The Boss

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Nature of JobStill four hours until her meeting with Roy that evening. Her assistant had asked her permission to leave work early since there was nothing else remained in the agenda for the rest of the day. It was Friday, and all that was left for her to do was her meeting with Roy. Time flies, she thought—yet the four hours would crawl if she didn’t do anything interesting to fill it.

She called Rhonda. It rang until the line went dead. Well, gym it is then. She turned back and parked at the same building in the same spot next to the elevators. She had a convenient arrangement as the gym was within walking distance to where she was meeting Roy.

Once in the gym, she noticed only a few people were trying to keep healthy today. The space was vast and empty. It was a nice walk toward the cardio section. Her long legs helped her climb onto the bike with little effort. She set it up for twenty minutes.

As she pedaled the stationary bike, she recalled the promotion she got a year ago; from being The Boss’ executive assistant to a VP. After the exhilaration of being an independent business manager had worn out, she realized a feeling of loss, akin to entering adulthood and leaving the patronage of loving parents. She didn’t need to be by her boss all the time now, she was on her own, on the road alone, moving from meeting to meeting, visiting clients under her care.

A man stepped onto the bike next to her and tried to strike a conversation. She smiled and pointed at the earbuds in her ears without trying to take them off. He seemed to mouth something like “I’m sorry”. She smiled at him, and continued with her thoughts.

Yes, why do I continue doing this alone, she mused. Her colleagues had all suggested she brought along one of her managers to assist her with meeting the clients.

I can see if they think it’s strange, not customary, but I can always call them to a meeting, can I not? Indeed, she could. She could call them to join her wherever and whenever she needed them, like what she did with Dungi that morning.

Yet, she preferred to surf the streets alone, and pretended that her boss was still with her, as if her days of always being with him had never ended.

“But you like your new role, don’t you? Come on, what’s not to like? More pay, cool title,” Rhonda said when she told her of the mixed feelings she had for the development in her life. Yes, and not only that, the company threw in new perks: a new car, club memberships, more vacation days—though the latter was not much of an incentive for her—she felt she had indulged in too much ‘vacation’ during her recent past. The salary wasn’t up by much. She had already been paid highly even without the promotion. The Boss had used his privilege to pay her a high salary as his executive assistant—which amount didn’t adhere to the company’s HR standards.

She sniffed something. She almost raised her hand to cover her nose when she realized it would be offensive. The man pedaling next to her, who had previously tried to initiate a small talk with her, was emitting some odor. Ew. She got off the bike and walked to the other side of the room. Leg press, let’s do that. She started straining the muscles of her thighs and calves. From the distance, she saw the man on the bike was discreetly trying to look for her. He would have to make an obvious, visible effort to spot her, as she was behind him, and she was sure the man thought enough of himself to refrain from doing that. Her mind went back to the conversation she had with her friend.

“Do you like it? Is it hard?” Rhonda asked.

“Hard?” Gina whispered. She wasn’t sure what her friend meant by hard when she told her of her boss.

Rhonda rolled her eyes. “Your new role.”

“Oh, that.” Gina’s cheeks turned pink.

She liked her new role, though it was not really new to her. She had been carrying the same responsibilities in her first two years on the job, but always as the direct extension of the Boss. He would always be with her, ready to catch her if she fell, but otherwise, let her carry the responsibilities as if she had already been in the VP position she was today.

The title and all the weight it carried didn’t do much to boost her confidence at work. On the contrary, she felt she had to be less daring. She second-guessed herself more than she did in her first years, despite the unchanged nature of the job. Something was amiss. She just wasn’t sure what.

The man finally spotted her and walked over to where the treadmills were. He got on the treadmill directly facing her. Cardio after cardio? Humph. Leave me alone, please. Or, maybe she should leave him alone. That she did. One last press, then she stood up and left for the shower. Feeling fresh and invigorated, she walked out of the gym with a glowing face.

While walking toward the meeting point, Rhonda called.

“You called me babe? I was in a meeting. Hey, the guys from work would like to take us out tonight and they asked me to bring you along. Can you?”

“Oh, sorry Rhonda, I can’t. I’m still working,” she said.

“Where are you?”

“On my way to Prodallos.”

“Hey! That ain’t work! You’re going to have fun. Cancel it. Go with us.”

“This is work. I’m meeting a client … At a fun place!” she chuckled, “But still, meeting a client. So, it is work,” she continued, still chuckling. She could just imagine Rhonda grimacing; envying her position which enabled her to mix powerful business with serious fun.