Young Writers Society

Lacey moved to Calumet because she wanted a fresh start. The rent was low and the jobs were good, or so said everyone else. She’d left high school really knowing what she wanted to do with her life, and she’d just left college feeling just as clueless. Sarah, her best friend since both girls could first walk, was mystified. Calumet was the kind of town that people left, not the kind people moved to. Kay Washington, a prominent senator and rising star of the Democratic party, grew up there. But she’d left and never longer looked back as soon as she’d graduated high school. And Sarah had always dreamed of something more out of life. That she was destined for greatness, so to speak. Lacey was content to live simply. Own a house and be a wife and a mother. That wasn’t wrong. It shouldn’t have been wrong, anyway.

Her father helped her find a place, and she’d eventually settled on a simple studio a half mile walk from main street. She’d spent a lot of her savings from the toy store on decorating it. Her father had protested, but she ignored him. This was her home, the start of her adult life. She’d needed to make it her own. Lots of yellow and soft blue. Above her bed was a framed poster of Gone With the Wind. She hadn’t seen the movie in years, but it was a reminder of her mother. To always be strong, no matter what.

She spent much of the first few days exploring town. There were a few family owned shops, and on the edge of town there was the required Starbucks and McDonalds. It wasn’t necessarily pretty, but it was clean. It was summer and much of Calumet’s ten thousand residents seemed to be enjoying it. But after a few weeks, she started to feel lonely. Sarah was a two hour’s drive away, and while they promised they’d see each other, she was busy with her nonprofit work and they hadn’t been able to find a time yet. Lacey saw how determined and focused her friend was and she wished she had some of that herself. She wished she knew what she wanted to do with her life, to begin with.

But her savings were quickly dwindling and she needed to find a job, dream or not. She didn’t particularly enjoy math, but she was good at it. After a month of aimlessness, she saw a local payroll company, Anderson Associates, advertising an opening for a data entry clerk, so she sent in her resume. To her surprise, they called her in for an interview.

The office itself seemed to be the textbook definition of stereotypical. What Lacey always imagined when she thought of people at work. A bald, pudgy man in his mid-forties greeted her in the reception area. He introduced himself as Pete, and led her to his office. They walked by an incredibly attractive young man who looked like a real life version of Prince Eric. He smiled at her as they walked by and Pete closed the door.

He had her resume printed out on his desk. “So, Lacey, tell me about yourself,” he said.

“I grew up in Greenville,” Lacey said. “Only child. Did drama in high school. Went to school for English. Now I’m here.”

“What are some of the plays you did?”

“I was in the Chorus for Les Miserables. Then I was Anne Frank. That was fun. Well not fun. But I’m glad I did it.”

“What is it you want to do with your life?”

“I haven’t quite figured that out yet,” Lacey said, feeling herself blush. A lot of people were asking her that lately, and she needed to think of a better answer.

“Why should I hire you?”

“I’m very organized and attentive. I worked a toy store in college. I had to work a lot with numbers there.”

“Honestly, Lacey,” Pete said. “We just need you to keep track of all of the business we do with clients. Make sure they match up with our books and there’s no errors. It’s easy. Not exciting, but easy. And there’s potential for you to move up if this turns out to be a good fit.”

“That sounds good to me,” Lacey replied.

“You’re certainly qualified for the position. I just wanted to make sure I liked you.” Then Pete stood up, and shook her hand. “Can you start Monday?”

Lacey nodded. “Absolutely.”

“Well, I’ll take you back to meet everyone. Follow me.” They stopped at Prince Eric’s desk. “This is Jack, my assistant.”

Jack stood up and shook Lacey’s hand. His grip was firm. “Pleasure,” he said.

“I’m Lacey.”

“Lacey’s going to be helping Kelly out in accounting,” Pete explained.

“Did he tell you he went to high school with Kay Washington?” Jack asked.

Lacey shook her head.

“He did. He asked her out on a date once, and she turned him down.” A mischievous smile curled onto Jack’s lips. Lacey thought about what it would be like to kiss them, and then told herself to snap out of it.

“Alright, enough,” Pete said, clearly blushing. He then turned to Lacey, showing her the wedding ring on his finger. “I’ve been happily married for twenty years. But it is true.”

Jack smiled as they left. Pete then took her to meet Kelly, a pretty Asian woman who was a few years older than she was. As Pete explained, she was too good for them because she went to Harvard. Lacey wondered why she was working at such a place if she had graduated from Harvard, but she decided not to ask questions. There were about ten other employees in the office, but they all seemed to be middle aged, and she found them all fairly forgettable. Already, she couldn’t stop thinking about Jack.

Lacey got home and called her father, who was ecstatic. Ever since the first day she’d moved to Calumet, he’d constantly badgered her about her progress in finding employment. “It’s not that exciting of a job,” Lacey explained.

“Still, it’s full time. And it could lead to something in the future. I’m so proud of you, honey,” he said. “I’ve got to go. Annie’s got dinner ready.”

“Okay.”

“Thanks for calling. Love you.” He hung up, and Lacey turned to face her Gone With the Wind poster. It had been eight years since her mother had been gone. Her brother Nate was fourteen now, and he barely remembered his mother. When Lacey was seventeen her father had met Annie, a local pediatrician who had no children of her own. Two years later they’d married, and while her father seemed happy, things just weren’t the same.

Lacey opened her laptop and tried to find something to watch. But she wasn’t in the mood for anything, and simply laid down on her bed and scrolled through her phone. That was when an article popped up. “Dave Andrews announces candidacy for President of the United States.” Lacey clicked on the article. Andrews was 40, and if he was elected, he’d be the youngest person to win, behind JFK and Teddy Roosevelt. He was handsome and he had a beautiful family. A year earlier, he’d lost a senate race in his home state. Still, everyone pressured him to run, and -- until tonight -- he continued to deny that he would.

Lacey watched his speech. She remembered learning about Kennedy in school, and something about Andrews reminded her of him. It was nothing short of inspirational. The election was over a year away, but Lacey imagined a future where he was president instead of John Shannon, and the future didn’t seem so bleak.