Fired?

Kate

Most days when I don't do anything or have free time to kill, I always bore myself with books or just random things that will keep my mind busy. You see, my mind always works wonders. I think a lot but speak nothing; I only speak when needed to.

Having a stoic face is something that I'm always proud of, but this time, I don't think silence and being stoic are what I need to do right now; in fact, dragons and butterflies and other things with wings are flying all over my stomach, and I just felt it drop instantly at the bottom of my foot, slowly. I feel like puking, and I feel like I'm about to shit myself and hurl at the same time as I read the enormous door and a label that says: Chief Operating Officer.

I always forgot that he'd be the next owner soon. Soon it'll not be Chief Operating Officer anymore; it'll be Chief Executive Officer, and due to my precious mouth that just can't seem to shut up, I have to face the consequences of my action.

"Ms. Temples." A voice said, "I'm sorry, but the COO would love to speak with you right now." The man said this, making me laugh awkwardly because I have been staring at the signage for too long.

"I'm sorry, I was just... haha. You know, looking at the COO thingy." I said that and went inside slowly.

I know the privileges of being the son of the owner of the company. You are being spoonfed by your family, and your future is not that hard to predict. With all the money and power in the world, minor mistakes are nothing but small cuts and bruises to them. I'm sure the son of the owner of the company has already been told that he'll be the next owner of this huge building someday since he was a kid.

Being rich is a blessing but also tiresome. And what does it feel like to follow in your father's footsteps?

As I walked a little further in this huge office, I saw a big desk and a chair facing me. My eyes were scanning all over the place, and I couldn't seem to stop staring at the book shelves in the corner and the lovely medium-sized chandelier on the ceiling.

I should apologize.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and said, "Good morning, sir. I'm Kate Temples, and I see that you were looking for me." Then the chair dramatically turns around, and suddenly, it kind of reminds me of a drama series that I watch most of the time.

Then there he was, a stone-cold face but very attractive son of the owner of the company, whose life is very luxurious and he is a spoon-fed baby.

Apologize, Kate.

"Ms. Temples." He said, "Good morning. Nice to see you again in such a nice mood this morning."

I laughed awkwardly and just gave him a small nod, "Yes, sir." I couldn't figure out what his name was until I saw his name plate sitting on the center of his desk: "Sir Caddel."

He was amused. He bit the inside of his cheek as he searched for something on his desk. "It's good to finally know that you know my name." He said, "I'm Marcus Caddel, the Chief Operating Officer at Des Company. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself to you yesterday; it was quite a heated conversation, don't you agree, Ms. Temples?"

I can feel my sweat slowly forming on my forehead. My mouth won't open, and I can't seem to have the courage to say something back, but I say, "Yes," and my voice cracks.

Apologize

He didn't look up; he still kept on looking at the papers on his desk, searching for something, and when he finally found it, he looked up at his computer on the side of his enormous desk.

What was he looking for, anyway? Was he looking for my name? Is he searching for my papers and the contract that I signed yesterday? This is it. This is how my journey ends, Mom. I'm such a bad daughter; I should have just kept my mouth shut yesterday. Sometimes, we just don't need to be heroes over everything. This is exactly how my mom always said that we needed to keep our mouths shut when needed. I wish I didn't talk back; this couldn't have happened, and I still have a job and am doing it right now if I didn't do anything stupid!

"Ms. Temple, it says here that..." Sir Caddel didn't finish his sentence, so I cut him off.

My heart was pumping inside my chest, and my mind kept telling me to apologize nonstop!

"Sir, I'm so sorry!" I yelled so loudly that my voice echoed inside his office. I even felt the chandelier shake. But I don't care; I have to set my pride aside for this one. I don't have any money left, and the next thing I know, I'll be living on the cold streets of London. "I'm sorry, Sir Caddel." I bowed and begged on my knees, literally. My knees are on the floor, and for Pete's sake, I want the floor to just swallow me right now.

"I'm sorry for offending you yesterday, sir. I promise not to do it again! If I get fired today, I might be living off London Street next month. I have to pay for my apartment this month, and I have a cat in my apartment that needs high maintenance. I can't let her go back to the streets again. I just saved her!" I finally had the courage to look up and see his face, and his face was full of confusion, but I didn't care; that didn't stop me from walking on my knees to his desk. His confused face was now replaced with a horrid one. "Please, sir, don't fire me!" I cried.

Mr. Caddel blinked his eyes two to three times and finally composed himself after shielding his face with a piece of paper between us. He cleared his throat and said, "Please, Ms. Temples, stand up from my desk and don't ever beg on your knees with me or to any man. I am a man, and seeing a woman begging on her knees with this job is not worth it." He put the paper on his desk. "Please stand up," and I did what I was told: "I'm not here to fire you, Ms. Temples."

My jaw dropped to the floor, and I could see fireworks popping behind me. "I'm not?"

"No, you are not, and I'm here to ask you a little favor." He leaned back on his chair and said, "From what I've seen of your papers and background, I can see you working in our journalist team, but there are no positions available." He said. The back of his hand resting on his chin as he looked through his PC screen, he said, "The way you talked to me yesterday with composure, you talk to me like you can kill me instantly with those eyes of yours." I didn't notice how deep his voice was or how brownish his eyes were.

"What do you mean, sir?"

"I need someone like that by my side. Who looks good," He looked at me up and down and said, "Who can speak and has a clever mind. Fast and composed." He leaned forward to his desk and looked at me straight in the eyes. "I know you are the secretary of Team A, but I want to remove you from Team A."

"But you just said that you won't fire me, Mr. Caddel; I can't afford-" I felt like crying all over again, but he cut me off.

"I'm not firing you, Ms. Temples; I'm simply asking you to be my personal secretary."