Chapter 5: The First Warning
486 Words
(Veronica’s POV)
Veronica sat at her desk, scanning through her task list for the day. Everything seemed normal—until it wasn’t.
The company’s internal scheduling system had been updated overnight. Meetings that she had carefully arranged for Ethan were suddenly moved around, without warning. A few key appointments were missing altogether.
Her brows furrowed.
Strange.
She clicked through the system logs. No request. No approval. Nothing. It was as if someone had edited the schedule without bothering to inform her.
Veronica hated disorganization. And she hated people going behind her back even more.
Taking a deep breath, she pushed away her irritation. Maybe it was just a mistake.
But then, another thing happened.
The Colleagues’ Reaction
When she walked into the breakroom to grab coffee, the whispers started.
People she had barely spoken to watched her, then quickly looked away.
She caught bits and pieces of hushed conversations.
“How long do you think she’ll last?”
“She doesn’t know yet, does she?”
“I give her a week.”
Veronica stiffened.
Her fingers curled around the coffee cup as she turned slowly to face them.
“Something you’d like to say to my face?” Her voice was calm, but her eyes were sharp.
One of the women cleared her throat and gave her an awkward smile. “Oh, nothing. Just… office gossip.”
Veronica didn’t miss the nervous glance the woman exchanged with her coworker.
Something was definitely wrong.
Ethan’s Indifference
Veronica marched back to her desk, irritation simmering beneath her skin.
She didn’t mind office gossip. What she did mind was feeling like the target of a game she didn’t even know she was playing.
With a sharp breath, she grabbed her notepad and knocked on Ethan’s office door.
“Come in.”
She stepped inside, holding up her tablet. “Did you change your schedule?”
Ethan barely looked up from his documents. “No.”
Her lips pressed into a thin line. “Then who did?”
Finally, he looked up, gray eyes cool and unreadable.
“What does it matter?”
Veronica stared at him. Was he serious?
“It matters because I’m supposed to be managing your time, not—”
“Miss St. James.” His tone was bored. “I don’t micromanage. If the schedule changed, deal with it.”
Veronica clenched her jaw. She wanted to argue, but his completely indifferent expression made her pause.
He really didn’t care.
Not about the schedule. Not about the whispers. Not about whether she stayed or left.
That realization settled heavily in her chest.
The First Realization
As she walked out of his office, her mind raced.
Her schedule was being changed behind her back.
The employees were whispering about how long she’d last.
And Ethan? He didn’t care either way.
Her grip tightened around her notepad.
What the hell was going on in this company?
- Writer
