Luna's Office Christmas Party

Becoming Irresistible

Luna stands anxiously outside the office door. This is your chance, she tells herself. Nobody is mean on Christmas.

Luna has had a rough winter season. Hell, she's had just as rough of a fall as well. Joining Wayes' Estates should have been her crowning achievement. Finally she'd earn her stripes playing with the big boys! Although, as she came to find, those big boys come with even bigger egos. It's not like Luna is bad at her job. In fact, it was her boss Tristan who approached her to join the brokerage. So far that's the only thing she can cling to as a reason to stay. Each day she tells herself, he chose you; he wanted you to be here; you belong here.

Luna's issue had always been social anxiety. Those who should have been her peers often masqueraded as antagonists in her head. Selling independently was one thing, but working with six others on a regular basis was a whole different party to which she couldn't seem to adjust.

Luna hesitates to reach for the door handle.

Just before she twist the knob, she pats the bag rested on her hip making sure the candy canes she bought are in fact still there. Nobody is mean on Christmas, she repeats to herself, and everyone loves a treat!

She forces a smile that strains to raise her spirits. She knows she's getting desperate. But as long as the guys don't know that yet, everything is gonna be fine.

Luna twists the handle and walks inside. To her surprise, the office has been beautifully transformed. Lights are strung along the ceiling; splashes of green and red decorations are at every desk; there is even a Christmas tree covered with tensile and ornaments to complete the winter wonderland.

"You made it!" a voice calls out.

Luna smiles. It's Tristan. Luna's boss Tristan was always so kind to her. No matter how much she struggled to fit in with the guys in the office, Tristan always reassured her that she was merely on a learning curve. "Rome wasn't built in a day," he'd tell her. Though Luna never quite liked that analogy. Of course Rome wasn't built in a day it's fucking Rome. Meaningless work friendships shouldn't take the same effort it took to build Rome. Kids a fraction of her age make friends just by walking into the same room as other kids. So what's her problem?

"Hi, Tristan! Oh my goodness everything looks so pretty!"

Luna meets Tristan with a friendly embrace and he drapes his arm around her to escort her around the office - clearly proud of his work as host.

"Well thank you kindly miss Luna," he says bashfully. "As I believe I told you before, I always regretted not hiring you before our big end of the summer party. When we party we really have a good time!"

They made it to the tree where the rest of the guys were waiting, chatting, and throwing back a few drinks. Luna took a deep breathe. "Merry Christmas everyone!" She exclaimed. Her enthusiasm was met with nods and smirks at one another. Alex, Ryan, Marcus, Casper, Jay, and Ben all had a close bond with each other. Although, Luna never really saw what they had in common. Was it her? Was hating the new girl really enough of a sentiment to bring the office together?

"That'll be twenty bucks Jay. Thank you very much," Ryan laughed as he collected his cash from Jay.
"You lose a bet Jay?" asked Luna.

"You lose a bet Jay?" Jay repeated mockingly. "What the fuck else does it look like Luna?" Jay snapped back.
"Oh lay off," chimes in Alex. "He's just a sore loser Luna don't worry about that."

"You see Luna, we all knew you'd be late - that's literally a surprise to no one," Ryan looks around the room for nods of approval. "But poor Jay here was just so sure it'd be less than ten minutes that I had to wager him for it. Twenty minutes later and I'm twenty dollars richer." Ryan waves his newly obtained twenty dollar bill like a flag above his head. Jay looks pissed.