Story Stream
Fill each blank from the word bank below the text, then check your answers. Any underlined word is tappable — see its meaning and where it actually came from, then save it straight to your Daily Deck.
Maria at the office ten minutes early, her palms damp with nerves. The receptionist glanced up and gave her a brief, reassuring smile. "They're running a little behind schedule," she said, "but it shouldn't be long." Maria nodded and sat down, her opening line under her breath. When the door finally opened, a tall man in a suit stepped out, profusely for the delay. His handshake was firm, almost aggressively so, and he her inside with an energy that made the whole room feel smaller.
On her first morning, Maria a laptop that hadn't been yet and a security badge with someone else's photo on it. Her new manager, Tom, seemed to genuinely enjoy the , laughing it off as "a rite of passage." By lunchtime she had met four people named Alex and completely track of where the coffee machine was. Still, when a colleague her a working badge and pointed her toward the right floor, Maria realized she might actually like it here.