S.A.I.G.E

         Just outside an Italian Radio Broadcasting Building, Dr. Julia Ahn inspected the shiny spot on her forehead to make certain the powder dulled it out. It had. With a satisfied smile and *snap* shut of her pocket mirror Dr. Julia Ahn plunged head into the Italian Radio Broadcasting Building humming and swinging her purse in high spirits. No one is suppose to know what I’m about to tell you so keep it hush, hush; Dr. Julia hadn’t the slightest notion of anything to do with the Italian Radio Broadcasting Building, she was headed to a secret building hidden ‘underneath’ the Italian Radio Broadcasting Building.
         Ding* went the elevator bell and Dr. Julia stepped inside whistling “It’s A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood.” Dr. Julia held Mr. Rogers in very high regards, he was a favorite of hers with his calm kindly way and neat tidy little home, and of course his song was a favorite of hers too. She whistled it as she pushed a complicated code. A few people know this but most elevator buttons act as hidden keyboards, if you pres the correct sequence of numbers you’re taken to a secret floor. The secret code in Dr. Julia’s notebook went exactly like this: 35667-84478336-753273, which in texting spells floor-thirteen-please. And the clever elevator knew just what Dr. Julia meant. Even though there was no floor thirteen in the Italian Radio Broadcasting Building the elevator dinged open at Floor Thirteen, or Main Level S.A.I.G.E Central as The S.A.I.G.E Handbook names it. A Mr. Doctor in his white coat, a Mr. Professor in his white coat, and a Ms. Assistant in her white coat, smiled a big welcome to Dr. Julia Ahn. They gave to her a starchy white coat and immediately began talking about her new work here at S.A.I.G.E Central.
         Though Dr. Julia Ahn didn’t know it, she passed a very ‘furturly’ important person in the hall as the three scientists led her away. They and Dr. Julia hurried pass the lad in the hall way. They were so absorbed in chatting and using big words from their years of dictionary memorization and scarcely noticed the lad. He had his back leaned against the wall and one foot pressing back against the wall to. The newspaper headline seemed to fascinate his focus, so much he forgot his coffee was hot and sipped the steaming liquid! Half his taste buds shriveled by the heat of the coffee but still his attention didn’t sway from the headlines. Swiss Take Lead In World Cup. Printed in letters so big and black they screamed for joy themselves. Below read an exciting but critical story of the last ten minutes of the Italy Switzerland game where Switzerland kicked goal after goal in Italy net and stole Italy‘s rightful trophy! Being Swiss himself and knowing his people weren’t wonderful soccer players, Danny Vald felt both shock, patriotic cheer and like he wanted to strangle the Italian reporters for making his team sound like rotten cheaters!
         Danny peeked at his watch, 8:20, the introductory meeting to S.A.I.G.E Central wouldn’t start for another twenty five minutes, enough time to find another Swiss to celebrate an ale with over Switzerland‘s grand triumph!

         Outside S.A.I.G.E  Central and the IRBB two people didn’t think they had time before the meeting at all. At least one thought they didn’t, the other, Nino Qxio wasn’t worried, or anxious, or even thinking about the meeting, I doubt he even knew he was going to on. In the taxi Nino held a little sketch pad full of complicated numbers, shapes, equations and figures. Nino’s long skull bobbed up for a moment to catch of glimpse of life then bobbed back down to scribble out his mathematical painting of it. There were numbers estimating the size of a woman carrying her baby, geometric shapes in an equation to measure the total surface area of a three dimensional baby cart including two infant twins inside. He’d written two separate lines of genetic codes to resemble the baby’s heads peeking out of the baby cart. The street was carefully painted with the formula of the mother’s velocity calculating her force in pushing the cart plus the twins weight. One wouldn’t realize the string of numbers outlining the drawing until they examined it under a microscope. All written so beautifully the decimals looked like dirt in the pavement and the numbers, written tightly together, cracks running here and there through the street. Nino looked over his work and laughed to himself. He liked it and showed the paper to Nama Gaiae but her thoughts were focused else and she didn’t notice it. Nino laughed again, Nama look funny because outside the window was a taxidermist and Nama looked like she had horns coming out her nose, and that made Nino laugh and gave him another picture idea. Nino hunched over his yellow paper and drew the weight and length of nose horns so they weren’t too long or heavy to tilt your head forward.
         “We never make it.” muttered Nama, she hated time limits and hated them more when they were locked inside a slow taxi.
         “Come, Nino we run for time!” Nama grabbed her cousin’s hand and opened the taxi door. The driver yelled after her for his money but Nama was quick and already out of hearing range down the block with the tall and disproportioned looking Nino tramping behind her. Nino wanted to stop and give the stray doggie some food, but Nama said next time. Nino wanted to stop to take the lady bug to a safer place, but Nama said the bug wanted the fast city pace.
         Nama didn’t stop running till they bolted into the Italian Radio Broadcasting Building, dashed into the elevator and Nama wildly pressed a mess of buttons. Which resulted in the elevator making a horrible dying sound and with a moan came to a complete stop.
         “No, no, no! Not today! Not now! Nino quick, the time?”
Nino tapped his heels, first eight times, a pause, then five then three.
         “Eight fifty three Nino we miss it! And now we are stuck in this an elevator!” Misty eyed with frustration, Nama sunk to the floor and rested her chin on her knees. I wouldn’t judge Nama Gaiae by this first impression, it had been a difficult week and things kept getting worse. Her brother was in jail again, her mother was sick and couldn’t afford a hospital, her car had been towed, her cat died, Nino accidentally short circuited the power in the hotel and Nama had to pay for repair, she was broke, she’d stubbed her toe, her job had now been transferred to Central and now she was late for introduction meeting to Central and was stuck in an elevator.
         Nino knew all this and did the best he could to cheer her up. The little yellow scratch paper came out of Nino’s coat pocket and in no time he showed his drawing to Nama with a sympathetic smile. The drawing outlined Nama’s downcast face. Instead of lines making her face there were written in the smallest microscopic words the Law Of Perpetual Motion, the Second Law Of Thermodynamics, and a knock, knock joke that went, “Knock, knock. Who’s there. Boo. Boo who? Don’t Cry Nama.” Two smiley faces made the dark in Nama’s sad eyes
         Nama smile and laughed a little. Nino ripped and folded the paper and made a perfect origami flower and presented it to Nama with a big smile.
         “Thank you Nino.” Nama kissed her cousin’s big forehead and smelled her paper flower, “I have been a bad spirit on our trip haven’t I?”
Nino didn’t like people talking bad about themselves and frown.
         “I could be better. I’m glad I have you at least.”
The elevator fell silent a while. Nama and Nino both sat on the floor leaning against the steel elevator wall and patiently waited for the repair man. Nama’s head rested on her cousin’s thin arm. His shoulder was too high for her to lean on.
         Nino had drawn the structure and mechanics of the elevator while they waited. Suddenly it occurred to Nama that he could fix the jammed buttons! When she asked him if he could Nino nodded and got up on his long wobbly legs and pulled a screw driver out of his pants to begin unscrewing the button panel. After a few minutes of studying the rivers of wires Nino tweaked a few blue cords and few red cords the elevator hummed to life. This time Nino pushed in the number code, 35667-84478336-753273 the doors dinged open on the Thirteenth floor.