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Chapter 9: NO MATTER WHAT.
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Alex’s POV:
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I officially hate my boss.
Can I slash his tires and get away with it? I never thought it was physically possible for my body to contain this much anger and hatred but apparently it is. I’m evidently proving my own naive silly self wrong.
It looks like challenging my boss was a big mistake. I should have known he has control over my work because he was my employer and I had to do whatever he appoints me.
Since last week I’ve been dealing with clients in Fukuoka, it’s a place in Japan and until a few days ago I’m sure I was pronouncing it wrong.
Fukuoka has a total opposite timeline, fourteen hours to be exact, which means I’m sacrificing my precious sleep to deal with Japanese clients who seem far too joyous over teleconference at 2 in the morning.
I’m sure Mr Eichi Nakashima was a good man, but the fact that I had to listen to him speak Japanese at midnight and to also put up with his translator is a huge headache.
And the fact that we never seem to agree is another problem that’s putting a damper on my whole plan of completing this task so that I can return to my ‘normal’ routine as opposed to a nocturnal insomniac one.
My biological clock is probably passed out comatose somewhere, as it has entirely given up on keeping up with me and my work schedule.
I’m living a zombie lifestyle and I’m detesting it, a few days ago Kate told me I looked like a corpse and while I appreciate honesty, it was far too honest for my liking so I got mad at her. Did I mention I was cranky?
Nick seemed to be walking on eggshells around me, he only bothered me with important matters and tried not to make too much sound whenever he saw me semi-passed out on the couch during the day.
All my days had turned gloomy and I have no appreciation for anything. I finally understood why everyone says sleeping is important. I should probably get my mattress and pillows in my office and set up a makeshift bed next to my desk because dragging my sleep-deprived self to work every day after 2 hours of nap was next to impossible.
I’m sure there’s a special hell for people like Jensen Black.
Lesson learned I won’t cross him, not yet at least, I’ll wait until he lets his guard down completely. He has no idea what’s gonna hit him.
I was left alone to wallow in self-pity since Kate was sincerely working and Nick had to attend some boring meeting.
I was hyped on coffee and sugar and was struggling to stay awake while I couldn’t sleep because of all the caffeine that was fuelling my system, it was like walking a thin line where there’s a possibility of either suffering an emotional breakdown or bursting out into loud obnoxious laughter. Neither seemed particularly nice.
I was working on one of those extremely boring development projects and looked everywhere for that one particular report. I’m sure Nick gave it to me last night before he left, where the heck did I leave it?
Nick walked in at that precise moment and a smile landed upon my lips as I welcomed him with a “There’s my favourite assistant!” His timing was impeccable.
He just looked at me and Kate soon followed him looking worried and anxious, he didn’t speak and that’s when I took notice of his crestfallen expressions.
Kate grew alarmed at his extremely uncharacteristic mood.
He breathed out a sigh and mumbled “Not anymore…” What was that supposed to mean?
“Nick, are you okay?” Kate questioned. His face fell more if that was even possible.
“You should take the day off if you’re not feeling well” I suggested as I walked up to him and made him sit on the couch.
Kate quickly got a glass of water for him.
“You think so?” He asked me “apparently everyone thinks that…. so they just decided to send me on off days permanently” he ended his words with a humourless chuckle.
“Will you stop talking in riddles and tell us what’s wrong?” Kate was clearly getting impatient.
But the words he uttered before slowly started to find meaning in my mind before he confirmed it.
“I’m being fired, Kate! Nothing is wrong except that now I’m gonna have to start over…and it’s all because of that bastard James.!” He dropped his head in his hands and cursed and I’m pretty sure I’ve never heard him curse before.
Both me and Kate were trying to understand the situation. Disbelief was evident on our faces as we looked at each other cluelessly.
The air had suddenly turned sombre.
“Hey, hey… take it easy okay, I’m sure there’s some misunderstanding” I tried to calm him as I put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
How can they fire Nick? He’s so good at what he does. I couldn’t have asked for a better assistant and he’s such a good person. How is this even…? I was utterly confused.
“James can’t do that! At least not without a valid reason….” Kate was almost seething with anger. Clearly, she’s not a fan of this James person either.
“Well, unfortunately, I’ve presented him with a good enough reason,” Nick mumbled
“I can’t take it back now, I’ve tried everything I can…..what’s done is done. Now I just have to pack up and leave” Nick said dejectedly. He looked completely exhausted and worn-out, absolutely in contrast to his usual energetic self. My heart ached for him.
“What really happened?” I asked, trying to understand the situation.
“He said it was something like dereliction of duty, poor performance, insubordination and a bunch of other made-up stuff….” he trailed off. What?! None of that is applicable! Like… com’on I know that better than anyone else.
“That’s pure crap, everyone knows he hates your guts. He’s just taking advantage of his disposition in HR.” Kate grumbled in annoyance.
I was so out of the loop, it was not even funny. “What’s the reason? Why does he hate Nick?” It was so obvious I’m new here, I didn’t know small things that everyone seems to understand very well.
Nick looked worried as he looked at me but Kate reassured him, with a comforting look. “You can trust Alex… “
What was going on?
“James and I, we go way back. We know each other from college…I have a picture of me and my boyfriend on my work desk” I gasped, understanding what this was about as he continued.
“I realised he can’t stand me since he found out I’m gay and it’s been that way since college, I don’t try to hide it….. A few months after I joined this company James had tried to pick fights with me, It started with offensive remarks and a few incisive jabs here and there, nothing new, I knew how to deal with that I’ve been dealing with it since I came out, but he didn’t stop there, he did whatever he could get away with and I can’t do much about it because he never crossed the line but last night …. He said something about Mark that I’m not going to repeat and I just lost it! I snapped. I don’t know what came over me and before I could stop myself I was tackling him to the ground, punching his face bloody.” He trailed off and looked down at his shoes ashamed of what he did. “I shouldn’t have done that I know…but-“
I slowly sat next to him looking at the cuts on his right-hand knuckles, and for the first time noticed those hard lines in his face, I hugged him sideways trying to comfort him in some way even though I suck at such situations, I don’t even like hugging, but I decided he needed it.
Was this happening to him all the time, did I never notice? How could I be so self-absorbed?
He was stiff and too deep in his own head, slowly he started to speak again sounding exhausted and sad. “I don’t know what to do…” His eyes teared up. “He’s threatening to sue me for assault, he’s got footage of the whole scene from the parking lot CCTV cam and it looks bad. I can’t have a criminal record…I just can’t.” He dragged his hands down his tired face. “He said he won’t press charges if I quit my job…… but I need this job, it’s the only thing going for me.”
“You can’t quit!” Kate exclaimed.
He chuckled, a humourless strained voice ripped out of his throat. “I hardly have a choice.”
“Don’t beat yourself up, Nick. He’s the one at fault here, you were provoked, you were just reacting to his words, It shouldn’t have gone this far… but I understand you cracked after dealing with his verbal abuse for years. I’m sure we’ll find a solution out of it, Can’t we?” I asked, Kate, looked unsure.
“HR has the final word, except maybe the CEO but I don’t know…” She sounded doubtful. “We can sue him back, right? This is not acceptable.” Kate mumbled.
“I’ll go talk to that knucklehead” she stormed out before we could even think of stopping her.
Okay…then.
I’ve met James and talked to him a few times during business meetings and obviously…one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
Nick stood up all of a sudden, his woeful eyes stared down at the floor as he started to walk out. “Wh-where are you going?” I asked, with unmasked concern as I rushed to stand.
“I’ll just gather everything from my cabin, clear out my desk… ” he said simply. I watched, feeling lost for words, as he walked out and closed the door behind him, and the room felt a little bit colder.
I knew what I had to do, long quick strides took me straight to Jensen Black’s office, I pushed open the door and walked in without knocking. Jensen was on the phone and was going through some paperwork when I suddenly barged in.
He seemed confused by my sudden intrusion and jumbled everything up, but then he managed to hang up the phone, then kept the papers aside and gave me his undivided attention.
“What can I do for you, Miss Brook?” He asked, a barely-there smirk evident on his face.
“Can I ask you for a favour?” I said getting straight to the point.
“Is Mr Eichi Nakashima a problem for you?” He asked, guessing what I came here for. He couldn’t be further away from reality.
I shook my head, “It’s not that, In today’s termination meeting, they made a wrong decision and I can’t just sit back and watch, I know you can overrule the decision of HR right, can I request you to look into it?” I asked, hoping he would help despite our differences.
His brows furrowed at my serious tone “What are you talking about, what happened?”
“You don’t know?….oh, I just assumed that since you… never mind” I mumbled under my breath and he just waited patiently for me to speak up “It’s about Nick. He’s been fired.”
“Nick, your assistant?” I could see from his expression that it was hard for him to believe too.
“Yes, and for something that’s not even his fault, he’s exceptionally good at his job, I can vouch for it and… “
“Okay, okay, relax,” Jensen said, understanding how important this was as he rounded his desk to approach me and pulled a chair for me to sit down as he leaned on his desk and crossed his arms.
I took a step back “No I won’t relax. Not if I can’t help him… James is a homophobic bastard and I won’t just sit here and do nothing….” I suddenly stopped, realising what I had said in my frenzy. uh… I guess it’s not acceptable to swear in a professional environment.
He didn’t point it out though, “Alexandra, I haven’t signed a termination grant yet, would you breathe. We’ll get to the bottom of this, don’t worry.” He assured me, for once seemingly assertive.
“What else is left to know…James is a lying prick and a bully and he’s clearly taking advantage of his position…” I bit my tongue trying to stop swearing.
I looked up at Jensen, expecting to see a scowl but the amused smirk on his lips surprised me “You sure are on a rampage today Miss Brook.”
I opened my mouth to explain myself but closed it again since there was no explanation.
“I’ll talk to James about this, he wouldn’t do something without an acceptable reason,” Jensen remarked.
I couldn’t help but scoff, “His reasons are a bunch of bullshit… I-I mean, I mean…you know what I mean.” I say, exasperated, he cracked a smile at my accidental swearing “The situation is serious, and he’s threatening to sue because apparently their fight turned physical and was caught on camera but I assure you it’s not Nick’s fault.”
“I can’t just listen to his side of the story, that wouldn’t be fair” he argues. “I’ll have to look at the evidence if he claims to have it.”
“I understand you need to but I’m pretty sure there’s no valid reason based on which he’s decided to fire Nick …I know him, I work with him every day and I have no complaints,” I told him and he nodded in understanding. “And if nothing changes even after all this, then I’m going to convince Nick to sue,” I said calmly. “Also, I’m not sure I want to continue working at a place like this any more.”
Jensen’s eyes now held disbelief as he looked at me like he couldn’t process the words that left my mouth. “What are you implying? Is it because of what I said last time? “
“No… I fail to see how that is related” In fact the only person at a disadvantage here is Nick. “I just won’t work at a place that will tolerate such absurd notions.”
“You’re gonna quit your job for someone you barely even know?” He questioned sounding incredulous like he wanted me to see how extreme this was. Nick wasn’t just an assistant, he was a good friend of mine, but that’s beside the point.
“It’s not just about that! It’s about what’s right, and what I can and can’t tolerate in my workplace,” I told him, my stance unwavering.
As I turned to walk away, his hand reached out to take hold of my wrist and he pulled me back before I stormed out like I intended to do.
His touch was gone in a moment, and he apologised right away, “sorry, wait-listen…”
My heart started beating faster and I didn’t know if it was the anger I felt or if it was because he made me nervous, or that I could still feel the touch of his hand on my skin.
“let-let’s be reasonable here okay?” Jensen looked troubled as he gazed at me.
“This sounds perfectly reasonable to me, don’t you think?” I questioned.
“You know that’s not what I meant,” he said cautiously like I’m gonna blow-up on him if he wasn’t careful.
I inhaled a deep breath “I know what I’m talking about might sound bizarre to you and it might be too much to ask but I believe in Nick.” I told him.
“Don’t go making such extreme rash decisions Alexandra, you’re not thinking straight right now, people usually aren’t what they seem,” he said tersely.
“Extreme? This isn’t extreme. Not against what Nick is facing and fighting every day, I’ve made up my mind, because I trust him.” I said defiantly, weirdly feeling like it was an act of rebellion.
“You know that I can’t pick a side right, I hope you’re not expecting anything from me?” He made it sound like a question.
“I know, you do what you have to do, but there’s no changing my mind” I answered.
He didn’t seem exactly happy about what was to come….or maybe it was just my wishful thinking.
“I’ll be in my office if you need me…” I added as I turned away.
“Unbelievable” he muttered behind me, as I walked out of his office.
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-Vinee💙
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