NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: Wow, this one is coming along quite nicely. I'm gonna spend as much time as I can this weekend banging this puppy out. To anyone who's alerted this story, favorited it, or is following it, THANKS!:) I'd love it even more if you left some feedback. It really does motivate me.
Chapter Two
Triple H Trees had been around for nearly a decade. Hunter had established a successful nursery and tree farm and saw a need for good quality Christmas trees. It had taken time and money, not to mention a great deal of emotional investment, but it paid off in the end. Hunter didn't have the cheapest Christmas trees in Heartland Valley, but he prided himself on having the best.
Hunter leased his Christmas tree lot from the owners of the IGA across the street. Tree buyers could go across the street to the IGA to do their grocery shopping after purchasing their trees. Families who did their grocery shopping at the IGA could pop over to the tree lot to buy their trees and save time and money. And of course, the employees of the tree lot could head over to the IGA to pick up whatever they needed before heading home. So, the tree lot in such a prime piece of real estate was a win-win situation for the store owners, residents, and employees in that immediate area.
Hunter filled his lot with high quality trees, and put an RV in the lot so that employees could stay the night and protect the trees from potential theft. During the holidays, he employed two cashiers, two salesmen, and three delivery drivers/errand persons, most of them from his tree farm/nursery (although he did hire a few temp workers). He had a portable office that was used to conduct business, and it served as a break room for his employees. It was a nice setup, and the employees worked their hardest to keep the business running smoothly.
The day was off to a good start. Business was brisk, as families perused the lot looking for the perfect tree to bring home and decorate. Jeff entertained the customers, Trish and Anna provided service with a smile, and the delivery drivers were busy making their rounds, dropping off trees and running errands, while their boss watched their every move.
Pretty soon, midmorning rolled, around, and Jay decided to take a breather. He was in the breakroom checking some very special emails on his iPhone, while his best lady friend, Anna, was enjoying a cup of coffee...
"Anna. Want to hear something romantic?"
Anna glanced up from the cup of coffee she was sipping out of, making a mental note to pick up some more Holiday K-cups when she had a chance. She was becoming a fan of the French toast flavor. "Sure. What is it?"
"An email from a really nice guy. Listen to this. What will InstantClassic say today, I wonder, as I turn on my laptop. I wait impatiently as it connects. I go online, and my breath catches in my chest until I hear three little words: You've got mail. I hear nothing. Not even a sound on the streets, just the beating of my own heart. I have mail. From you."
Anna nodded. A male correspondent, no doubt. It was common knowledge at the tree lot that Jay was gay, which made it safe for Anna and the other girls in the lot to be friends with him. "You're right. That's quite, uh...romantic. What this about?"
"Well...I wanted to go online and chat with someone new," Jay explained. "I decided to challenge myself. I wanted to chat and talk to someone and see how much I could get to know them without meeting them or seeing their face."
"I do that all the time, Jay. Twitter, Facebook, Trillian."
"I just got back into the chatroom thing. You come to a time in your life when you get tired of going to bars and parties and you just want to do something for yourself. Self improvement. You know, meet new people, discover new experiences."
Anna smirked. "I have a few contacts from Siberia. My favorite is from Mr. New York Pizza. He has a successful chain of pizza restaurants in Siberia. If Justin and I decided to go to Novosibirsk for vacation, he's gonna set us up with free food for the duration of our stay. What does that have to do with the email you got?"
"You know I can't afford to travel around the world. So anyway, I was surfing the web to find people from other areas to talk to. I came across this site, friendlychat dot com. Here, I have the mobile version on my phone. Check this out. Here's who I found. Hi! I'm a young man who wants to broaden his horizons. I want to chat with a gentleman who is experienced, intelligent, and has a great sense of humor and wit. My handle is onemanrockband2k12. So, I struck up an online conversation. My handle's InstantClassic. We chatted, and we decided to email each other.
"Here's another one; Sometimes I wonder about my life. I lead a small life. Well, not small, but compartmentalized. And sometimes I wonder, do I do it because I like it, or because I haven't been brave? So much of what I see reminds me of something I read in a book; when shouldn't it be the other way around?"
"That's deep. How long has this been going on?"
"About a month."
"A month, huh?"
"And he's no ordinary guy. Now listen to this: Are you tall? Short? Skinny? Fat? Are your eyes blue? Are they brown? You know what, don't tell me. As long as our minds meet, it's all good. He and I set some guidelines. No specifics, including no names, career or class information, or family connections."
Anna took another sip of her coffee. "That's really cool."
"It is, huh? Now, wait a minute. Listen to this. I like to start my notes to you as if we're already in the middle of a conversation. I pretend that we're the oldest and dearest friends, as opposed to what we actually are—people who don't know each other's names and met in a Chat Room where we both claimed we'd never been before. We have enough troubles in our daily lives. There are so many great things to discuss in this world of ours, it would be wasting valuable time if we told each other the boring details of what we do for a living, so let's not do that."
The conversation was interrupted as Hunter appeared in the the breakroom. He was carrying a large bag made out of red cellophane. It was tied on top with a gold bow. "Jay, Anna."
"Yes, Hunter." Jay put his iPhone back in the pocket of his coat.
Anna smiled at the boss. "Hi, Mr. Helmsley."
"Jay, can I take you aside for a moment?"
Jay politely excused himself and joined his boss. "Whatcha need?"
Hunter showed his top salesman the brightly colored bag. "I have dozens of loose branches that I can't sell as trees, so here's what I've decided to do. I wanna put these into bags like this, along with some florist wire, ribbons and pine cones and a set of instructions. There's also gonna be a gift card from Pam's Arts and Crafts enclosed so that the customers can pick out the decorations for the wreath to customize it."
"Finding a use for all the loose branches, huh?"
"We make money, Pam's gets more business, it's a win-win idea, I think."
"Can't you just mulch the branches?" Jay shrugged. "It'd be a lot faster, and they'd still be put to good use."
"I'm trying to give customers other reasons to shop in this area. We're trying to encourage business not just for us, but for everyone else."
Jay was skeptical "A wreath kit, Hunter? No, Hunter, it's not for us."
"But you haven't even looked at the package."
"I'd still say no. I just don't like the idea."
Hunter nodded, his voice serious. "I'm impressed at how quickly you're able to make decisions, Jay. I've been in this business for nearly twenty years. It took me a half hour to decide that I like the wreath kit idea. But, of course, you're a genius. You know so much more than me."
He gestured towards Anna, who set her coffee cup down rather reluctantly, and Kurt, who had just stepped in to warm up. "Anna, Kurt... Look at this. I'm thinking of putting together some wreath kits to make some additional money. What do you think? I want your honest opinion. Don't let me influence you. All I want is your honest opinion." A pause. "Anna? What do you think?"
"I think people who want to do crafts during the holidays will like it," she nodded.
Kurt was rather enthusiastic. "I think it's practical! You have everything you need in one package. The branches, the florist wire, the ribbons, all that—all you have to do is put it together. I like it!"
"Thanks, Guys. That's all I needed. You guys can go back to breaks." Hunter turned to his top guys. "Jay, have you thought it over?"
Jay furrowed his brow. "Yes. I still think it's a bad idea."
"Well, give me a good reason."
"Let's say that a family is busy preparing for Christmas. Running around shopping, planning Christmas dinner, finding and trimming the tree, wrapping and sending off packages, putting up lights, the list goes on and on and on! The last thing someone who's up to their eyeballs in holiday preparations needs is something else that they have to put together. They won't have the time or the energy, and when Christmas is over, you're gonna throw that wreath out anyway, because it's all dried up and the needles are falling out.
"And the gift card's a lousy idea. You spend it on decorations for a wreath that's only gonna last a month at the longest and wind up in the trash. Not just the branches, but the decorations; customers are gonna spend...I don't know, ten dollars on garbage, when it could go to something more useful. It's a waste."
"You don't have to tell me that it'll dry out after Christmas, Jay. I know that. You sell things and let me do the buying."
The discussion was interrupted by a knock on the breakroom door. Jeff poked his head through the doorway. "Excuse me, Hunter."
"Yes, Jeff?"
"Pam's is calling about the wreath kits."
"Pam's, yes." Hunter rushed over to the cashier's booth up front to take the call. "Hi, is this Pam? Yes. Let me call you back in about ten minutes. I want a little more time to think about this idea. No, no, it's not the price. It's just that I'm not quite sure about the whole idea. Okay. Okay. I'll get right back in touch with you. I'll leave a message if I don't get a hold of you personally. Great. Thanks. I'll talk to you soon..."
After Pam hung up, Hunter smacked the side of the booth. "GRRRR! She can't expect me to make up my mind in ten minutes!" He fumbled through his coat pockets. Hopefully, he had enough Tums to last the rest of the day, or he'd have to ask Miz to swing by the IGA again.
~~~TLATS~~~
"Good morning, sir."
Jay's newest would-be customer turned to face him. The young man looked right at home among the tree shoppers that milled around. He was rather tall and youthful in appearance, mid to late 20's, perhaps. His hair was longish and strawberry blonde, cut in layers that framed his fair-skinned face and set off his nutmeg brown eyes. He was dressed in a green and black buffalo check CPO jacket that snapped up the front and a black muffler that was wrapped twice around his neck. Knitted black gloves kept his hands warm.
"Hi," the young man drawled. "I really like this tree."
"Yes, I do too. Just got it in yesterday afternoon. It's a noble fir, about six feet tall. Really dense, and it holds its needles for quite a long time."
"I really didn't come here to buy a tree," shrugged the young man.
"Oh, that's fine. What else can I show you?"
A sigh escaped the young man's lips. "To tell you the truth, I really didn't come in to buy anything."
"That's okay. If you want to browse, that's fine. Take all the time you want."
"Yes, thank you. Actually, I wonder if I could speak to Mr. Helmsley."
"Unfortunately, Mr. Helmsley is quite busy at the moment. I can page him, or leave a message if you want."
"I'd appreciate it. Thank you."
"Maybe I can help you."
"Perhaps you can." A pause. "I noticed in your tree lot that you're having an introductory sale."
"Yes, everything in the tree lot is marked down 10 percent...if you take a look at the sign on the cashier's booth, we've got our prices listed. This Noble Fir, for instance, starts at $40 for 6 feet. But, we have new shipments every three days, and all of our trees are from in-state growers. No bugs, no parasites, no blight. All healthy, and fresh as can be. So our price cuts may not be as deep as everyone else's, but our quality is worth the extra money."
"That's a good strategy."
"And it's bringing in lots of customers."
"Yes, I imagine you'll be doing big business this season.
"I have no doubt. You were very smart to come here early. It'll be such a rush, we won't be able to help the customers."
"Maybe you should take on extra help."
"We probably will."
"Maybe you could use me," the young man smiled. "I'm looking for a job."
Jay folded his arms and gazed down rather sternly at his visitor. "That wasn't very nice, letting me go through the whole spiel."
"I'm really sorry. That was not intentional. Could you help me get a job here?"
"I'd like to, but we haven't got any openings."
"But you just told me you'd need some extra people because of the rush."
"Look around for yourself. You can see what kind of business we're doing—excuse me, please." Jay quickly made a graceful exit and approached a mother and daughter who were gazing at a very large fir. "Hi. Can I help you?
"How much is this tree? My daughter likes it."
"That's a eight-footer. It's worth $48.50."
"Do you deliver?"
"We do, up to ten miles outside of town. Free delivery if it's within town, outside of city limits is two dollars per mile."
"We live on the other end of town, on Crawford Lane. We'll get our tree here, but we wanna look around some more. Thank you." The young mother ushered her daughter, who was protesting slightly, towards some smaller trees. "Come on, Sweetie. Let's look over here. That one's too big for our living room."
"Well, can I you give my qualifications?" the young man pressed on, after mother and daughter had left. "If I could do anything for you, I'd do it. I've got quite a bit of experience."
"I know the situation, and we're pretty well staffed."
"I worked for FCW Trees for three years, and I spent as many seasons working in their Christmas tree lot."
"Even if you'd worked at Calaway Nurseries-"
"I did!" the young man said, rather proudly. "I took care of pretty important customers. Even worked with some corporate accounts."
"We don't deal with suits here. We specialize in family trees, nothing pretentious."
"What do you think they have? Corporate accounts weren't ALL their bread and butter. Calaway'd take me back in a second."
"Why don't you go back, then?"
"That's another story."
Jay tried to let the young man down as easily as he could. "If it was up to me, I'd put you to work. But I'm not the boss."
"Then why don't you let me see him?"
"He's...rather cranky today."
"I'll take a chance. Maybe I can cheer him up."
"Young man, I've worked for Mr. Helmsley for nine years, and I know him inside out," Jay said, rather sharply, unaware that Hunter was right behind him. "I know how he thinks. I could tell you word for word exactly what he'd say."
"Reso..."
Jay flinched at the tone in Hunter's voice. Mouthing, Oh, Crap! he turned slowly to face his boss, who didn't look very cheerful.
"I'm sorry, young man," Hunter said to the young job hunter before gesturing for Jay to accompany him. "Jay and I are going to step aside for a moment. I'll be right with you."
When they were out of earshot, Hunter fixed Jay with a gaze that could peel paint. "So, you know every reaction of mine? You know me inside out? You know what I think, even before I thought of it. You're not only a genius, you're a mind reader."
"Hunter, I..."
"Oh, forget it!" Hunter huffed in exasperation before returning to the job hunter. "Hi, I'm Hunter Hearst Helmsley."
"Good morning, Mr. Helmsley."
"Call me Hunter," the lot owner pshaw-ed, before ushering the young man to the cashier's booth. The booth was big enough for Anna and Trish to work, and it had a small room in back where extra coffee, tea, and hot chocolate were kept. A pot with hot water sat on a small table, along with cups and stirring sticks. This was where Hunter and the young job hunter sat down.
"Here, please, take the load off. You're welcome to some hot tea or coffee, or hot chocolate. It's on the table right behind you. Help yourself."
"Thanks."
"I don't know what the difficulty is...but I can assure you that the word impossible is not in the vocabulary of Triple H Trees."
"Glad to hear it."
"I mean it."
"Mr...er, Hunter."
"Yes?"
"I was at FCW Trees for three years, and I worked their Christmas tree lot for three seasons. After I graduated, I worked at Calaway Nurseries. I have a degree in Horticulture."
"Oh, I'm sure you'll find much nicer things in my tree lot. What brings you here?"
"I'm looking for a job."
No, no, that's impossible. It's out of the question.
"But... "
"If I gave you the wrong impression, I'm very sorry. I'm very busy, and I'm pretty well staffed with the people I've got. I'm very sorry. I'm afraid you're just wasting your time."
"But I've got to have a job."
"Have you tried Frosty's?"
"Twice."
"Then I don't know what to tell you. Maybe after the season, I can put you to work at the tree farm."
"When will that be?"
"In a month or so." Hunter got up and stuck his head out the door. "Jay! Don't leave yet."
"Please," the young job seeker insisted. "Can I leave my phone number?"
"Sure. If we need anybody, you'll be the first person we call."
"Great! My name is Heath Slater, I'm staying over at the Howard House, and if you need me in a hurry, you can call my cell. It's always on. And if you need to call me at the Howard's, it's 555-3668. Leave a message for Heath."
"Business message for Heath." Hunter grabbed a pen and some sticky notes and wrote down the necessary information. "Yes, I got it. Thanks for stopping by."
As soon as Heath left, Jay opened the door. "Yes, Hunter?"
"Come in, and close the door, please." A pause, and Hunter's voice grew dismayed. "Jay, why did you put me on the spot like that in front of the whole tree lot?"
"I'm sorry, Hunter, but it wasn't my fault."
"So it was my fault?"
"Perhaps you could have handled that situation more discreetly."
"So it was my fault-"
"I didn't say that!"
Hunter sighed in exasperation. "What's the matter with you, Jay? You're my oldest employee. I do everything I can to show my appreciation. I ask you to my house."
"And I really appreciated that."
"You have a helluva way of showing it. Jay, you know how much I value your judgment, but today, you just wanna contradict me at every turn. Whenever I say yes, you say, no."
"Okay, fine. From now on, I'll say, yes. Yes, Hunter. Yes, Hunter. Certainly, Hunter. Yes, Hunter."
"That was a nice get together last night."
"Yes, it was."
"Yes, I had a lot of fun, didn't you?"
"I did."
"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself so much. That little poem that you wrote on our Facebook page. Did you make that up?"
"It's sort of half and half."
"Half and half?"
"Half Shakespeare, half me. I just changed the lines around. I made that last line rhyme with Triple H Trees, that's all."
"Stephanie liked it very much."
"Thank you."
"You made a fine impression on her. Stephanie thinks highly of you. And you know, I think highly of Stephanie."
The conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door by Kurt. "Hunter?"
"Yes?"
"I've found a customer for the wreath kit. How much do you want to charge him?"
"Well, let me see. There's a ten-dollar gift card, and we get a percentage, so..."
Jay glanced over and sighed in exasperation. Heath was right up front, checking out the wreath kit that Hunter had shown him earlier. Persistent little reekazoid, aren't you? he thought to himself.
"Let me take care of this, Hunter." Jay approached Heath and said in a firm, yet kind voice, "Sorry, there's no use waiting now. Believe me. If there's an opening, you'll be on the top of the list."
"Just a moment." Hunter threw Jay a look that said, Be quiet! and approached the young job seeker. "Tell me, would you buy a wreath kit?"
"Mr. Helmsley, I couldn't buy anything at the moment."
"No, I want your opinion. Your honest opinion. Now, don't let me influence you. I just want your opinion. Do you like this wreath kit?"
"Yes, I do. I like the concept."
"Yes. Why?"
"Why? I think it's practical, and it's a good project."
"Why would you consider it a good project?" Jay fixed Heath with a steely gaze as he—and Hunter—waited for an answer.
"Well, I see a gift card in there," Heath explained. "I can pick out what I want to decorate the wreath with. The instructions look pretty straightforward, and everything you need is in the package."
Hunter grinned and turned to his top salesman. "That's the point of view from a consumer." Jay nodded and stepped back, fuming.
"Mr. Helmsley," Heath ventured.
"Yes, Mr..."
"Slater. How much are you selling it for?
"Let me see. $20.00, which includes a gift card to Pam's Arts and Crafts?"
"That's a really good deal."
"Okay." Hunter was suddenly inspired. The kid was persistent, and he seemed to know what the customers liked. "Heath, are you available full-time?"
Heath's eyes lit up. "I am, yes!"
"I have a job offer for you. I'm gonna put you in charge of selling my wreath kits. When you're not selling kits, you'll be running errands. It'll give Mike and Matt a break. You have references?"
"Sure do."
"Email them to me. Here's my business card, email address is at the bottom. I'll need driver's license and SSN, if you have those available. Later, I'll introduce you to the rest of the crew..."
~~~TLATS~~~
Later that morning, near the front of the lot...
"Is that your next victim, Heath?" Trish smirked as she followed his gaze to a new potential customer. She was an older woman, grandmother age, looking sweet and pudgy in a gray coat and lavender sweater and gray pants underneath. Her hair was white and put up in a soft bun like a snow puff. She was browsing amid the smaller trees, probably looking for something that she could afford with her fixed income, and gravitated towards the table of wreath kits near the front.
"She's not a victim! She's a potential sale," Heath chuckled. So far, everyone at the lot—with the exception of Jay—had been quite friendly and cordial with Hunter's newest employee. He was letting the negative vibes from the senior salesman on staff roll off him. Jay doesn't know me yet, Heath decided. I'll just be polite as can be. Maybe he's the type who doesn't warm up to new people in a hurry. I'll give him a day or two.
"Whoever she is," Anna chimed in, as Heath wove his way over. "Go get her!"
Heath's voice sounded almost the same way a candied pear might taste. "Good morning, ma'am. You're looking at the displays here, I take it?"
"Oh, yes." The woman looked up, her blue eyes sparkling in her wrinkled yet flawless face. "This is a wreath kit, right?"
"Yes, ma'am. It includes everything you need in it, even a gift card from Pam's Arts & Crafts across the street."
"I've never been to Pam's Arts & Crafts. Usually I go to Hobby Lobby or Michael's if I need craft things."
"Hobby Lobby's quite a drive, isn't it? Michael's, too. Closest one's over in Southern Pines."
"It certainly is. But they usually have what I need, and if they don't, they special order it."
"That's nice, the way they're willing to special order for you. Now, take a look at this price," Heath pointed out. "I know it may be steeper than you're used to. But, here's the nice thing about it. If you purchase a kit, and then go over to Pam's, you may find exactly what you're looking for to decorate this wreath with. No going out of town, no special ordering. And if you do need a special order, you won't have to drive so far to pick it up."
"It would be nice not to have to drive around so much."
"There you go. You're saving money. All that money you're saving could go someplace other than your gas tank, right?"
"Yeah, you've got a good point there."
"Then, if you like Pam's Arts & Crafts, you can tell your friends, and they can tell their friends, and BAM! You've got business and customers and money staying right here in Heartland Valley."
"You know what? I think it's worth the extra money. I'll take two. My granddaughters would love these."
Hunter and Jay watched Heath from a comfortable distance. "So, What do you say now, Jay?"
"They're still junk," Jay huffed, as his boss pulled his cell phone out to make a call to Pam's Arts & Crafts. "And Heath is a fourteen year-old girlish showoff. "But, don't let me influence you. I want your opinion, your honest opinion, that's all I want."
Hunter turned to gaze at his oldest employee in exasperation.
Jay shrugged. This day had started out nicely, but was going to end badly, he just knew it. At least he had his email pal to talk to...
~~~TLATS~~~
To: onemanrockband2k12
From: InstantClassic
I had a gut feeling you would be on line now.
Do you ever feel you become the worst version of yourself? That a Pandora's Box of all the secret hateful parts—your arrogance, your spite, your condescension—has sprung open. Someone provokes you, and instead of just smiling and moving on, you zing them. Hello, it's Mr. Nasty, LOL. I'm sure you have no idea what I'm talking about.
To: InstantClassic
From: onemanrockband2k12
I know what you mean and I'm completely jealous. What happens to me when I'm provoked is that I get tongue-tied. My mind goes blank. Then I spend all night tossing and turning trying to think of what I should have said for example, to a bottom dweller who recently belittled my existence.
To: onemanrockband2k12
From: InstantClassic
Wouldn't it be wonderful if I could pass all my zingers to you and then I would never behave badly and you could behave badly all the time and we'd both be happy? On the other hand, I must warn you that when you finally have the pleasure of saying the thing you mean to say at the moment you mean to say it, remorse inevitably follows. Do you think we should meet?
To: InstantClassic
From: onemanrockband2k12
I love our relationship. There's a lot going on in the day-to-dayness of my life and there's something magical between us...maybe we should get together. I'd like to see if the author of these inspiring emails is like I've pictured...
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: The plot thickens. It'll be kinda interesting to see what happens when Christian and Heath finally meet up and discover who they REALLY are. The emails are from the movie You've Got Mail, and I thought they sounded appropriate for this story.
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