Zero Forks - Cat Johnson Page 0,67
away, but it might as well have been a thousand miles. At least that’s what it felt like having to say goodbye to her every Monday morning when she left for work, and then counting down the days until Friday night when she’d be back in Mudville.
I didn't mind staying with her in the room she rented at Mudville House on weekends, but after living with her and sharing her bed every night for six months, seeing her only three nights a week sucked.
But that all was about to change. Tonight.
Something else would be changing tonight as well, if I was lucky.
Just as Sarah said goodbye and disconnected the call with her sister, the presenter for the evening took the stage.
“Showtime,” I whispered, laying my hand on her back to let her know, win or lose, I was there with her.
Kim rubbed her hands together. “Here we go. Good luck, everybody.”
I saw Sarah’s boss, Mr. Rockland, standing along the wall. Either he was too nervous to sit, or the man was so confident they were going to win, he was up and ready to take the stage. After having met the man twice now, I voted for the latter.
The presenter read the names of the nominees.
A short fifteen-second ad clip from each nominee played on the big screen.
It might have been Jerry's Mars idea they'd used, but I saw Sarah's influence in it. No longer was it a whacky space version of an outdated family dynamic. In the final commercial, the husband was in the kitchen with the wife and the child as they all cooked as a family using the MOD device to search for recipes on the screen that was built into the fridge door while watching a show playing on a tablet on the counter.
I cheered extra loudly for Sarah's company's commercial. Then it was time to announce the winner.
“And the award for new product campaign of the year goes to . . . Premiere Advertising for the MOD.”
I was watching Sarah, not the presenter, when he said the name. Her eyes went wide. She turned open mouthed toward me. “We won.”
“Yes, you did.” I laughed at her shock, even though I was pissed that even though it was Sarah and needle dick’s campaign, the boss got to take the stage to accept the award and make the acceptance speech.
I watched as he made his way to the mic where he basically took full credit for the work I knew he’d done none of.
He doled out some praise to Jerry by name for being the driving force behind the Super Bowl commercial which had, as he put it, put NetOne’s new MOD product on the map. Sarah he threw in at the end with a thanks for her work on the social media portion.
My blood boiled. I’d heard that expression before, but I’d never felt it until now. “Son of a—”
Sarah laid her hand on my arm, stopping me from owing a big contribution to the swear jar I’d kept going over the past year, even after Stewie moved back home.
“Boone, it doesn’t matter. A win is good for all of us. The whole company. It doesn’t matter who did what.”
That didn’t mean she shouldn’t get the credit she deserved for being the driving force behind an incredibly successful social media campaign that the client had told her was getting ten times ROI on Facebook ads.
Yes, I now knew about things like return on investment. I enjoyed talking to Sarah about her work.
I’d enjoy it even more when she was working from Mudville instead of driving back and forth each weekend.
Once the congratulations and general all-around backslapping at our table was done, Sarah leaned forward to touch her boss’s arm. “Mr. Rockland. I actually have something I’d like to speak to you about.”
“Now?” he asked, frowning.
“It seems like as good a time as any,” she said.
I had to agree. I knew what she was going to say. I was surprised she’d chosen now to do it, but I was all for it. One hundred percent. Strike while the iron was hot. Hit up the boss while he was still glowing with the win.
She stiffened her back, sitting up ramrod straight as she began, “I’d like to start working remotely. Of course, I’d be available for travel, and client meetings, and I could come into the office when absolutely necessary, but I honestly believe I can be just as productive, if not more so, working from home.”
He shook