It was D-day for the presentation, the first big opportunity for Mirabel since she started afresh. All the employees of the journals arrived at the company very early, sharing the same wish - for the meeting to go well. The boardroom was properly arranged, and they all sat at the reception awaiting the clients' arrival. There was anxiety, but they buried it and hoped for the best.
"Erm... Sarah, Maya, Ethan, Dianne, and Vicky, five of you will be in the boardroom with me. We must hit the nail on the head," Mirabel said, her voice sharp and action-packed. "No problem, ma'am," Dianne replied.
Within thirty minutes, two men arrived. They were both fair-skinned and tall, although one was a bit fairer than the other. He wore a black suit, black trousers, and black shoes, while his companion wore a blue suit, blue trousers, and white sneakers. On seeing them, Mirabel stood up and approached them.
"Good morning, gentlemen," she said, extending her hands for a handshake. "Good morning, are you Mirabel?" the man in the blue suit inquired, accepting Mirabel's handshake gesture. "I certainly am. Welcome to the Journals," Mirabel replied.
"Nice to meet you. I see you've all waited for our arrival. That's really nice of you all," said the man in the blue suit. "Thanks, we're looking forward to working with you," Mason added, stepping forward to stand beside Mirabel.
"Okay, well, I am Williams, and my partner is Lionel. We're here to represent Mr. Julius, the owner of the souvenirs, and we're really anticipating your presentation," Williams said. "Nice to meet you both. Believe me, you'll be swept off your feet," Mirabel said with confidence. "I hope so," Lionel replied. "Please, come with me," Mirabel said, leading the two men to the boardroom, followed by Sarah, Ethan, Maya, Dianne, and Vicky.
However, Vicky was held back by Lucy , who whispered "Good luck" into his ear. He smiled and replied with the words "Thank you." They all sat down in the boardroom. Mirabel stepped forward, cleared her throat, and signaled to Dianne to switch on the big screen behind her.
"Good morning once again. I'm really honored that you trusted us to handle this ad. I'd like to thank you," Mirabel said, pausing for a moment, awaiting the men's response. "The pleasure is all ours," Lionel said.
"Well, for me personally, I feel JOT IT is a great app. It's like a diary but on a whole new level. A diary can get lost, but JOT IT remains as long as it's installed on your phone. So, in this ad, we did our best to vividly explain the usefulness of the app. The main concept of the ad is love and memories... love..." Mirabel paused, her mind suddenly going blank. Her heart started beating fast, and her thoughts drifted back to old memories. Her body was present in the room, but her mind was elsewhere.
"Mirabel, are you alright?" Williams inquired, noticing her absence. "Mirabel, are you okay?" he asked again. Williams turned his head to Vicky and his colleagues, who were also shocked at Mirabel's sudden absence.
"What's the meaning of this? Do you think we're here to joke around? We had other companies out there to give this job to, but we chose you, and this is what you can offer?" Williams said, his voice harsh and deep. "If you knew you couldn't handle it, you should have said so earlier," Lionel added, supporting his companion's point.
Vicky stood up and said, "I'm so sorry. She's a bit anxious." "Yes, please don't be annoyed," Maya said, her voice low. "Anxious? You must be joking. I don't think you're ready for this job," Williams said.
Vicky rushed to the front, tapped Mirabel, who shook in confusion, and guided her back to her seat. "Don't worry, I'll handle it," Vicky whispered into her ear. Mirabel's face turned pale, her eyes became watery, and she shook her head, covering her face with her hands. Dianne moved closer to her, patting her shoulder.
"Gentlemen, I'm so sorry for this inconvenience. One is bound to get anxious. I know it's unprofessional, but it's something we can't help. With your permission, can I resume the presentation?" Dianne asked. William and Lionel glanced at each other and waved him to go ahead.
"Like she said, we want the consumers to know the importance of JOT IT, and to do that, we used love. Love brings memories and emotions that will always remain part of our lives. In this ad, we used the inquisitiveness of little kids to our advantage. You know how they're always curious to know everything, especially things about their parents' past lives. We can all agree that we can't remember 100 percent of the things that happened in the past, but with JOT IT, you can, because as you live those memories and jot them down, it's there for life. So, in this ad, a kid approaches his mother asking her how she met her dad."
Dianne nodded and played the clip on the screen. The ad was played, and as Williams and Lionel watched it, they couldn't help but nod their heads in amazement. The clip ended, and a voice said, "Download JOT IT now, and start preserving your memories for a lifetime!"
At the end of the clip, the two men stood up, applauding. They clapped for about two minutes and then sat down. "Wow, this is top-notch. The presentation was amazing, and the ad was the icing on the cake. You redefined our own app for us, and... I can't even explain how I feel. This is amazing," Williams said, his voice loud and cheerful. Lionel didn't say a word, but his smile effectively conveyed his emotions.
"Congratulations, Mirabel. You've got yourself a deal," Williams said, extending his hand to Mirabel, who was elated. She immediately accepted the gesture and said, "Thank you so much."
"We'll take our leave, but I'll get back to you and tell you our next course of action," Williams said, rearranging his suit. He and his partner left the boardroom, escorted by Maya, Ethan, and Dianne.
As soon as they left, Mirabel hugged Vicky and said, "Thank you so much. You just saved the whole company." Vicky's joy knew no bounds. Was Mirabel really hugging him? He composed himself and said, "No need to thank me. It's a team effort."
Realizing she was hugging Vicky, Mirabel stopped and said, "Sorry... I..." "No need to apologize. It was nice," Vicky said. "What was nice, the hug or the approval?" Mirabel inquired. "Both, but I really enjoyed the hug," Vicky said with a broad smile.
Mirabel smiled, "You're weird." "Yeah, thanks for the compliment... for the second time I saw you speechless," Vicky replied. "Yeah, I don't know what happened. I just froze. My emotions got the better of me," Mirabel said. "It happens, but you still looked pretty," Vicky said, making Mirabel blush. "Stop it... It was a difficult situation, and all you were staring at me..." Mirabel said. "Why not?" Vicky asked, and Mirabel smiled.
Their conversation was interrupted when the remaining employees entered with a bottle of wine in Lucy's hands. "Come on, let's celebrate. The Journals are back," Mason said. Dianne went out and returned with glass cups, and they celebrated. Mirabel and Vicky kept their gaze on each other, both wearing broad smiles on their faces.