Jorge: Hurry! We’re going to be late!

Me: Coming! I ran towards the front door. Grabbing my tuxedo jacket and keys on the way out.

Jorge was already in the car reading something on their phone.

Jorge: Just checking the route. There isn’t too much traffic so we should be good on time.

Me: Thanks for checking and for being on it.

Jorge: What would you do without me?

We both laugh and lean in towards each other for a quick peck.

Me: Onward my shadow steed! While pointing ahead.

We both chuckled and off we went.

Me: I’m so nervous. You know I don’t like speaking in public let alone to a room full of my peers. They’re always so critical and are quick to point out anything and everything anyone does wrong.

My palms began to sweat and I could feel the sweat on the steering wheel.

Jorge: You’ll be fine (while making a waiving hand motion towards him to say it’ll be ok). You’ve prepped for this speech for weeks. You’ve got this.

Me: That’s what makes me nervous. The fact that I’ve had so much time to pre…

He cuts me off mid sentence and grabs my right sweaty hand.

Jorge: You’re putting too much pressure on yourself. RELAX! You’ll have your speech on the prompter for you so no need to worry about memorizing it. You’re going to do great!

We make it to my work event with a few minutes to spare “phew” I said aloud as I put the car in park.

This was an extremely important work event for me. I was receiving an award for breaking sales records and all the bigwigs would be there. It’d be a great time to schmooze it up and make a lasting impression on them. I was eyeing that regional sales partner role. This award is a nice first step but didn’t guarantee anything.

Jorge was out the car zipping towards the building before I could say anything. The first thing I noticed walking in was how loud everyone was being. There were more people here than I had expected. I could smell the food that was about to be served and the sound of plates clanking in the kitchen area. People were standing near the bar getting their beverages before the ceremony started. Laughter and cheer filling the room.

As I’m scurrying to find Jorge and my manager I began to notice that people were staring at me. I hadn’t put much thought into it since I am one of the main reasons for this event. I see my manager across the room and start walking towards them. Making my way through the crowd I overhear someone saying “did you see their ::inaudible::?” followed by some laughter. Wish I could join the conversation but I was dead set on reaching my manager before the ceremony started.

Just then I could hear Jorge in the background but couldn’t make out what they were saying. I turn to him and he looks mortified. Waiving his arms frantically to get my attention. As I was about to change course to go towards them I hear my manager call out my name.

Manager: Armando! Nice to see you made it on time - for once!

We both laugh.

Me: Christine, always the jokester. I said as I go in for a handshake. Wow! Is that a new Gucci dress?

Their expression changed from happy to shocked and I could see the concern on their face. Her head tilted like you see pugs do on those videos posted online.

Christine: YOU’RE actually quite the jokester Armando.

Me: (confusion/concern in my voice) Haha. What are you talking about? My smile quickly turns into a frown.

Christine: Your choice in shoes. You’re wearing what looks like bedroom slippers with sharks on them. Are they couture? She asks giggling.

Me: WHAT?! I could feel my face turning hot and red.

Sure enough, I look down at my feet for the first time since before leaving the house and see that I was in fact still wearing my shark bedroom slippers. I was mortified. I could feel the blood draining from my face. I felt a little lightheaded. The room began to spin. Do I have time to go home and grab the right shoes?!

Just then the announcer asks us all to take our seats. I had no time to go get my fancy shoes. I was stuck wearing my shark slippers.