CHAPTER SEVEN - Counter Attack
1047 Words
Ashiya
“This is excellent work, Kent. This is exactly what I had envisioned when I saw that green patch. The mini forest will not be uprooted and it will go well with the design your team presented a while ago.”
He didn't waste time and updated his design before he presented it to me. This guy really knew his job well.
"Thank you for allowing me to present my design. I thought I was the only one who wanted to save those trees." His voice was wistful as he watched me study his design from the laptop.
“Did you get the chance to present it to Damon?”
He shook his head and bowed a little. “Kalisha rejected it and… everyone just followed her. I am just an ordinary architect."
I let out a frustrated groan as I witnessed how Kent hunched his back and tried to make himself smaller. He was in his early thirties and Damon absorbed him from a small company he brought a year before. He was confident and promising. Many employees adore him for his sharp mind and he was good looking, too. He was up for promotion and joined Kalisha’s team because Damon believed his expertise was needed there.
However, his wings were flipped by a superior who didn’t recognize his talent. Kalisha was insecure and threatened by the younger man. She couldn’t stand having someone who had more brilliant ideas than her. Her pride was more important than the success of the whole company. I wondered if Damon knew about it. To think that it was a big project and they must present the best design and the most environmentally responsible.
I lightly patted his shoulder and smiled reassuringly. “I will show this to Sir Damon."
"But Kalisha might get mad. She's my team leader and I don't want her to think that I disrespected her."
"Just do your job well. You don't have to feel guilty for doing a great job. I really need your input. After all, it is for the company's sake. We want to bag the Golden City."
"And save the trees." We laughed together with the idea. "Now I know why Sir Damon trusts you even if you didn't take architecture or engineering. You know what this company needs and you have a mind of your own. I thought you got your position because…"
"I am a witch who seduced the boss."
He scratched his head and looked away. "I'm sorry. I am not a gossipmonger. I just heard them… I mean, I didn't mean to offend you."
"None taken. I just do my job and I hope everyone will focus on that."
After my meeting with Kent, I secured the files he submitted and sent them to Damon's cloud drive with my recommendation. It was time for a coffee break so I decided to go to the rooftop garden with my coffee tumbler. I was a bit lethargic and I needed to recover. It was still a couple of hours before office time was over.
It was a bit cloudy and the breeze was cold. I sat on the metal chair and sipped the coffee. There was no one around so I leaned back and closed my eyes. It was a rollercoaster of emotions since morning. I worked through lunch and nearly missed my coffee break. I was too tired, I also slept during the meeting. That was not me. Maybe I was not getting any younger with the toll my body was taking. How could I slow down when Damon needed me?
“I wish everyone can sleep during office hours.” Kalisha’s voice lulled me awake from my peace. When I opened my eyes, she was looming over me like some dark and sinister villainess from a Cinderella movie. “It must be nice to be special to the boss.”
I shielded my eyes with my palm. “Is there anything you need from me?”
She stepped back and sat on the seat across mine. “I just want to congratulate you for being quite a charmer. To think that the snobbish Kent bypassed me…”
“If you have a complaint about the meeting awhile ago and Kent’s proposed park design, contact Damon. But you can’t stop me from showing Kent’s designs that you rejected before. You can’t also stop me from protecting those trees if I have to.”
I wish I had just pretended to be Sleeping Beauty so she would just leave me alone. I was not in my best mood. I was running out of patience.
She crossed her arms. "It must be cool to be in your shoes right now. You got the boss' approval and he'll even bring you to Paris. How romantic." She clasped her hands like a giggly romantic heroine in a young adult manga and grinned.
“That’s what Damon wants. He is the boss.”
“Yes. You will probably walk along the Seine River while holding hands? Kiss on the Louvre in front of Monalisa maybe. Dance in front of the Eiffel Tower.”
"Spot great inventions and companies with potential. I surely won't miss them. Know more about the architecture of the city and give ideas to Damon. Yes, I will definitely do those in Paris." It was my turn to grin at her this time.
Kalisha’s face darkened all of a sudden. "Are you insulting me? Rubbing the eco-brick company that I failed to bag to my face?"
I didn’t have to deny it anymore. I was ready for a full counter-attack against Kalisha. "Did I hit home?” I sipped coffee from the tumbler. “You are the one who has been insulting me ever since. You keep on ignoring my accomplishments when all I did was work hard from sun up to sundown. I have served this company for two years now. Based on my record, I did well and even helped in sealing several important deals.”
Kalisha was acting like a high school b.itch full of insecurities. She was already thirty-four with two teenage sons but she still won't grow up.
"Finally showing your claws just because you got the boss at the palm of your hand?"
- Writer
