Jason Firth wasn't the most perceptive man. Not that he was stupid by any means, but never won poker night with his buddies either. How he managed to land a job as a government facilities inspector was beyond everyone, even himself. He enjoyed his work though, and today he was tasked with inspecting the equipment and general cleanliness of the Fort Worth Army hospital.
He'd been here once before, three years ago, and it really did look exactly the same as it did then. Same off white exterior, clean tinted windows, slightly shoddy asphalt, and the dirty black entrance mat. He stepped in and adjusted his jacket. The receptionist glanced up at him from his phone, and looked back down without saying anything. He looked at the flag mounted on the wall in the corner; didn't they have to change those every so often? He couldn't remember the rule about flags, but he really couldn't tell the difference by looking anyway, so he checked that box on his clipboard and walked toward the receptionist.
"Hi, Jason Firth, facilities inspector. I have an appointment with the building super?"
His tone was simple, he knew the receptionist couldn't really care less who he was.
"She'll be down in two minutes. Something about making sure she was ready."
"She? What happened to Mr. Pollentz?"
"He... Isn't here today. Ms. Remelia will be escorting you on your inspection."
He wouldn't look up at Jason. He had thought it was due to boredom, but it now it seemed intentional.
"I wasn't notified of this, where is Mr. Pollentz? Why isn't he in today?"
"Ms. Remelia has been assigned to your inspection today sir, she'll be here momentarily. Please, have a seat."
Jason pulled out his phone. If this guy wasn't going to be helpful, he'd just find out himself.
"Jason, who are you calling? And right as our appointment is about to begin? How rude!"
Her voice floated through the hall, not quiet but not harsh. Jason turned his head to look at her and nearly dropped his phone. Stunning would be the only word he could've used to describe her. She chuckled and walked over to him.
"Remelia Langhart. Chief Supervisor of this hospital. But don't call me Langhart, that's too formal for me. Remelia will do fine."
He placed his phone back in his pocket and extended his hand.
"Jason Firth. Facilities Inspector. What happened to Mr. Pollentz? I was told I'd be meeting him?"
She smiled, "Mr. Pollentz hasn't been in for a few weeks now. He's been... Offsite, at- well, another facility. Don't worry about that, I'll be with you today."
He wanted to protest, but he really was taken aback by her looks and forward demeanor. Her eyes were dark brown, and he, for a few moments, could not bring himself to look away from them.
"...on... Jason?"
He snapped back to reality.
"Sorry about that, yeah, let's go."