Downsizing Ch. 07

Dani and Stacy woke the next morning raring to go. Showed shaved and dressed, they started to make their way to the airport. Long term parking was fairly empty so they were able to get a parking stall near the door, which made them happy that they wouldn't have to drag the baggage any further than necessary. A couple of the guys heading into the airport for business trips offered their services carrying bags for the pair. Quite surprised by the reaction of other travelers, Dani and Stacy once at the ticket window made a sort of small talk about their astonishment.

Much to their delight, once they had their boarding tickets taken care of and their bags had been checked, they saw Lucy waiting for them near the boarding gates, as far as she could get without having a ticket herself. Ms. Stanton wanted to make sure they got a personal send off on the way to New York. Lucy wasn't there just for the personal sendoff, she was also there to inform as well. Ms. Stanton having nearly a week to prepare had a thought cross her mind. She had realized there might not have been enough time for Dani to talk to his family about the changes in his life. She had Lucy look up some of Dani's contact information and found his next of kin in his file. She had taken it upon herself to talk to his parents in person. She knew Dani was making a huge step, and there were a couple people that should probably be filled in with the course he had chosen for his life.

Dani and Stacy were totally shocked about the information Lucy had passed along. Then it hit Stacy that her family hadn't known what was happening either. Lucy, in her explanation, filled Dani and Stacy in on arrangements were made by Ms. Stanton so that Dani and Stacy would have the evening they arrived in New York to speak with his parents. It was their decision to fill them in on the changes that were coming, or they could decide not to fill them in until it had all happened. The decision Dani and Stacy made on the plane was to fill in his parents, as well as phone Stacy's parents to fill them in on changes that were about to happen in her life.

Looking at the folder that Lucy had dropped off before they boarded, Dani saw that arrangements had been changed a bit. Instead of staying at The Plaza, they would in fact be staying at The Peninsula New York. Included were some of the hotel's amenities, which Dani and Stacy looked over in awe. Knowing they got a sweet deal with Dani's promotion, they could sit back, relax and enjoy the rest of the flight.

When the pair landed, they made their way to baggage claim and found their luggage. Stepping outside, as they were getting ready to hail a cab, Dani felt a nudge in his side. Stacy was pointing to a limousine with a man standing next to it in full chauffeur uniform. The sign the man was holding said "Ms. Danielle Davis." Smiling appreciatively Dani turned to kiss Stacy on the cheek and they made their way to the limo. Once the chauffeur had loaded up their luggage, they got in the car and the driver pulled away from the curb. The ride to the hotel wasn't fast, but at the same time, it wasn't long either. Their chauffeur said his name was Ted, and informed them on the ride that he would be working specifically for them and had his own suite in the same hotel for whenever he was needed. He also informed them that he would take care of their luggage and make sure it went to their room, giving them a bit more time to relax than they had expected.

When they entered the room utter amazement is all that can describe their reaction to the size and spectacularly lavishments. The size of the room was so immense they thought it could possibly take the whole month they were going to be there to see every inch of it. Dani made jokes of it being a country all of it's own and they the ambassadors.

With the time feeling suspended for several moments, they were startled back to reality when they heard the knock on their door. Upon opening it, their luggage had just arrived at their room. Once their luggage was stored properly, they looked over the folder Lucy had given them earlier, as it had the plans for the evening and the meeting with Dani's parents in it. Ms. Stanton had set it up so Dani's parents would meet him and Stacy in the Hotel's restaurant. As Dani was reading the plans for the evening, it struck him that they had brought along none of Daniel's clothing. All of his apparel had been for Danielle.

Dani suggested that they take a shower together, then get dressed and go find something a bit more appropriate for the dinner with his parents. "I'm not sure my parents could handle meeting Danielle without knowledge of her existence," he said. When they had showered and started getting dressed, something caught Stacy's eye. Two manila envelopes were tucked under the pillows on the bed. One said "Dani Only," likewise the other said "Stacy Only," written in what appeared to be a red sharpie.

Stacy stopped getting dressed without even pulling her stocking all the way up to tear open her envelope to see what was inside. She ripped one edge of it off, and picked up Dani's and tossed it to the end of the bed where he was pulling on his blouse. She was looking at Stacy Only on the envelope when she opened the letter inside and started reading it.

"Dear Stacy,

By now you are in the hotel suite and plans have been made for atleast the evening tonight. As you may have seen, you and Dani both received similar envelopes, please do not discuss the contents with each other. We at Today's Cosmetics™, have put a lot into this pilot program, and this is our way of thanking Dani and yourself for your contributions to the company. Dani for agreeing to go along with the program, and you as well. It would never have come to such a fine day in the history of our company; had you not superceded the dress code, finding a way for Dani to keep her job with our company. Even if it was only a temporary fix until Daniel could find a new place of employment. I am guessing that was the original plan, but I must say I am glad that she has stayed with us.

Enclosed you will find a credit card with a $20,000.00 limit on it. That is only a portion of the benefit of your actions, but it does allow us an opportunity to expand into a new aspect of this business. This is not an advance or a loan of any type. Nor will it show up on your check stub as reportable income. This is a company card that is of your discretion as to the use of it. Be it something you need such as makeup, or if you want to get raunchy and get something at an adult store, no questions will be asked. Please do return the card to me after you have used it, as we will use it for other needs at a later date.

In closing, I would again like to thank you for your contribution to Today's Cosmetics™.

Sincerely

Elizabeth Stanton"

When Stacy finished reading the note, she put the card in her purse, then resumed dressing. Sitting there getting dressed, she was half watching Dani finish up getting dressed, and half staring off into space, clearly deep in thought. When Dani finished dressing, he picked up his envelope and opened it up. Like Stacy's there was a card in it, as well as a letter. Dani put the card in his purse, and pulled the letter open so that he could read it.

"Dear Dani

Now that you have made it to New York City, and are starting to settle in, I would like to thank you yet again for taking the position as the representative for the TC's Conversions. As you may have seen, Stacy received one of these envelopes herself. I would ask you the same thing that I asked her not to discuss the contents of the envelope. As a representative myself, I know what you are about to go through. I have been there myself and I am grateful for what I have learned in the program. I will not fill your head with the glamour side of it, for it is the work part that this letter concerns. Many times over the next 4 weeks, you are going to be wondering about what you were thinking accepting the position. While yes the benefits of the program can help you along in your career modeling, and representing one of the finest cosmetics companies in the world, it is not always easy. I want to beg of you to stick with it. Compared to the benefits, the few hard parts of the next 4 weeks will be well worth it in the end.

Enclosed, you will find two credit cards. One of the cards simply says Danielle Davis, the other says Today's Cosmetic's, Danielle Davis. The card with your name only is a six-month signing bonus; it is a standard card that we provide to our models and representatives. The other card has an unlimited balance, to be used specifically for work related expenses. If you are on a business dinner, by all means, use the company card. If you are doing something that is truly personal, such as a theme park then it would come down to the personal one. I was wondering too, have you had a chance to get an ID for Danielle, if not please use your employee badge if you are to charge anything to either card. Should you come across an instance where they need to verify, I believe my number is listed as the official contact for it, so it is not likely you should have any trouble.

On that note, enjoy New York City, and we shall see you in a month

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Stanton"

Once Dani had finished reading, he put the note in the nightstand on his side of the bed, grabbed his purse and looked at Stacy. She was still staring off into nowhere, which made Dani smile. Clearing his throat brought her back to present time. She too picked up her purse, as Dani was calling Ted to let him know they needed to go out, as Ms. Stanton had set up a meeting for which he had nothing appropriate to wear.

Once in the limo, Dani told Ted they needed to go somewhere for men's apparel. Ted really had not realized quite yet who is charge was for the month. Abandoning Danielle's voice for a moment, he explained his situation with his dinner with his parents. Ted caught on right away this time, and pulled out from the curb. Surprised when Ted pulled onto Broadway, it all clicked when he pulled over in front of Brooks Bros.

Inside the store, Dani and Stacy were pleased to see that the store was similar to Lady's Business, in that they weren't run over by an over zealous sales staff. They had been browsing for about ten minutes when a salesman came by to make sure they were ok. Not wanting to go into a long schpiel as to why he needed some more appropriate attire, Dani simply told the salesman there was a costume ball, and "she was going as a man." Stacy accompanied Dani to the fitting rooms, once out of earshot, they had a good giggle about his excuse. When Dani stepped out of the dressing room in the Brooks Bros. suit, Stacy smiled and nodded her approval. Dani removed the suit, shirt and tie, found some shoes, and they made their way out of the store.

Back in the limo, Dani voiced his thoughts that Stacy seemed to not care for the suit nearly as much as she does when he puts on a woman's suit. She confirmed his suspicion as to her preference for Dani's apparel. Dani told Ted to head back to the hotel, then Dani rolled up the divider window between them and Ted. He immediately turned to Stacy and addressed her preference to his attire. They talked about it on the way back, and Stacy reassured him, she wasn't any less in love with him as Dan, she just found that he was sexier as Dani. As she told him, Dan blends into crowds, and groups, and along the street, though he is a good-looking man, he did not have that male super model appearance. Yet as Dani, quite stunning is one of the least of the compliments she is deserving of.

Back at the hotel, instead of going back to the room Dani asked Ted to make sure the packages made it to the room. He and Stacy went looking around for a bit. Something caught Stacy's eye, she asked Dani if he would mind just meeting her in the room at six. Dani said he wouldn't mind at all, and they went their separate ways discovering all of beauty and design of the hotel.

Dani took at look at his watch and it was gently nearing six p.m. He finished up in the gift shop and started walking towards the hotel elevator. As the door of the elevator opened, he was looking right at his parents. His father a tall handsome man with salt and pepper hair, shortly trimmed. Edwin Davis was a smart businessman, who had no trouble paying for his youngest son's education in computers. Ila Davis, was a retired hairdresser, she had retired when Edwin was able to pick up a few clients of his business that would necessitate him to travel to one client or another. She wasn't going along to keep an eye on her husband, she was going because they could now enjoy life, and trips to and from several major cities allowed them to see the world together. Dani smiled at them as they switched positions, him in and them out of the elevator. Dani overheard his mother asking his father; didn't she look familiar to you? When the door closed, he giggled to himself.

Dani put the key card in the door and walked into the room. Stacy was already in the middle of getting dressed for the dinner with Edwin and Ila. As she was pulling the stocking up her left leg, Dani relayed the elevator meeting with Mom and Dad. Stacy laughed so hard she put her leg right trough the stocking. The look on her face and her inability to stop laughing, put Dani in the same mindset. He fell on the bed laughing with her, just as one had calmed down, a look at the other would set em both back to laughing till their sides hurt. As Stacy was pulling the stocking off of her right leg, Dani pulled a new pair out of the drawer for her to put on.

Dani jumped in for another quick shower to wash off the makeup before getting into his new Brooks Bros. suit, quite possibly the last one he would ever wear. Now dressed in the suit, he pulled his hair back in a pony tail, much like you see many business men with long hair do. Not really knowing of a male style with longer hair hadn't given him many options, it being apparent that it is much easier for a woman to figure out something to do with longer hair than a man.

The clock on the wall indicated that they only had about twenty minutes until their reservation, they decided to head down early and see if they could be seated already. The hotel restaurant wasn't too awfully busy, and the Matradee showed them to their seats promptly. Before the matradee left, Daniel explained his parents would be joining them very soon. The matradee bowed as he left the table.

The waiter was standing next to the table just minutes after they had been seated. When asked if they would like some time to look over the menu, Dan ordered a bottle of wine, and 4 glasses. The waiter asked to make sure if there would be more arriving for tonight's dinner and Dan just nodded. The waiter said, "Very well," and excused himself to fetch the wine and glasses. When he returned Dan informed him that he would wave him over when they were ready to order, so he need not keep checking in, allowing him to help is other customers until they were ready. As the waiter left, Dan poured two glasses of wine, while he and Stacy made small talk waiting on his parents.

Edwin and Ila weren't from Dan's memory the most prompt couple, so Dan was concerned that they would drink all the wine before Mom and Dad showed up. Tonight however, the couple was right on time. As the Matradee escorted the couple to Dan and Stacy's table, he pulled out Mrs. Davis' chair until she was seated then bid them a good evening.

Dan got up from his seat, and first walked around the table to embrace his parents, since he had not seen them for quite some time. After the hugs were done, as well as his mother smothering his cheek in kisses, he poured his parents a glass of wine and refreshed his and Stacy's, then resumed his seat next to his fiancé.

Edwin and Ila had not yet had the pleasure of meeting Stacy. Dan took a minute to do some introductions, followed by the news of their engagement. Both of his parents were quite happy for the beautiful couple. Ila had tears of join running down her cheek, her baby boy was getting married. It wasn't likely that anything could make her happier than she was at that very moment. Edwin had sat up with his shoulders back, quite proud, similar to that of the cock that ruled the roost with two dozen hen. Though his parents were happy for them and proud of their son, they had no idea of the bomb that was about to drop.

A good portion of the evening was catching up, Edwin had gotten into telling the young couple about the business' expansions as of late, when the focus of the subject of career moved to Dan. They had been having a great evening up to that point, but now Dan and Stacy were trying to figure out how to soften the blow. Stacy suggested the long version of the takeover, so as to best fill-in Edwin and Ila as to what was to happen.

Hearing the way Stacy set up for how the career was going had Edwin's face twisted in some strange contortions. He felt it necessary to interrupt at that point. As he began to speak, it became clear that he was confused. "I don't know what you have to tell us, but it sounds like it's not a good thing," he said

Dan interrupted his father at that point, and went back to the very beginning, right to the point when he was applying for the analyst position. Dan explained the takeover, then the dress code change. His father interrupted him on that about the legalities of it. Dan went into the legalities, and this is where Stacy's idea became the relevant part of the evening. His parents were awestruck when they found out how he kept his job without looking like a fool, both in the office and on the way to work. Dan had not got to the part about the promotion, when his mother started crying. This emotional outbreak caught all three of them off guard. When she composed herself, she explained that she had always wanted a girl, though they ended up with two boys. And that her youngest son dressing as a girl to keep his job, just threw her for a loop and she couldn't help the cry.

All three of them nodded their heads and said they could understand how that could happen. Dan handed her a napkin to blot her tears with, then went on to explain he had been promoted, the very promotion that had them all in New York City. This new information had his mother choked up again, she kept napkins close by. As he explained that he would have to be dressed as the cosmetics rep for the job, he was expecting his father to go through the roof, demanding him to join his business to keep his son. What he got was totally opposite. His father put his hand on his mothers back in a patting motion, saying to her, that this may be the daughter she had wanted.

After consoling Ila, and her regaining her composure, he turned to his son. "I am an important man Dan," he said. He went on, "I have two sons that I'm very proud of. I do believe it's going to be a bit difficult to get used to, but you have made a very serious choice, and you have atleast appeared to put a great deal of thought into it before coming to that decision. Had you not, I would be inclined to stick you in a nut house somewhere. If this is what you really want, We will stand behind you one hundred percent." The words nearly knocked Dan, Stacy as well as Ila out of their chairs. Not one of the three expected such a reaction. Edwin continued, "When I speak of you, I can say that you did nothing more, nor less, than making a sound decision for your life. No father can really say much more than that, not even Mr. Trump."

Suddenly Dan had an astonishing realization. He panned his head at the others and said, "You know, I can run upstairs and meet you in the lounge, so u can see what Danielle Davis looks like. You will know when you see a billboard, or a commercial that it's me." The others agreed it would be a good idea. Dan pulled out one of the cards to pay for the meal, he noticed that Danielle was on the card not Daniel. Stacy looked at the card and started to laugh. She then went on to explain that Daniel doesn't have a card for the expenses, only Danielle.