Darryl slid three quarters into the vending machine and weighed his options. He thought about the memory snaps, or the ultra-focus gels (which is what his bosses would prefer he bought, he was sure), but decided on the Cookies of Desires. He needed a mid-day pick-me-up, and the chocolate chip gems would give him the sugar boost he needed to get through the rest of the workday, with the added bonus of getting to experience what he desired most for a few minutes.
       He hit the button, and the machine whirled to life, pushing the package of cookies out of the rack and letting them fall with a 'thunk' to the bottom. He pushed open the door and took out his treat.
       The company had touted the arrival of VEND3000 through a series of emails, social media blasts, and even old-fashioned flyers posted in the breakroom. Only six had been released across the U.S. for public consumption, and Ajax Corp. had snagged one just for their employees to enjoy on their fifteen-minute break.
       At first, Daryl had been wildly skeptical. Granted, the VEND3000 was from the makers of Dreampuffs, the cereal that gave you extra vivid dreams if you ate it before bedtime, but honestly, he figured that was just a trick done with some sort of drug they weren't sharing from their '100% Natural Dreamy Mix of Spices.'
       The company did impose some pretty strict guidelines with the new machine, though. Employees were only allowed one purchase per day and only afternoon breaks. A once-a-week exception could be requested for the ultra-focus jellies if an employee could provide documentation of a looming deadline or important project.
       The machine had proven to be a smashing success. Most of the time, there was a line, and often snacks would sell out by the end of the day. The Nerves of Steel Buns were already completely out of stock and back-ordered. Apparently, being able to speak freely with confidence was a hot commodity among the CEOs.
       Daryl filled his coffee mug with lukewarm coffee from the breakroom pot and went back to his cubicle. He flipped his paper 'On Break' sign over in front of the entrance to it and plopped in his chair. Normally he would zone out on social media while having his afternoon break, but today he wanted to focus solely on his snack.
       He tore open the cellophane wrapper, and the two chocolate chip cookies rolled out onto his desk. He picked one up and inspected it. It looked like a normal chocolate chip cookie. It was rather small, which was disappointing, but it smelled good. He took a small bite. It was crispy on the outside but chewy on the inside. It tasted almost home-baked. He finished the first cookie with one large bite and followed it with a swig of coffee.
       Daryl looked around the cubicle, expecting something to be different. Nothing had changed. He leaned back in his chair, making the springs squeak, and closed his eyes, waiting for the effects to kick in. Nothing.
       He decided it must take a full serving to feel anything and ate the second cookie in two bites. Again he followed it with a swig of his coffee and closed his eyes, waiting to feel something. Would the room twirl around? Would he see funny colors or hear sounds that weren't there? He had never done drugs before, so he wasn't sure what to expect. Although the company adamantly claimed that these were not drugs and the effects were not hallucinations.
       Still feeling the same, Daryl opened his eyes and sighed. He thought it was all probably a bunch of bunk. Those that had thought they experienced anything from the snacks were just delusional. People were so desperate to believe in a quick fix for their sad lives. He was smarter than that.
       A small knock brought Daryl out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Amanda, the records clerk from floor thirteen, standing in the doorway of his cubicle. He smiled.
       "Sorry to bother you on your break. I just had a moment to escape from my office and thought I would drop off these files for you," Amanda said. She held out a manila folder.
       Daryl stood up from his desk to take it. "Oh, these are just RFP reports. You can always just drop them in interoffice mail. They aren't that important."
       Amanda blushed, and she dropped her eyes.
       Hey stupid! Daryl thought to himself, Why are you discouraging her from coming down to see you? In truth, Daryl had had a crush on Amanda for ages and was too shy to do anything about it. He honestly thought she didn't even notice him. He was just so surprised that he struggled to think of something else to say.
       "It's no problem. It was on my way to the audits office anyway." Amanda had stiffened a little and began to back out of the cubicle.
       "Wait. What I should have said is that I don't care about the RFP reports. What I care about is you. " Daryl gently wrapped his hand around Amanda's wrist and pulled her back into the cubicle and into his arms.
       "Oh, Daryl..."
       Daryl looked into Amanda's eyes and leaned in for the kiss...
       "Daryl. Hey, Daryl! "
       The shrill voice of the office manager pierced Daryl's ears, and he realized he was staring at his computer screen. "What? " His voice sounded strange to his ears.
       "Dude, you were just staring at the screen like a zombie. Break time is over, buddy." The office manager walked away, shaking his head. Daryl looked down at the empty cookie package on his desk.

       Daryl stood in line for the vending machine, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. He watched as his coworkers made their selections and could see there was only one Cookies of Desire left.
       Midge, an accountant from the eighteenth floor, was in front of him. She put her money in the machine and stood, trying to decide on her selection.
       "You know, those Merry Macaroons are both tasty and effective. I had them yesterday and felt joyous all afternoon, " Daryl said.
       "I could use a pick-me-up. Fourth-quarter reports are due an--"
       "They'll do the trick; I tell ya." Daryl pushed, trying to get her to pick anything that wasn't the last package of cookies.
       Midge pushed the button for the macaroons, and Daryl let out a quiet sigh of relief. He had to restrain himself from pushing her out of the way to get to the machine. He deposited his money and hit the button, watching the cookies be pushed out and dropped to the pickup slot. He walked as quickly as he could to his desk without breaking into a run, cramming the cookies in his mouth as he went.
       At his desk, he took a big gulp of coffee to wash down the cookies and waited.
       Ten minutes passed, and nothing happened. Another five minutes passed, and his break was over, Daryl went back to work, gloomily berating the cookies in his head. Maybe it had just been a one-time thing. Maybe he had gotten a defective package today. Or maybe he had just convinced himself that they worked when really he had just fallen asleep at his desk and had a dream.
       Daryl went back to answering emails and working on a report. He watched the clock creep by until, at exactly 5:00 p.m., he clocked out. He threw on his coat and stepped out of his cubicle, crashing into someone who had been running down the hall.
       "Oh my god, are you okay?" Amanda had fallen on her butt, dropping an armful of folders, and was surrounded by papers on the floor. Still, she looked up, her cheeks blushed, and had asked if Daryl was okay.
       His heart fluttered. "I'm fine. You're the one on the floor. Are you okay?" Daryl extended his hand, and Amanda took it, hoisting herself to her feet with his help. Now he could feel his own cheeks reddening. He quickly bent over to pick up folders and hide his face.
       "I'm so sorry...I was trying to get these to the front office before the end of the day."
       Daryl looked at his watch. 5:02. "I think you've probably missed them." He raised his head, still bent over, picking up folders.
       Amanda knelt next to him and leaned in for the kiss...
       A piercing alarm caused Daryl to jerk back. Then he opened his eyes and realized he was sitting at his desk. He looked around the four gray walls of his cubicle, disoriented and confused.
       "This is a test. This is only a test." The alarm was coming from the phone on his desk. The company was testing its interoffice alarm system.
       Daryl looked at the clock. He had been conked out for over two hours. He straightened himself and logged back onto his computer, hoping no one had noticed how long he had been sleeping at his desk.

       "I called you in today to discuss your position with the company."
       Daryl shifted in the cold metal chair. It was 4:00 p.m. on a Friday, and he had been called to the HR department. He knew what this was. Friday afternoons were for firings.
       "You have five years with us, and in that time, your work has been satisfactory, although not exceptional." The HR manager was younger than Daryl. A kid, really. He had a fancy degree but absolutely no life experience, and Daryl felt his cheeks flush red with anger. He leaned forward to say something in his defense, and the kid put a hand up to stop him.
       "But your performance has fallen sharply in the past year, especially in the past few weeks."
       Daryl knew what this was about. "It was the company's idea to install the new vending machines. They should have known it would affect employee performance," he managed to get in before the manager started talking again.
       "Sleeping all afternoon at your desk has become commonplace for you, according to my report," the manager said.
       "Those cookies are addictive. I should sue the company that makes them," Daryl said.
       "And your reports have been consistently late and incorrect."
       "I should sue the company for getting me hooked on them."
       "The last mistake cost the company over twenty-two thousand dollars."
       "I think I could be owed some serious restitution for what those cookies have done to me."
       "And because of that, we are going to have to let you go."
       Daryl opened his mouth to say something else but then closed it. He meant what he said about the cookies...they had ruined his life. Every afternoon he had waited in line for his afternoon break snack, and every afternoon he gobbled the cookies down. Weeks had passed, but his afternoon dreams or visions or whatever they were had not gotten him any closer to Amanda. She was always just out of reach.
       Maybe he needed to get away from the machine and away from the cookies. Maybe going cold turkey was the only way.
       "I'll get my things from my desk," Daryl said.
       "No need." The HR manager closed the file in front of him and nodded toward the door. A security guard was waiting. Daryl's personal belongings were piled into the box the guard cradled under one arm.
       Daryl got to his feet and shuffled out of the room. He didn't even care that everyone was watching as he was escorted out. When they got to the front door, the security guard handed him his box and patted him on the shoulder. "I don't like this part of the job," he said, not unkindly.
       The sun was shining, and the sky was clear. Daryl could feel the craving for the cookies clawing at the back of his brain. He pushed it down and decided to start over. No desk job. No cookies. No crushes.

       Amanda waited in line, tapping one foot impatiently. Her break was short enough as it was, and she certainly didn't want to be late getting back to her desk. Corporate had been cracking down lately, and she had heard lots of people were being let go for poor performance. They had doubled the amount of extra-focus gels in the vending machine and were encouraging employees to make wiser choices with the afternoon snacks. She suspected they were starting to regret their contract with the VEND3000 folks.
       Still, she had a sweet tooth and didn't want the gummy performance gels. She wanted chocolate. Chocolate chip cookies would do the trick. She dropped her three quarters into the vending machine and watched the package fall with a thud.
       Back at her desk, she logged back onto her computer, even though she still had five minutes left of her break. She could snack and work at the same time, and she was taking no chances with the recent layoffs.
       Amanda nibbled the cookies, washing them down with her coffee. She found them to be rather dry and was disappointed in the taste, but chocolate was chocolate. The only other thing she had sampled from the vending machine was the Magic Mood Marshmallows, which had seemed to have a mood-boosting effect, but also tasted kind of bland.
       She looked at the clock and was surprised to see it was almost the end of the day. Time had flown by. She thought to herself that if the cookies had any effect at all, it must have been that she desired to be home quicker. Maybe that was how these things worked.
       Amanda realized she was late getting her reports to the front office and panicked. They were due today. She gathered her papers, crammed them in a folder, and ran down the hall, mentally cursing them that they still required a paper copy in this day and age.
       She took a blind corner and ran into someone, making her fall hard on her butt.
       Amanda was dazed and surrounded by scattered papers on the floor. She looked up to see the guy from tech with the dark hair she had always thought was cute. She felt her cheeks burning. She blurted out the first thing she could think. "Oh my god, are you okay?"
        "I'm fine. You're the one on the floor. Are you okay?" Daryl extended his hand, and Amanda took it, hoisting herself to her feet with his help. Was he also blushing? He quickly bent over to pick up the folders on the floor.
       "I'm so sorry...I was trying to get these to the front office before the end of the day," Amanda said, taking the folders from the cute guy. Daryl. That was his name. She had always thought about asking him out for drinks.
       Daryl looked at his watch. "I think you've probably missed them."
       They both noticed a stray folder on the floor and bent over to pick it up, their heads close to each other.
       Amanda felt a surge through her body and leaned in for the kiss...

       "Amanda. A-MAN-DA."
       Amanda opened her eyes.
       Beth, her office-mate, was standing over her with a mug of coffee in her hand. "Are you okay? You were out like a light? Take this." Beth shoved the coffee toward Amanda.
       Amanda held the mug in her hands, letting it warm her fingers. She was disoriented, and her head hurt just a little. "I was sleeping?" she asked.
       "I thought you had passed out when I walked by. But then I heard you snoring. I'm glad I caught you before anyone else did."
       Amanda took a big gulp of the coffee, looking at the clock. It was nearly 5:00. "Shit, I have to get my reports to the front office." She slammed down the mug and crammed the papers into a folder.
       Amanda ran down the hall full speed. She took a blind corner and slid a little but caught herself and kept going. She burst into the front office and skidded to a halt in front of the receptionist's desk. "My reports on the Grundle file. They were due today."
       The receptionist looked up and smiled slightly, taking the folder from Amanda's hands. "I'll make sure the boss gets them."
       Amanda felt relief as she walked out of the front office, but there was still something nagging at her. She took the long way back to her own office, stopping at the cubicle where the cute tech guy worked. It was completely empty.
       "Can I help you?" A woman with long red hair poked her head over the wall from the adjoining cubicle.
       "No. Um, yeah. I was actually looking for the guy that works here," Amanda said, pointing to the empty cube.
       "Daryl? He was fired this afternoon. He kept falling asleep on the job. If you have a tech support request, I can help out."
       "No. No, thanks."
       The red-haired lady shrugged and slid back below the wall.
       Amanda stared at the empty cubicle for a moment with a faint feeling of regret.
       Finally, she sighed and walked back to her own office to gather her things to head home for the weekend.
       The crumpled-up cookie wrapper was still on her desk. She picked it up and squished it into a tight ball, and threw it in the wastebasket under her desk.
       She was definitely packing a snack from home from now on.