THE TALENTED MR GRADY
Despite being inches away from potential death roughly a few hours ago since the interview, Lindy was having a great time at Jurassic World.
She stuffed her face with cookie dough ice cream from Ben & Jerry's, bought a bracelet for herself from Pandora, sipped a Mocha frappe from Starbucks and bought a pair of all-purpose spandex pants from the sportswear shop. The pants were a rather impulsive buy considering she wasn't sure for what reason she could use them for but they were on sale for a great price. Having completely forgotten about the raptors and her near-death situation, she roamed around the park with much content. With gift bags hanging off her arms packed with dinosaur-related goodies for friends and family, she had a Jurassic World baseball cap atop her head and she was balancing a large stick of candy floss in one hand and carrying a helium balloon the shape of a triceratops in the other. It made her cringe, especially when she saw a few children looking at her in a funny way, but they were handing out freebies at the Gentle Giants Petting Zoo and she couldn't exactly resist after she managed to pet and hand feed a few of the marvelous creatures in the pen.
A while ago and she saw the Mosasaurus Feeding Show, watching with mind-numbing trepidation as the ginormous beast lunged out from the depths of the crystal blue waters and snapped up the dangling Great White shark whole; she got soaked as it submerged, the water seeping down her back and to her butt even though she was donned in one of the plastic ponchos provided. Despite exiting the attraction drenched and soggy, her clothes dried up after she wandered underneath the hot weather for a few minutes.
The next attraction she went to participate in was T-Rex Kingdom. Squashed between a bunch of kids who had their noses pressed up against the glass and a young couple who were wrapped up in warm embrace, Lindy watched with wide eyes as the massive T-Rex nicknamed Rexy tore a bleating goat apart. She didn't know what was more disturbing, witnessing the goat's gruesome demise or hearing the children scream with joy.
Nevertheless, she wandered out after the feeding session and glanced at the next area on her map which she had not covered – it would be the herbivores, with attractions ranging from the Gyrosphere and Cretaceous Cruise. She hastily made her way to the Gyrosphere and waited patiently; once it was her turn, she sat in one sphere on her own, with Jimmy Fallon on the screen as her only companion through the easy ride.
Halfway through the ride and she thought, I'l be working with Mr Grady from now on. I wonder what it'll be like. Hmm, wonder how he's doing right now. Abruptly, those thoughts scraped like a needle on a record. She had only met the man for less than half an hour and already she was thinking of him. Lindy pondered to herself, remembering how she had secured her internship. I still can't believe I got it. This is crazy...I'll be living and working here next week...
NEXT WEEK
'Next week' went by way too fast.
It was now her first day and Lindy spotted Mr Grady waiting for her at the ferry landing with his hands in his pockets, looking slightly more casual than the last time she had seen him – he was chewing gum and wearing earphones attached to a music player hidden in a pocket. He wore a pair of aviator sunglasses and was dressed in a plain beige shirt and slacks but when he waved at her, her heart suddenly thudded a little erratically in her chest as she recalled the raptor-interview incident which ended up with her lying on top of him and his arm around her waist.
In addition, his shirt clung to him like a second skin.
Now that she had a decent look at him, she had to admit that Mr Grady was a rather attractive piece of man-candy. She also didn't think her boss would be so young. He was at least...a few years older than her, right? He wasn't older than her by a large amount. Brushing corrupt thoughts away, she made her way up to him, dragging her three bags and suitcase in tow.
"Hey." He said, grinning as he plucked out the little white earbuds.
"Hello, Mr Grady." She greeted him politely in response.
A silence followed and although his eyes were hidden behind the dark glasses, she realized he was staring at her, inspecting her from head to toe. She resembled a tourist even though she was dressed in casual attire (as outlined in her letter of induction), consisting of a white t-shirt and a pair of loose denim shorts. She had also taken his advice and invested in a pair of light tan Caterpillar boots. She brought her Jurassic World baseball cap too, which she had settled over her long brown hair. His gaze landed on her DLSR, a hefty Canon EOS camera that hung from her neck and over her chest on a thick cord, and she followed his gaze down to her chest. Lindy glanced up at him and he looked away.
Clearing his throat, he said, "Just call me 'Owen' from now on. Here, I'll carry those." And he reached over and took all three bags off her – balancing one bag on one shoulder, and holding two in hand – and he promptly began to make his way towards Main Street, leaving her with the suitcase. Lindy had struggled with those three bags - getting them on the plane and off the luggage carousel had been a hassle - and she scrambled after him, pulling the case behind her. The wheels got stuck in a crack in the sidewalk and she had to pull it out as quickly as she could to keep up with him.
"Mr Gr – err, I mean, Owen, wait - it's okay, I can get those," She said hurriedly, "They're really heavy – "
"Relax, I got this." He said, as she managed to finally catch up to him, matching his pace.
"Thanks."
"Don't sweat it," came his jovial reply, "So, did you make use of your pass?"
"I did; it was really fun. I think I covered all the rides and attractions."
"What was your favorite?"
She thought for a while. "The Mosasaurus Feeding Show. I liked the Gyrosphere too, but the one I was in started malfunctioning at the end and kept spinning around and around in circles for about fifteen minutes. I ended up throwing up everywhere and they had to hose me down. It was really embarrassing." She said absent-mindedly, before she emitted a sharp gasp, eyes going wide, "Uh, n-not that you needed to know that!"
He laughed as she spluttered and stammered and her face went even redder. She had just blurted that out without even thinking twice. Embarrassed and horrified with herself, Lindy resorted to glancing at the ground silently and finally, their journey came to an end once they arrived at a familiar carpark lot and this time, she saw no bike; instead, Owen stopped before a humvee with an open top and the Jurassic World logo stamped on the doors; he deposited her bags into the backseat and then took her suitcase off her and piled that on top of the seat, too.
"Sit wherever you like; shotgun, back... it's your call." He said, climbing into the driver's seat. Lindy chose to sit in the passenger seat beside him and he ignited the engine and steered out of the carpark lot and onto the grassy road. With the many bumps along the way, she had to grab onto the railing for support. "Oh, I almost forgot. You need to fill out these forms."
As he drove, he ducked to the side and grabbed a clipboard with pen attached by a stretchy string – immediately the humvee swerved and she had to cling on for dear life.
Reclaiming the wheel with his full attention, he handed her the clipboard next. "T-thanks..." She uttered shakily; she noticed that a few sheets of paper had some boxes that were already filled out in messy handwriting, namely her employee clock number. Trying to keep it balanced over her knee, she began to fill it out, pausing when he went over rough bumps and ridges, bouncing uncontrollably in her seat. "Owen?"
"Yeah?"
"It says here: 'It makes sense to make sure your family don't suffer financially if you die. 'Masrani Global Corporation' Level cover helps give your loved ones a financial safety net, and gives you peace of mind in the event of death'."
"Yeah, that's the park's life insurance policy for all employees. You can take it or... y'know, go private."
The paragraph made her a little uneasy but she signed it regardless. "Are accidents common?"
"Not really, but accidents do happen."
"Such as?"
"Such as some guy getting squashed like a bug by an Apatosaurus, for example."
"Oh. I see." She replied. He said it so freely...
"Don't worry, that won't be happening to you anytime soon. You'll be spending most of your time with the raptors." Owen said, and finally, he was keeping his eyes on the road although he glanced around every now and then and finally, they drove past a lone, cozy-looking bungalow by the lake and he let the vehicle come to a stop. "Wait here a sec."
She watched him exit the humvee, grabbing her bags one by one. "What is this place?"
"This is where I stay. If you ever need me outside of work hours, you'll find me here. I'm just gonna drop your stuff off for the time being, alright?" Owen said, striding towards the bungalow; he arrived at the front door and rummaged around the pockets of his pants for his keys and fished them out, slotting them into the door and promptly disappeared inside with her luggage.
Lindy waited patiently. Two minutes. Five minutes passed. Seven. Ten. She checked her wristwatch before throwing her glance to the door, leaning out of the humvee. He was only dropping her bags off, right? What was taking so long? She decided to wait, and an additional five minutes passed.
Finally, the door re-opened and Owen re-emerged. "Sorry to keep you waiting." He said, slipping back into the driver's seat.
"Is everything okay?"
"Oh yeah."
And they were back on the grassy road.
The drive to the raptor den was not long considering they were already halfway there, and once they had arrived, the man named Barry from before was there to greet them. However, the employees of the raptor den were not alone – two 'Jurassic World' cars were parked nearby – one black and one white - and as soon as Owen parked their humvee, he jumped out quickly, approaching the den. Lindy followed suit, trailing after him.
"Crap, not those guys again." She heard Owen mumbling under his breath.
"What is it?" Lindy asked. Up ahead, Barry approached them, joining Owen's side.
"Owen!" Barry exclaimed.
"Yo Barry, you remember Lindy, right?"
"Hello Miss Lindy, it's good to see you again." Turning to Owen, he added, "I could not stop them. I'm sorry. Ms Dearing gave them a permit."
"Figures. S'okay, Barry. Let me deal with them." He replied, as they made their way towards the paddock.
Lindy was confused. "Who are they?"
"Marketing." Owen growled, just as a thin man in a gaudy suede suit standing near the entrance of the paddock caught sight of Owen approaching them; the thin man smiled widely, holding his arms out.
"If it isn't The Talented Mr Grady! The Velociraptor Man!"
Owen stopped before him, his expression cloudy. Clearly he was not pleased with his appearance at all. "Mr Lloyd. What brings you here?"
The man named Mr Lloyd made a noise under his breath as he put a hand to his chin, "Our twelve o'clock meeting! Don't tell me you forgot? I brought some guests. You two – over here!" Lloyd turned to two men by the white van carrying suitcases. The duo came over and Lindy assumed they were the so-called guests. "Walk with me, Grady."
"We're good here."
"Suit yourself." Lloyd said; planting a hand on Owen's shoulder, he turned the man round to face the raptor paddock, using his other hand to indicate, "Imagine this, Mr Grady, I'm thinking bright colors. Pink. Blue. Yellow. A splash of green. Colors that make you feel happy and warm and fuzzy inside. Maybe a sunshine in one corner with lots of little rays around it complete with a smiley face. Some balloons over there too, you know, to make it more appealing to the children. Music. Tinkly music, like fairground music."
Irritated, Owen barked out, "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Mr Grady, we discussed this last week, remember?"
Owen grunted. "Right, the decorators. Nope. Nobody's 'decorating' anything without my permission."
"I beg to differ, Mr Grady. To tell you the truth, if you weren't already aware, your little raptor pen looks like a metal trap of doom, okay? It screams 'death' all around it and that's not the image we're supposed to be going for. The focus groups and our critics are saying it's not consumer-friendly."
"I thought Dearing told you that the raptor paddock isn't part of the park."
"Well, we need to look at things in advance. Maybe...five or six years? It's long-term planning, Mr Grady."
"And who are those guys over there?" Owen said, gesturing to two other men standing by the black van.
"Some investors. High profile clients. They're here for the demonstration."
With that, Owen scrubbed a palm over his unshaven face, having just remembered a promise he made to Claire a while ago about demonstrating the raptor's progress to potential clients.
"What's the matter, are you getting stage fright?"
"No."
"Then what's the problem? Just demonstrate something, like a trick."
"You want my girls to do little acrobatics for your boys over there? You want me to make them dance around, flip in the air, play dead?"
"...Can they do that?"
"No. They're dinosaurs, Mr Lloyd, not monkeys."
"Well, that's rather disappointing. What about the pig? I heard you use that to test their speed."
"No, the pig's not to – urgh, never mind." Owen rubbed at his cheek next. "...Fine. Whatever. Pig it is." He proceeded to address the rest of the employees in the paddock, pumping his fist in the air, "Alright, everyone! You heard the man! We're gonna release the pig!"
Owen's men promptly erupted into loud cheers; it was identical to watching a tribe. "THE PIG, YEAHHHH!"
Mr Lloyd regarded them a little warily. "I forgot you raptor boys were a slightly different breed of worker compared to the others..." He immediately began gathering the investors around. "Gentlemen! Prepare to be blown away by our very own Raptor Trainer, Mr Owen Grady! Watch as he assumes total, and I mean TOTAL command and utmost control over one of our park's most ferocious predators!" Turning to Owen, he growled under his breath, "You better not screw this up, ya hear?"
Owen ignored him. Glancing at Lindy and Barry, he said, "Lindy, stay here."
"Okay." She replied. Everyone's so hyped up over a pig.
"Barry, let's do this."
Barry nodded, following Owen towards the paddock; both men scaled the catwalk with Owen stopping to stand at the very middle. Lindy moved forwards for a better look, peering between the bars and the mesh wire of the fence. She watched them discussing out of earshot and then Barry left the catwalk, presumably to the control panel. Lindy waited anxiously in her spot, grabbing her camera and observing through the viewfinder. Although her role was an intern, she had wanted to take a few pictures and snapped a few shots of the paddock's interior. As the ground shook, she lowered the camera, glanced around warily.
"Release the pig!" Owen yelled, in a rather dramatic fashion – and she quickly snapped a photo of him with his arms in the air. Ooh, that one's a keeper, she thought to herself. She wasn't sure if that had been done on purpose considering how eager the investors appeared to be as they watched from the sidelines. Maybe Owen was just living up to their expectations or putting on a good show.
"Pig released!" Barry followed up.
No gate appeared to have opened but suddenly a little pink piglet came dashing past her field of vision, squealing. Shortly, she heard loud thudding and knew the raptors had been released. There was a slight breeze and she saw four shapes dash past her, growling and snarling. In seconds, they had covered a massive length of the paddock and Lindy abandoned her spot to keep up.
The pig sprinted underneath the catwalk; the raptors close on its trail. Owen stood, towering above them. Watching the raptors one by one, he proceeded to lift out the device she had seen him use before – the clicker – as she would call it from now on, and she watched as Owen held it up. Once the pack spotted him however, they appeared to have stopped in their tracks before two turned on each other, snarling and shrieking.
"Hey!" Owen yelled, as a raptor with a prominent scar on it and the one known as 'Blue' began to snap at one another whilst the others screeched and rasped. "Echo, no!"
He clicked the device a few times and finally, the raptors watched him keenly, chittering.
"Steady. Steady now..."
The pack eyed him beadily in response.
"Eyes on me. Yeah, that's good. Now stay." Owen proceeded to command slowly, and the paddock simmered into silence but then –
The pig suddenly went running past, filling the terse but silent atmosphere with its helpless, loud squeals. Two raptors immediately took off, chasing after it whilst Blue and another – a murky green raptor – remained in their spots, eyeing Owen.
Lindy didn't have to think twice about what happened to the pig as the two raptors that went chasing after it were suddenly interested in one particular area of the paddock, stabbing at the ground with their jaws. The pig's squealing increased tenfold and she heard bones snapping, flesh tearing, and the scent of blood was strong and heavy in the air; the paddock fell silent once more. Mr Lloyd was quick to turn the two investors away from the scene as the creatures fought and bit and snarled for the food, "Right, that's enough! Don't you think so too? Let's go see the petting zoo, gentlemen!" Throwing his glance to Owen, he drew one finger across his own throat, a beheading motion.
Owen did not respond to the gesture; instead, he watched Lloyd and the investors and decorators leave the paddock and slid the clicker into his pocket before returning to ground level. The other men went to return the raptors to their dens.
"You okay?" Barry asked, as both himself and Lindy went to meet him.
"That didn't go too well."
"They're still young, Owen. It'll take some time." Barry said; he reached over and patted him on the shoulder. "Blue and Delta seem to be improving. They never really listen."
Owen gave a brief nod. "We're getting there, but we should probably focus on them individually for the next training session." Turning to Lindy, he dug his hands into his pockets and gave her a lopsided smile; she smiled in response. He said, "I saw you taking some photos back there."
"I do some amateur photography every now and then."
"Mm, care to take some pics of the girls some time?"
"I'd love to." She said, smiling widely now, "That was a good demonstration by the way."
"Meh." He replied half-heartedly, before he lifted one hand to rub at his stomach. "I'm hungry. Wanna go grab a bite to eat?"
"Now?"
"Yep. We'll pick something up while we're on our way to the office. I'm in the mood for hotdogs." Owen said, making his way towards their parked humvee. "Barry, wanna come with? Lindy's supposed to shadow you at some point. You can show her the ropes."
"Alright, sounds good." said Barry, and Owen hopped into the vehicle with Barry at the passenger seat and Lindy stared, intrigued. Owen Grady was a strange man; he could be serious and then completely laidback the next second. This man was going to be her boss from now on; she would be working closely with him and the raptors. At least he was easy-going, right? If he was strict and uptight, she supposed she would be a bit nervous...but he made her feel totally at ease.
With that thought in mind, Lindy found herself climbing into the backseat of the humvee, and they were off.
Note:
Woot, first note at the end of a chapter :)
I didn't write it but yes there was lots of paperwork involved with Owen's stunt from the previous chapter lmao. Hmm so a bit of backstory to this fic...because it's set 5 years prior, the park and the employees are still in their early phases and overall, quite lenient towards certain things. Currently, Lindy holds this view too as she experiences the park as a tourist first. I've made Owen here rather carefree and relaxed. He still treats his work with the raptors seriously, but then there's also a bit of Star-lord inside of him (SORRY I COULDN'T RESIST XD). He dislikes marketing and those who treat their jobs and the dinosaurs as objects or business plans. At the moment, he also struggles to get most of the raptors to listen to him.