The Pen is Broken

I have a favorite pen that I use at work. It wasn't an expensive pen. It is comfortable to hold. It is light weight and very clicky. When the ink ran out last week, I opened it up and saw what kind of cartridge it used.

I was on a hunt. I walked into the office of a co-worker. As I spied their coffee cup full of pens, I asked, "Can I borrow a pen?" He motioned me toward the cup and I went on my hunt. I dug around until I found a similar size pen as my own. The pen I took came from some doctors office and was advertising a drug. Before I made it out of the office, I already had the pen taken apart and was checking that the guts were the right size.

Success! I had found a match. The problem is that I borrowed this pen. That meant I was expected to return it. While at my own desk, I switched ink cartridges. My favorite pen was alive again! I started to put my empty cartridge into the borrowed pen. Within two minutes I would be returning the borrowed pen with a smile. It may be a week before he noticed it didn't write anymore. By then, he would have forgotten this day.

But it wasn't meant to be. A spring fell out of the top half along with a few plastic pieces. Something small fell to the ground never to be seen again. I crammed the parts I had back into the borrowed pen and screwed the halves together. The click pen didn't click anymore and the tip would no longer extend.

I walked back into that coworkers office with a smile. I held his pen up with my left hand as he looked up from his work. "Here's your pen back. Thanks for letting me use it.", I told him. I put the pen back into the cup and walked out of the office.

There are approximately fifteen pens in that cup. That means there is only a six percent chance the next pen he grabs will be that broken one. Maybe I'll write him an apology with my repaired favorite pen.