A Work2gether Fiction Series At 9:01 a.m. sharp, Riley was already on her third favor and first existential sigh. Devvon—PAYGO, with two v’s—had entered the moment the door unlocked and immediately begun rearranging furniture “for optimal call acoustics.” Now, he was back at the bar asking how to connect to both Wi-Fi bands at once. “You don’t,” Riley said, smiling. “They’re identical.” “But if I could, would it be faster?” “Unfortunately, that’s not how air works.” In Private Office 1B, Maya and Chris were locked in silent tension, punctuated only by the sounds of typing, pencil tapping, and an occasional passive-aggressive sip. “You’re really going to start with the cabin design again?” Chris finally said, glancing at her screen. “Yes. It sets the tone.” “The tone of… cottagecore real estate?” “It makes people feel something.” “It makes people want a warm beverage and a dog.” “You say that like it’s bad.” Back in the lounge, Zay had kicked off his morning with a loud “LET’S GET IT” and a 32-ounce smoothie that looked like battery fluid. He flopped into a lounge chair like he owned it. Bev, three feet away and mid-puzzle, narrowed her eyes. “This is a focused zone,” she said calmly. “This is a lounge,” Zay replied. “I’m lounging. With intention.” Bev repositioned the puzzle box so it partially covered Zay’s smoothie. Zay adjusted his volume. Game on. At 9:26, Devvon returned to Riley. “I need to book a meeting room,” he said. “Private, bright, soundproof if possible. I’ve got an investor pitch.” “That’ll be $40 an hour,” Riley said, already pulling up the booking form. “Forty? What if I only use good vibes?” “We used to accept those,” she said, deadpan. “Turns out vibes don’t pay rent.” He handed over his card. “Fine. But I feel like I should get this for free.” She smiled again. She always did. Riley was kind. Riley was helpful. Riley was known around Work2gether for going above and beyond. But Devvon—with two v’s—might be her villain origin story. By 10:03, Maya and Chris were trying to build a shared deck without making eye contact. “Your urban layout slide still has Comic Sans on it,” Maya said. “It’s ironic.” “It’s offensive.” “I’m trying to show versatility.” “You’re trying to get us ghosted by a developer.” Danielle popped in with a smoothie and a grin. “Just want to say: I love the tension in here. It’s giving ‘married founders about to break up and then IPO.’” “We’re not breaking up,” Maya said quickly. “We’re just… divided by font choices.” Chris nodded. Danielle nodded like a coach watching two players tackle each other out of love. By 10:36, Zay had expanded to two chairs. Bev had placed a printed sign on the coffee table that said PUZZLE AREA RESERVED FOR SILENT REFLECTION. Zay had responded by accidentally-on-purpose playing lo-fi hip hop on his phone. Riley walked by, saw the stand-off, and simply said: Then she tossed Bev a mint tea and Zay a granola bar and kept walking. At 10:54, Chris pushed back from his desk. “What if we just… combine them?” “Like, actually combine?” “The deck. Your aesthetic. My logistics. Your vibes. My… everything else.” Maya thought for a second. “That sounds like us.” He smiled. “Exactly. A little chaos. A lot of compromise. One shared monitor.” Maya smiled back. Maybe that’s what made it work. The space. The people. And the ability to disagree in private, but create something better—together—in public. At 11:23, Devvon returned to Riley. “I think someone moved the chair in the meeting room.” “That… tends to happen with chairs.” “But it threw off my whole flow.” She handed him a stress ball. Next Time on The Third Place...Riley’s bad day begins before the coffee finishes brewing. The kombucha tap rebels. Episode 4: Riley vs. the World Enjoying the ride? Come see what coworking is really like — kombucha, chaos, and all. Join Work2gether or schedule a tour today. The Third Place is a completely fictional story about a completely real kind of place. The characters are made up. But their situations? A little too familiar. The town is fake. But also… not really. The passive-aggressive fridge notes, the mysterious smell near the bathrooms, the guy who never stops talking, the lady without her headphones, and the printer issues? Oh, they’re very real. No actual people were harmed in the writing of this story, but if you recognize yourself… your ego may be. Welcome to Work2gether Downingville Square. See you in the next episode, or better yet... in real life. Comments are closed.
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Listen on:
Season 1
Before the Story Begins Not home.
Not the office. The space between. A fictional series about real work, shared spaces, and the small, messy ways people build community—without ever meaning to. |
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