Notes: Mari and Sammy – Thank you for being such exceptional friends every day. La famiglia!
Readers and REAL McRollers – Thank you for your wonderful response to Exceptional. Your support is heartwarming and much appreciated.
Hope you enjoy!
Exceptional: Part Two (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
"I'm telling you, man, King James proved he's the greatest," Jadon said as he and Cody left the park's basketball court after shooting around.
"I'll still take Steph Curry overall," Cody countered.
"Triple double in Game 7," Jadon stressed. "That's clutch."
"I–" Cody started when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Checking the caller ID, his eyes widened. He looked up at Jadon. "It's the governor's office."
"So answer it!" Jadon said, gesturing impatiently.
Cody accepted the call, putting the phone to his ear. "Hello?"
"Cody?" The voice of Governor Denning's deputy chief of staff came over the line. "This is Marliyah Jackson."
Jadon crowded in close, trying to hear the speaker, and Cody pushed him back, mouthing, 'Dude.'
Reluctantly, Jadon stepped back but continued to watch his best friend intently.
"Cody? Are you there? Is this a bad time?"
"No, I'm sorry, Ms. Jackson, I'm here."
"I wanted to thank you for coming in to interview for a summer internship with the governor's office. We had many excellent candidates this year."
Cody's shoulders slumped, and he turned slightly so Jadon wouldn't see his disappointment.
"Oh," he said quietly.
There was a slight pause before she continued, "Which is why I'm thrilled to tell you that you are one of the two teens selected to join our staff."
Cody's head snapped up. "I … I am?"
"You are. I was very impressed with your interview last week. I think you'll make a fine addition to our team."
"I … wow." He ran a hand through his hair, amazed. "I don't know what to say"
She chuckled lightly. "Well, I hope you're going to say you'll be accepting the position."
"Yeah!" Cody said excitedly before catching himself. "I mean, yes, ma'am. Of course I will. Thank you, ma'am."
"Wonderful. We have orientation scheduled for Monday from 10:00-2:00. You'll need to bring your photo ID and your social security card along with your Certificate of Age."
Cody nodded along. "Okay. I can do that."
"We'll cover everything at orientation, but do you have any questions for me right now?"
"Um … no, I don't think so."
"Excellent. Then I'll look forward to seeing you on Monday."
"Yes, ma'am, I'll be there," he said, beaming.
"Congratulations, Cody."
"Thank you, ma'am."
Ending the call, he turned back to Jadon who wore a toothy grin.
"You got it?" his best friend asked.
"I got it."
"Ha! You got it!" He gripped Cody's hand and gave him a quick one-armed hug and back slap. " 'Course you did. I knew it all along."
Cody grinned.
Jadon poked his chest and pointed to his phone. "You gotta call SuperSEAL." Before Cody could moved, he amended, "Wait, call your mom, then call SuperSEAL. No, no, call your mom, then call Jess, then call SuperSEAL."
Cody winced. "I don't like bothering Mom at work."
"This isn't botherin', man, she's gonna wanna know."
"And Jess has got band camp."
"So text her."
"And Steve's working, what if he's got a case?"
Jadon bounced in place eagerly. "Then leave him a message, just call, man."
Cody grinned. "Okay," he said excitedly, tapping to get to the contacts on his phone.
"The Code-man …" Jadon said, nodding approvingly, "working for the man."
Cody rolled his eyes, but couldn't contain his smile as he put his phone back to his ear and waited for an answer. "Hey, Mom, sorry to call at work, but … guess what?"
That evening, the Allens along with Jadon and Jess met Danny, Grace, Chin, and Kono for an impromptu celebratory dinner at Steve and Catherine's.
"It's so great everyone could come on such short notice," Jenna said happily.
"Of course," Danny said and clapped Cody on the back. "Gotta celebrate Cody's big news."
Jadon slung an arm around Danny's shoulder. "Couldn't've said it better myself, D-Dawg."
Danny didn't even blink at the now familiar nickname. "Plus this way I don't have to make dinner."
Steve rolled his eyes. "So make yourself useful and get some drinks from the garage."
"Since you asked so nicely …" Danny retorted and headed that direction, dragging Jadon with him in a playful headlock.
"So Cody's got another job now?" Jacob asked.
His brother smiled. "Yeah, but don't worry, Jake, I'll still pick you up from the Boys and Girls Club every day."
"Whew," Jacob said, relieved.
"What are you gonna do there?" Casey asked.
Cody shrugged. "A lot of different things, I guess."
"Like what?" Dylan asked.
Cody's lips twisted, thinking back to what he'd been told during his interview when he'd asked the same question. "Do research when people have questions. Help answer all the letters and emails and calls to the governor. Learn how the government works."
Dylan made a face. "Sounds kinda boring."
"It's not boring," Jenna said proudly. "It's important."
"If you say so," Dylan said, unconvinced.
"I think it sounds cool," Jess said, smiling at Cody. "And you're gonna do a great job."
He smiled back at her.
"That's right," Catherine agreed. "They definitely picked the right person."
Cody tried to shrug off the compliments. "It's not just me, there's another high school intern, plus the college ones."
"You should listen to Catherine," Steve said, nodding at her. "She knows what she's talking about. Remember, I told you she studied political science at the Academy."
"That was a while ago," she said, then smiled at Cody. "But if you do have any questions before you get started ..."
He returned her smile. "Thanks."
"But for now," Steve said, "I'm gonna fire up the grill so we can eat."
"Do you want some help?" Cody asked.
Steve shook his head with a small smile. "This is your party. You're off duty." He nodded toward the yard. "Enjoy."
While the burgers cooked and the kids played, Cody, Jadon, and Jess stood talking in the yard.
"What's gonna happen with your job at Foodland?" Jadon asked.
"I'm still gonna work there on the weekends," Cody said. "Mr. Ko asked me to, and I like it. Plus then I can keep giving Mom money."
"So you don't get paid for the internship?" Jess asked.
"Kind of. There's a stipend, which I guess is like getting paid, but not by the hour. They just give you a check once a month for $500."
"Dude!" Jadon said, his eyes widening.
"Mom said I have to put it all in my college fund."
"That's probably smart," Jess said.
"Plus your Foodland check?" Jadon said nodding appreciatively. "That's what's up." He held out a fist and Cody bumped it.
"You're working at McDonald's now, right, J?" Jess asked.
"Yeah." Jadon shrugged. "It's no governor's office, but at least I don't have to wear a tie."
Cody shook his head. "I don't think I have to wear a tie."
"Bet you do."
"The governor doesn't always wear a tie," Cody protested.
"He's the governor, he can wear whatever he wants. I bet you gotta wear a tie."
"You should probably ask someone," Jess advised.
"Where's SuperSEAL?" Jadon asked, looking around the backyard. Not seeing Steve, he said, "Next best thing. Hey, D-Dawg!"
Danny stepped over, eyebrows raised. "You bellowed, All Day J?"
"You think Cody needs to wear a tie at his internship?"
"Do I think–" Danny started. "Yes, I think he needs to wear a tie, but very few people on this island seem to agree with me, so what do I know?"
"Good question," Steve said, appearing beside him. "I've been asking myself that for the last six years."
"Oh good, the comedian's here," Danny groused.
"What specifically don't you know about this time?" Steve asked.
"Am I supposed to wear a tie for the internship?" Cody said.
"Wear a tie to your orientation," Steve said. "Make sure you ask about the dress code, and go from there."
"That's good advice," Jadon said. He looked at Danny. "That was good advice. Why didn't you say that?"
Danny threw up his hands in consternation. "Enough tie talk," he said, smiling to show he wasn't really annoyed. "When do we eat?"
"Burgers are ready," Steve said. He clasped Cody's shoulder, steering him toward the deck. "Man of the hour eats first."
Cody glanced down, smiling. "Naw, let the kids go first."
Steve squeezed his shoulder as they walked. "Thought you might say that." He called over his shoulder, "Let's go! Time to eat!"
After dinner, the adults lounged around the deck chatting while the younger kids headed down to the beach to play with Cammie. Jess had challenged Jadon to a game of Speed, borrowing a card deck from Catherine, and Cody sat with them, though his eyes kept drifting toward the sand.
Jess nudged him in between rounds as Jadon dealt. "Go on," she said, a knowing twinkle in her eye. "You know you want to check on them."
"I just wanna make sure Kaitlyn's okay," he said, already standing.
She smiled softly. "I know."
Jadon nodded, still dealing the cards. "Once a big brother, always a big brother."
Cody moved down the deck steps onto the grass to where he could better see his siblings and Grace on the beach. He smiled to see Kaitlyn in the thick of the group, not hanging back as she had for so long when Cammie was around. His smile grew when she rubbed Cammie's head, taking the ball from the excited dog's mouth and throwing it into the surf.
"She's come a long way, huh?" His mother's voice, soft and affectionate, came from beside him. Jenna smiled when he looked at her. "And so have you." She pulled him into a hug. "I'm so proud of you, honey."
He looked down, his lip twitching in a smile. "You said that earlier."
"And I'll keep saying it," she said, playfully pushing his shoulder. "Because it's true." She looked at him closely. "I just want to make sure this is something you really want to do."
"It's a really good opportunity," he said.
She nodded. "It is. And I think you're going to do great. But you've never talked about wanting to work in government … or even in an office before. I just want to make sure you're doing it for the right reasons … not because you think you have to since the governor brought the whole thing up himself at the wedding."
Cody was silent for a minute, thinking of the last question Marliyah Jackson had asked during his interview.
"Finally," she said, leaning forward on her desk, "why do you want this internship, Cody?"
He paused, looking down for a moment, his brow creasing in thought. Raising his head to meet her eyes, he said, "I know I don't have any experience in a government office, but I want to learn. I don't know exactly what I want to do after school, but I think it's important to do something to help other people, and that's what government is for. To help people. So I think … I mean, I hope … that I can do that here."
Blinking out the memory, Cody looked at his mother. "I never thought about working in the government before … and I don't know if I want to for, like, a career …" He shrugged. "I guess this is how I'll find out. But I want to help people. Like the government is supposed to."
Jenna's eyes shone with pride, and she hugged him again.
"That is a very good reason."
As the evening was winding down, Steve stepped over to where Cody sat on the deck.
"Hey, c'mere a second," he said, motioning the teen inside.
Cody followed him into the den and waited as Steve retrieved a small rectangular box from the desk.
"Here," Steve said, handing it to him.
Cody blinked at it, then looked up. "What's this?"
Steve's lip quirked in a smile. "Generally I find the best way to figure that out is to open it."
Cody swallowed and lifted the lid. Inside lay a black pocket notebook with the initials CRA engraved on the cover. Beside it was a shiny ballpoint pen.
"Things move fast in the governor's office," Steve said, and Cody looked at him. "You never know when you're gonna need to take notes. You can keep that in your pocket."
Cody looked down, tracing the silver initials.
His initials.
"When did you get this?" he asked.
"When you told me you were gonna apply for the internship."
Cody's eyes snapped up to Steve's, surprised.
"You were that sure I'd …" His voice trailed off at Steve's expression, so full of certainty.
"I was that sure. Congratulations, Cody."
Cody looked back down at the notebook, a small smile on his face.
"Thanks," he said, looking back at Steve. "And thanks for the recommendation. I think that's probably why I got the internship."
Steve shook his head. "No, it wasn't. Recommendations and references are important, don't get me wrong, but at the end of the day, you got that internship, Cody."
When the teen didn't immediately respond, Steve folded his arms. "I talked to Marliyah Jackson today," he told him. "She said she was very impressed with you, and she's confident you're going to be an excellent intern."
"She is?"
"She thought you were honest, focused, and respectful. Self-motivated and adaptable. Bottom line, she thinks you're going to do a good job because of you." He motioned with one hand to emphasize his point. "Because of the impression you made during your interview. That impression might have been backed up by what she read in your recommendation letters, but you didn't get this internship because of me. And it's important you know that. It's important you believe it."
"But I did get it because of you," Cody countered, continuing before Steve could protest. "Not … not because you know the governor and the other people at his office. Not because you wrote a recommendation for me. But because you … you've helped me do more … and be more confident. Ever since I met you." He shook his head. "I would never have thought I could get an internship at the governor's office before. I wouldn't have even tried. I'm … I'm different … because of you. I know I am."
Steve shook his head. "I didn't change anything that wasn't already there," he said firmly. "If I helped you be more confident, I'm glad, because now everyone else can see what I see. All those qualities … they're yours, Cody. They're what make you exceptional."
Cody swallowed thickly, still not at ease with the praise, though he didn't drop his eyes.
Steve smiled, seeming to read his thoughts. "Get used to hearing it, 'cause everyone out there thinks so, too," he said, nodding in the general direction of the backyard. "So does Jirou Ko, and after you start at the governor's office, so will they."
"As long as you do …" Cody said quietly.
"I do." Steve put a hand on his shoulder. "And that is never going to change."
Hope you enjoyed!
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