What If?

Chapter 8 - Busy for Real or Just a Deal?

Launa froze in her seat.

Her heart completely dropped the moment that guy in the oversized coat shot her a freezing, ice-cold glare through the glass. The knot of dread that had been tightening in her chest all morning suddenly felt ten times more real.

"Oh my god, look! That’s him! That’s Mr. Glenn!" the girl sitting next to Launa whispered frantically, nudging Launa’s elbow over and over while staring out the glass with a mix of shock and total awe.

"No way! Seriously, he is so much hotter in person than on social media!" another intern in front of them chimed in, practically pressing her face against the transparent glass wall.

The excited gossip spread like wildfire across the room. But before Launa could even process her shock, Abby’s voice at the front of the room abruptly cut off.

Everyone’s focus in the conference room instantly shifted as they noticed the new chaos unfolding just outside the glass.

Through the transparent partition, Launa could see Glenn stop right in front of their Division Manager’s desk. Without any pleasantries or a warm smile typical of a newly introduced boss, Glenn aggressively tapped the stack of files on the desk with his fingertips. The movement of his lips clearly mouthing the words "Audit" and "Now" was unmistakable, causing the Division Manager, who was easily years older than him to instantly go pale.

"Okay, everyone," Abby’s voice chimed in, attempting to redirect the attention of the interns, who were starting to panic over the scene unfolding outside. "We’re cutting our onboarding session short. It looks like the new Head of Audit is launching an unannounced review of our current budget today. I need all of you to exit immediately, find your respective sub-team cubicles, and help your supervisors pull whatever data Mr. Glenn asks for. Make absolutely no mistakes."

Hearing the instructions, the entire room scrambled in a panic, including Launa, who hurriedly packed up her notebook. She glanced down at the watch on her left wrist; it was already 11:15 AM.

Launa’s heart hammered against her ribs, no longer from the icy charm of Glenn Ellsworth, but from a creeping sense of pure dread. If her very first day in this division was already getting hit by a whirlwind of an unannounced audit from the new boss, how on earth was she supposed to slip out of the office by noon to pick up Laura?

*****

Sure enough, the moment Launa stepped out of the conference room, the scene in the 12th-floor open-office area looked like a literal war zone. Senior staffers were sprinting around clutching thick folders, while the usually rhythmic clattering of keyboards had turned into a chaotic, frantic frenzy.

In the dead center of the room, Glenn Ellsworth stood tall, both hands buried in the pockets of his grey wool coat. His face was a blank slate, but his intimidating aura was suffocatingly thick as he glanced up at the digital wall clock above the cubicles.

"You have thirty minutes," Glenn’s voice rang out, baritone and bone-chillingly cold, echoing through the silence of the staffers who were collectively holding their breath. "At twelve noon sharp, every single budget report draft needs to be on my desk. Even a minute late, and I will officially deem this division incompetent."

With that, Glenn turned on his heel with an arrogant stride, walking toward the head division office that was now officially his.

"Launa! Hey, newbie, over here!" a young woman called out frantically from one of the sub-team cubicles.

It was Costa, the supervisor Launa was assigned to.

Launa hurriedly rushed over to her. "Yes, Ms. Costa?"

"Go find the physical drafts of the Ellsworth Group's internal audit report from last month in the archive room at the far right corner, right now! Make it quick, print it out and get it to my desk before twelve!" the woman ordered without even glancing at Launa, her fingers busily flying through a dozen open tabs on her computer monitor.

Launa swallowed hard. She checked her watch yet again. It was already 11:25 AM. Her time was being completely drained by that guy’s sudden, ridiculous demands. If she had to hunt down files in that massive archive room and then print them, there was absolutely no way she could slip out of the office by 12:00 to pick up Laura.

With her hands turning ice-cold from the rising panic, Launa had no choice but to nod. "O-okay. I'll go look for it right now."

******

"Sucks to be you guys. Look at you all scrambling. Can't believe people actually want to work at a company like this," Glenn thought to himself.

A spark of pure satisfaction flared in his chest as he watched dozens of staffers on the 12th floor suddenly scatter like ants whose nest had just been stomped on.

Glenn strolled casually toward one of the cubicles in the audit sub-team. His sharp eyes locked onto a desk that looked perfectly tidy, but the chair was completely empty, with no sign of its owner anywhere.

With a slow, deliberately dramatic movement, Glenn pulled the empty chair back, making it screech loudly against the floor. He glanced over at the senior staffer in the cubicle right next to the empty desk, then lifted his chin arrogantly.

"Who’s missing?" Glenn demanded, his voice dropping into a commanding baritone.

The female staffer who was questioned instantly bolted upright, her face suddenly tense. "Ah... that’s Mr. Louis’s desk, Mr. Glenn. He’s taking annual leave today to pick up his family at the airport. They just got back from overseas."

Glenn let out a dismissive scoff, a mocking, condescending smirk playing on his lips. "Pfft, so clingy. They could’ve literally just ordered an Uber and called it a day. Unbelievable."

The sharp words that slipped so effortlessly from Glenn’s mouth instantly made the atmosphere in the cubicle area even more suffocating. A few staffers who overheard immediately traded glances, their jaws clenching as they swallowed their deep resentment toward their new boss’s blatant disrespect. However, that anger was quickly overshadowed by their hammering chests, because they knew that protesting the guy standing in front of them was basically career suicide.

As if he hadn't dynamic enough drama already, Glenn casually sat down in the empty chair. He leaned his back against the rest, and without a care in the world, kicked his feet, still clad in expensive white-and-green sneakers right up onto the desk, propping them next to a stack of important documents.

Glenn folded his arms across his chest and closed his eyes, acting as if he actually intended to take a nap right in the middle of the mass panic he had single-handedly manufactured.

Indirectly, his completely classless behavior was pushing everyone’s boundaries to the absolute limit. But Glenn? Of course, he couldn't care less. Whether the entire office labeled him a punk or claimed he had zero corporate etiquette, they couldn't touch him. His mother owned the company, and his father was the CEO. So, as long as he was still drawing breath, he could do whatever the hell he wanted in this building.

******

However, Glenn’s comfort didn't last long. Just as he was starting to enjoy the peace of his fake nap, he suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap tightly around his neck from behind. A scent of perfume that he knew all too well instantly hit his senses.

Glenn scoffed, irritated to death. He lazily opened one eye, glaring at the figure currently clinging to his shoulder.

"Can you not mess with me for literally one day?" Glenn snapped in a low, threatening tone as he violently brushed Gwen’s hands off his body.

Glenn instantly bolted upright, swinging his feet down from the desk, and aggressively brushed off the surface of his grey wool coat with a look of absolute disgust. "Read the room, will you? This is an office, not some hotel where you can just paw at people whenever you damn well please!" Glenn snapped sharply.

"So, what you're saying is... if we’re in a hotel, I can hug you?" Gwen replied, giving him a playful wink.

Glenn immediately looked away, letting out a heavy, frustrated sigh. Dealing with this girl's craziness was completely draining his energy. "Jerry!" Glenn called out, his voice a near-shout.

Jerry, who had been enjoying the show from behind a hallway pillar this whole time, stepped forward with a blatant smirk plastered across his face. "Yep, Boss?"

"Get her out of here. I'm busy," Glenn ordered flatly, gesturing toward Gwen with his chin.

Jerry just nodded with a mockingly serious look, scanning Glenn from head to toe with an annoying, teasing grin. "Oohhhh... so the Head of Audit actually knows the word 'busy' now, huh?"

"So you're just gonna dump me like that now? Just because you're officially the head of the division!" Gwen chimed in, joining forces to corner him.

She pouted, covering her face with both hands, faking a dramatic sob while wiping away non-existent tears that weren't even rolling down her cheeks.

Seeing the two of them team up into a full-blown syndicate of nuisances, Glenn scoffed for the umpteenth time. He rubbed his face aggressively with both hands, his frustration officially hitting the roof.

"Ugh, whatever! I’m losing my mind!" Glenn snapped.

Ignoring Gwen’s whines as she called out his name again, Glenn bolted up from his chair, spun around, and stormed away from the cubicle area with wide strides, desperately trying to save whatever sanity he had left.

*****