Elements of Retrofit by N.R. Walker

trip went. I told her we secured the Tamosaka job, to which she replied she already knew. “Did Mr Jones get through his to-do list?” she asked.
    I smiled at her. “Yes, he was very…good.”
    She smiled at my choice of words. “Good to hear. Any chance to think on that perspective we discussed before you left?”
    “Yes.”
    “And?”
    “I’m happy with what I’ve got,” I answered. “Just not sure on how to keep it.”
    “I’m sure you’ll think of a way.”
    I sighed. “Well, I hope so.” Then I thought of something. “Is Cooper in yet? I haven’t seen him.”
    “Yes,” Jennifer answered. “Though I think he’s avoiding me. I presume you told him I know about you two?”
    I smiled at her. “Yes, I told him. And yes, now he’s twice as scared of you.” But I stood up and walked with her out of my office. “The Tamosaka job file. Where is it?”
    “With Donella.”
    “And Cooper’s at his desk?”
    “He was, yes.”
    I walked down the hall to the cubicle area where the interns and other office staff were. I spotted him talking to one of the other interns and before I got to him, one of the other draughtsmen stopped me to discuss something.
    That was when I heard what Cooper was saying. They were discussing Sydney. “Yeah, it’s really beautiful, but it was cold. I’d like to go back in summer,” he said.
    “How was the big meeting?” one girl asked.
    “Oh, it was so good,” he told them. “Sitting in there with them while they talked business. It was kind of surreal.”
    “And what was Mr Elkin like?” someone else asked. “Did you see much of him?”
    My heart stopped in my chest, waiting for his answer. I finished talking to the draughtsman and walked slowly over towards Cooper.
    “Nah, he spent his time doing whatever, and I did my thing,” he answered. But then he looked up at me walking towards him, then back to his little audience and smiled when he said, “He’s old anyway. What is he? Like fifty-five?”
    “Good morning,” I said loudly, and every intern there, besides Cooper, looked up at me and scattered in every direction, suddenly very, very busy.
    It was almost comical. Cooper certainly tried not to smile. The little shit.
    “Mr Jones? A moment please.”
    “Certainly, Mr Elkin,” he said, standing up, and how he kept a straight face, I’ll never know.
    I told him with my eyes he was in trouble, to which he replied with his eyes that he’d enjoy every moment of it.
    “The Tamosaka file is with Donella, she’s one of my head draughters. I thought you might like to follow the job through its stages, considering you were there at inception.”
    His eyes lit up. “I’d love to.”
    Then with a stern voice for the benefit of the intern audience, I added, “Though I can probably think of fifty-five reasons to have you archive files for the rest of your stay here.”
    Cooper bit the inside of his lip to stop from smiling, but the poor girl next to him who was staring at her computer screen trying not to listen to us made an odd whining sound. Cooper smiled. “That won’t be necessary, sir,” he said.
    “I’ll let Donella know to expect you,” I told him. “But you can report to my office before you leave today.”
    Sure enough, at a quarter to six, Jennifer’s line buzzed. “Mr Jones to see you.”
    “Thank you.”
    He walked in and sat in the seat across from me, but he didn’t speak.
    I raised my eyebrows at him. “Fifty-five?”
    Then he burst out laughing. “Oh, my God,” he said as he laughed. “That was the funniest thing I’ve seen.”
    “The poor girl next to you was almost beside herself.”
    He laughed again. “She thought you were gonna send me packing.”
    “I should have,” I told him. “I should have kicked your ass out.” Maybe he would have taken me seriously if I wasn’t smiling when I said it. I shook my head at him and finally laughed. “You’re such a little shit.”
    He cracked up laughing at that, but then Jennifer