let's be practical.

The annoyance in the woman’s tone wasn’t lost on her.  Diana had been sending a text off to tell her children’s nanny she would be running a little late.  “I wouldn’t know,” she admitted.  “Though you are beginning to worry me.  My son will be a teenager before I know it.”  The fact that Henry was about to hit the double digits was frightening enough.  A teenager?  That sounded preposterous.

“How old is yours?” Diana asked hesitantly.

Maribel kept her uneasy smile, gripping her phone hard. It was easier to express it around those with kids. Diana was a mother, that Maribel knew from the rep's public image. "Seventeen, thinks he's grown but he really isn’t," Maribel replied, trying to spin her complaints into barely advice. "As long as your boy is still polite and well-mannered? That’ll make it so much easier to weather through the years." 

[TEXT: MARIBEL (ACKERMAN COS)] - Liz better hurry the fuck up [TEXT: MARIBEL (ACKERMAN COS)] - I wouldn’t say that’s surprising. But good [TEXT: MARIBEL (ACKERMAN COS)] - Of course. If not me, who?

Jp is incredibly thankful for Maribel; she kept him on his toes, and always had something for him to do. In this very moment, he wasn’t all to fond of her. He resists the urge to roll his eyes and instead trails closely behind her, trying to get a little caffeine in before he’d have to start working again. 

“No big deal,” he shrug, speeding up slightly to try and keep in toe with her as she flipped through papers. The name seems to ring a bell but he can’t immediately pair it with a face. “That’s a shame, we’ve got a few stragglers who we could move but you’d probably have to whip them into shape.” He jokes  before taking another sip of his coffee.

He grabs the papers awkwardly as he nods in response to her. The walk together now as he readjust the papers under his shoulder and downs the rest of his coffee. It’s searing hot but, he’s gotta’ get to work. “Got it, anything else?” He asks hands in his pockets.

“Our photocopiers still work as well as anyone, even if they splutter and pass out,” Maribel almost boasts. Halfway through it, she was thinking of herself. Years of working hard and she still wasn’t faltering. (This notion was debatable, although not to Maribel). “Plus, it’s just a whole lot easier to make the copies and keep them in the office than to do them elsewhere and bring them over. Better to move you, than the stack.”  

Where were the other interns like Jp? Like any other office character, the variety of faces and diversity in personalities was a good thing. Although, sometimes it wasn’t enough. Maribel appreciated genuineness, even if it wasn’t what brought many people success. Empty eyes behind accepting her orders just wasn’t enough, as if the ambi 

Jp is incredibly thankful for Maribel; she kept him on his toes, and always had something for him to do. In this very moment, he wasn’t all to fond of her. He resists the urge to roll his eyes and instead trails closely behind her, trying to get a little caffeine in before he’d have to start working again. 

“No big deal,” he shrug, speeding up slightly to try and keep in toe with her as she flipped through papers. The name seems to ring a bell but he can’t immediately pair it with a face. “That’s a shame, we’ve got a few stragglers who we could move but you’d probably have to whip them into shape.” He jokes  before taking another sip of his coffee.

He grabs the papers awkwardly as he nods in response to her. The walk together now as he readjust the papers under his shoulder and downs the rest of his coffee. It’s searing hot but, he’s gotta’ get to work. “Got it, anything else?” He asks hands in his pockets.

Maribel was used to young apathy, just not from someone like Jp. It was a reflex for her to give a stern look before the equally strong lecture. However, he seemed to gather himself before she could even start. 

“Oh, how much easier it would be if interns arrived as ready as the likes of you,” Maribel said, letting a jovial tone slip. Only good manners to return the tone. While she had insisted he was the last resort, . Hard work was a value, something she had hoped this Capitol Hill would reward. 

[ SMS : MARIBEL ] Hey, rude. I have a real job. I do real things. Betterment of society is my motto, and I haven’t paid a pizza delivery guy to say the words ‘you’ve been served’ for weeks.

[ SMS : MARIBEL ] You hate on Texas. Or you should. The only place worse to earn per capita income than Texas is… I don’t know, Arkansas.

[ SMS : MARIBEL ] Looking forward to your epiphany. I charge five bucks for each one I trigger. Hope your kids speed it along. How are they, by the way?

[ SMS : MARIBEL ]  O K A Y  P R I N C E S A. You’re a self-made woman and I’ll give credit again. It’s not like I’m doing real work compared to my prime. 

[ SMS : MARIBEL ] And I don’t hate Texas completely. Northerners don’t get its charm. My youngest is begging me to bring some Whataburger back! Not sure how. If we’re talking politics, I’ll concede again and could go on ... but it’s the holidays. 

[ SMS : MARIBEL ] Not sure. [ SMS : MARIBEL ] Fell asleep just before and woke up at 10pm, so I missed it. [ SMS : MARIBEL ] Nobody is gonna care, right? 

[ SMS : Maribel (Ackerman CS) ] Nothing exciting yet

[ SMS : Maribel (Ackerman CS)] Although you’re missing some amazing cookies.

[ SMS : GRACE WALSH ] Do keep me updated, Miss CNN! Compared to airport coffee, veep cookies sounds very exciting 

[ SMS : MARIBEL ] Interesting, to say the least. I should be used to being the most reviled person in a room—after maybe Leon fucking Solis—but I’m not. Did an old Congressman nearly hip-check me into the buffet table? Highly likely.

[ SMS : MARIBEL ] How’s Texas? At least they say bless your heart when they sneeze and hope you die.