D is for do as i say, boy The pockets in Dan's new suit were still sewn shut, and his wet hair was frozen tight and hard against his forehead. ?Hello?? he shouted hoarsely into the intercom outside theRed Letter offices on Eleventh Street in the West Village. The cigarette he'd been smoking on the walk from the subway had burned down to the quick, singeing his fingers. He tossed it onto the sidewalk, hoping that someone fromRed Letter wasn't watching disapprovingly from a window. ?I'm Daniel Humphrey? The new intern?? The heavily grated door buzzed, and Dan pushed it open. He wiped his sweaty hands on his pants as he mounted the stairs in front of him. Already he could see the glare of office lights, hear thetap, tap, tap of computer keyboards, the hum of fax machines, photocopiers, and printers, and the steady murmur of voices talking on the phone. He reached the top stair and surveyed the open-plan office, full of strange heads bent over desks, talking on the phone and looking busy, busy, busy. Bisecting the white walls was a thin, horizontal red line, making it look like the large room had been wrapped with red ribbon. When he squinted, though, Dan could see that the line was made up of thousands of tiny words painted in red. He wondered what it said, but in order to get close enough he'd have to lean over someone's desk, and he didn't want to be rude. He waited for someone to greet him and show him around?someone there must have buzzed him in, after all?but no one seemed to notice him. Even in his fancy new suit? He shifted from foot to foot and cleared his throat noisily. Nothing. ?Um,? he spoke to the guy sitting nearest him. The guy had dark, slicked-back hair and was wearing a crisp white shirt with French cuffs tucked into neatly pressed black trousers that were probably made by Armani or Gucci or something. There were four unopened minibottles of San Pellegrino mineral water lined up on the desk in front of him. ?I'm here to see Siegfried Castle,? Dan told him. The guy looked up and squinted at Dan.?Pourquoi?? Dan frowned. Couldn't the guy just speak English? ?Because I'm his new intern?? The guy stood up. ?And I ham your new boss.? He held out his hand, palm up. ?Siegfried Castle. Call me Sig?no, actzuelly, I zink you must call mesir .? Dan wasn't sure how to handle the palm-up scenario. Boldly he put his hand on top of Siegfried Castle's and turned it around, shaking it up and down like a normal person would. Siegfried Castle grimaced and removed his hand. ?You're a poet, no?? Dan nodded, his eyes shifting nervously to the other people in the office. They were all looking up now, examining him coldly. He noticed now that everyone else had those little green bottles of San Pellegrino lined up on their desks, too. And they were all dressed in black and white, just like Mr. Castle. Dan felt like a freak in his light blue shirt and gray suit. ?Yes. I had a poem in the Valentine's Day............