer. “I don’t know times you’ve written your own name, but, that’s not a nice habit to live on when people call you by your last name.”

Loki stood there like someone had told him that he had spelled ‘Justice League’ wrong.

“I’ve made my point.” Joy said.

As though luck had been sewn into today;  the boss—the guy who hired everyone—came walking out  the elevator with a very business attitude on his face. As he went by some of the co-workers; his presence somehow made paper fly in different directions after he had went by. He came to the reception desk.

The boss is no other than Charol Shipton.

“Your neck tie isn’t tied.”Charol hastily told Hank’s friend Elliot.

Elliet is busy staring at Charol—who he hadn’t seen in a long time—with curious eyes. Charol grabs the microphone that was under the counter then pressed the small black button with the microphone on his mouth.

“This is an announcement for floor 19, and if you’ve forgotten who I am—frankly, you probably did--; I am the cheeky boss who doesn’t give a rat’s behind about you all getting sick from vacation.” Charol said, as all eyes were on him. “At 11:20, everyone on this floor is subject to questioning from some very important people.”

Charol looks around.

“.  .  .Don‘t tell me you all lazy butts forgot my name.”  Charol said, earning a slow nod from everyone.  “I am Charol Shipton, head of the customer Service at Floor 19, and you better write my name down.” He points to the floor with much emphasis to his name. “Because next time—just next time—when you are getting on the danger of getting fired; you better acknowledge me correctly. It’s not Carol.” Charol pauses.  “And if you want to keep your job; don’t post memes about my name. Have a good lousy day.”

Charol puts down the microphone and leaves the floor.

Our scene flies off to 11:15 AM on the same day.

We see Joy clicking ‘no’ away on ‘will you date me?’ dating offers on the screen. She has her headset plugged into the computer. Loki is seen visibly amused by what he had done to her computer.  Loki did this!, Joy thought with much anger as she clicked harder and harder. She goes to account settings on the ‘boothesk’ page then clicked the ‘deactivate  account’ option.

“Done.” Joy said, with a sigh.

It wasn’t romantic much to be pranked back by a god of mischief.           

“Oh yes.” Joy said, as a name flicked into her head. “I keep forgetting to make this call.”

We can tell the phone machine across from the pencil stand is not ringing. Joy picks up her small phone—that is digitally connected to the headset unlike the computer—then clicks on a name outlined in faint purple that read ‘Mr.Carter-is-a-liar’. Joy puts down the phone device near to the keyboard.

Three rings later, Carter answered the phone.

“Hey sis!” Carter said, chipper.  “What you calling about?”

“I am not your sister.” Joy said.  “Jake knew, Oratio knew, and Linda knew. She even had it on paper."

“Hold your horses there, sis.” Carter said, probably shaking his hand on the other end.  “Why are you calling Mom by her first na—“

“We’re not related.” Joy said.  “You knew it too.” Her voice had a sneer to it. “Did Linda tell you who they stole me from?”

We overhear a sigh from Carter’s end.

“Pops made me swear not to tell.” Carter said. “Not after what happened at  the park. There were search parties going on in the woods; we almost thought you were dead.” He spoke ‘dead’ like a heavy word. “You came at the door like magic had been done and so happy like nothing had happened. It was then Mom and Pops enrolled you into home school; remember home school? Remember how everyone looked at you like a freak?”

“I remember.” Joy said.

“And remember how scared you were when a black man in golden armor came returning a pair of glasses?” Carter asks.

“.  .  I didn’t lose glasses.” Joy denied.

“Joy.” Carter said. “We were at the Zoo with home-schoolers. Somehow, along the way home from wherever you were, you lost your glasses. You were so scared of the golden black guy at first that you hid behind me.  I swear; he was like a gigantic shining tower!”

Joy recalls the shiny yellowness that had a bright glint to it with tree’s to the side. It was like a fragment of memory that had returned. All she had remembered was the tall golden figure handing a pair of small glasses—that somehow were taken—back to her.

“Pops told me it was a good choice not tell you about your mother.” Carter said.  “I didn’t want my little sister to get scared again about who she was.”

Joy’s lips flatten into a frown.  

“No Carter.” Joy  said, tapping her fingers on the surface below her keyboard. She didn’t sound happy to say this. “I don’t understand how keeping back important information about my real—dead, I should add-- mother is a good idea.”

Our scene zooms back to Ginger, Donna, Loki’s cubicle’s; there was a break going on because these important people will be here in four minutes tops. Ginger is tapping her fingers on the top edge of her vehicle that divided her working space from Loki’s.Loki is clicking on the de-activate account button on the zoondesk page that keeps coming up ‘request failed’ multiple times in a row.

 “Carter just told the prankster something like a stall.”  Ginger informs Loki.

Loki looks away from the computer screen with his right hand still gripped on the keyboard mouse.

“What truth?” Loki asks.  “I’ve not heard of this ‘Carter’.”

“I don’t know.” Ginger said, with a head shake. “But it’s obvious.” She looks down towards Loki.  “You’re the new guy, so, it’s totally okay you don’t know who ‘Carter’ is. He’s her brother; well, one of Joy’s brothers.” Ginger makes a sad sigh. “Her brother Jake is so rude. Jake acts as though Joy isn’t his sister. Jake was here last year with Carter trying to persuade her into going out to Hawaii.”

 “Didn’t you say he  knows she’s not his sister?” Loki asks.

“No.” Ginger said.  “You are twisting my words!” Ginger shook her index finger. “She was working a lot that year, things got tough with mom and dad.Everyone on this floor knew she needed time off from taking care of the poor old lady. Joy was taking care of her mother and refused to leave.” Ginger looks down to her hands.  “Now that her mom’s died,” Ginger looks back up. “It’s like the Joy from two years ago just got back from vacation.”

Our perspective returns to Joy’s conversation with Carter.

 “You’ll prefer to tell me face to face,” Joy repeats what he had said. “I hope you’re not stalling.”

“I am not.” Carter said.  “See you on Friday.”

The end went cold on Joy’s part of the conversation.She takes off the headset.