The Ascendance

Chapter 38 - Spreading fake news is a crime

Joffiel gets a perfect timing to talk to Patrick. She still needs his permission to be able to talk to Jelly, who is trying to ruin other employees' reputation.

"Sir Patrick, can I have a chance to talk to Miss Jelly? I just want to have a private conversation with her and I will try to know why she was doing that kind of behaviour. I think that she also has a problem that she is suffering from," Joffiel said.

"I do trust you, Joffiel. Help me to resolve this issue. I don't want Sir Fenril to know about this, I don’t want to get into trouble. I hope that Miss Jelly will do her best to change. She is actually good when it comes to her job, I just don’t know why she can’t help herself when it comes to gossip," Patrick said.

"I won't let one of my co-director be troubled because of one employee's issue. I just want to help her also, I think that some that are behaving like that surely have a psychological problem," Joffiel said.

Patrick sighed. He's disappointed with Jelly because she is just only showing him the good side of her when he is around, but talks about bad things behind her workmate, when Patrick is not around. He felt bad for Snow because he was not able to protect her against malicious stories about her because it was too late when He learned about the rumors that were circulating around their department.

"Thank you, Joffiel. This means a lot to me. I am glad that your department office is being renovated. It gave us a chance to be helped by you in this kind of problem. If you are not there, I would never know what is happening to my staff. I know that I also have faults on why these things happened. I was not able to monitor my staff closely because I was too busy with other things in the company," Patrick said.

“Don’t put yourself down, Patrick. Let’s just take this as a lesson for each one of us. I know that you did not want to happen in the first place. So you don’t have to blame yourself. What we have to do now is fix the problem. And we need each other to fix this,” Joffiel replied.

A day has passed and there are still no changes on Jelly. Joffiel is still hoping that Jelly would voluntarily clean her mess but it is not happening. Some people are really stubborn huh? They don’t even care what other people would feel if they are trying to ruin other people's lives. I cannot stand their attitude of being happy with meddling. Joffiel thought to herself.

Shane noticed that Joffiel is always watching Jelly. She asked, "Why are you suddenly interested in that woman? Do you know her? Did she do something to you?"

"I want to talk to her. Can you invite her after work to have some coffee with me? Today is my day off at Denver Coffee Shop so I have time to have a conversation and get to know her. I have so many things that I want to tell her. I am also inviting Snow to come," Joffiel said.

"Okay, let me guess. Is it because of the issue about Snow? I have heard that Miss Jelly was the one who started it. Actually almost everyone already knew about the rumors. They are talking behind Snow’s back. It is going to be one hell of a job to fix this large mess," Shane explained.

Joffiel didn't know that the news of Jelly who started the issue was already spreading in their office. She thinks that not all Jelly's friends in the office are really her friends. Even though Jelly has a chance to change, if her friends are a bad influence, then it would really be hard for her to change her attitude.

"Where did you get that news? Are you sure about it? So this issue has already spread in the company?" Joffiel asked in a serious tone.

"I just overheard her close friends one time when they were talking loud here at work. They are laughing at her back, poor Jelly. She does not know that those she calls friends talk behind her back. I am glad that our team did not turn out to be like that. We don't pull one member down just to take a chance to be higher than the other, but instead we help to lift each other and reach our team’s goal," Shane answered.

It is true that Joffiel's team has no issue with each other. They all became friends since there are only six people in their department. It is an advantage to work in small groups, but the problem is the work labor.

"Okay, thanks for the information. That's why I want to talk to her. I want to make things right before it ruins her and Snow’s life," Joffiel said.

"Leave it to me. She knows me as your secretary so I think she will accept your invitation. Don't worry, I can handle her," Shane assured.

Shane successfully talked to Jelly and told her that Joffiel wants to have a coffee date with her. After arranging the schedule for later afternoon, Joffiel reserved a table at the coffee shop for them.

Joffiel also invited Snow without Jelly knowing. She thinks that if Jelly won't say sorry to Snow then she will make a way to make it happen. The time is running and Joffiel doesn't want to waste any of it.

"Can I go with you? I will help you to resolve the issue. I also think that you will need a witness in your conversation so that Jelly will truly listen to your advice," Shane said.

It is also a good decision that Shane will join them. This will reduce the awkwardness if ever Jelly will feel uneasy to talk..

"Sure. It would be better if I have someone who works at Azazel for too long. You know, they can feel an awkward moment with me, since I am still new to Azazel Company. I may have a hard time making Jelly talk since we are not much acquainted with each other," Joffiel answered.

Snow happily accepted Joffiel’s invitation to have a coffee with her. Quickly after, they went to their destination. On the other hand, Shane successfully got Jelly to come along with her to the coffee shop. When they all arrived at the coffee shop, Jelly and Snow were shocked to see each other there. They were not expecting to see each other there. Jelly knew that Joffiel had planned all of this.

Joffiel made a way to make them feel welcomed at the Denver Coffee Shop. She does not want them to feel uneasy or irritated. She said, "Order what you like. Don't worry, it's my treat since I invited all of you here in this coffee shop where I work as a part timer. Please let’s all just have a good time."

"Thank you, Ma'am Joffiel for inviting me too. It is so nice to be here. Every time I come here, I feel so relaxed and at home," Shane said, trying to act like she's also invited and to ease the two ladies' emotions.

Snow and Jelly also thanked Joffiel. They had no choice but to sit next to each other. They feel uncomfortable sitting right next to each other, especially Jelly. She feels guilty and can’t even look at Snow’s eyes whenever she talks.

Andrew, who is one of the staff of the coffee shop, assisted them. They made their orders first. Joffiel keeps the silence and lets the two feel comfortable seeing each other.

"Miss Jelly, I think you already know why we are here. Since I didn't see you doing what your director is saying, I already made a plan to help you. Here it is, but please don’t worry because we are just going to talk calmly and peacefully with each other," Joffiel said to start a conversation.

Joffiel can't wait any longer so she directly said those things. Jelly is not going to correct her mistakes without anyone interfering. Joffiel knows that Jelly can’t change by herself and she needs to be helped by another person, someone who is patient enough to deal with her.

Snow looks confused. She had still no idea that she became a victim of malicious issues created by her own teammate. She also doesn't understand what Joffiel is saying. Snow is not close to anyone in her teammates that is why she is feeling a little uncomfortable too.

Once again, Joffiel looked at Jelly with a serious face. She doesn't want to tolerate her for being in denial. If Jelly keeps herself silent, the malicious story about Snow will still continue to spread.

Jelly cleared her throat. "Thank you, Ma'am Joffiel, for reminding me. I just cleared my mind and thought of ways on how to apologise to the people that I made a mistake. I know that you are doing this to save me for possible termination at Azazel. I really appreciate your concern," Jelly said.

She looked at Snow and told her everything that she did to her. Snow cried and asked her “What did I do to you? I have never done wrong to you. Why did you have to do that to me. Don’t you know that you are ruining my privacy and my life?”

"I am really sorry, Snow. Please forgive me. I will do something to clear your name. I promise I will do that. But please accept my apology," Jelly begged for forgiveness.

"Why me?" Snow asked. "You know that all I do is work. I don't even meddle in someone's life because I don’t want to cause anyone trouble. All I ever wanted was to work peacefully. I never dragged anyone down.. When I have time to help you guys, I would gladly do it without asking for anything in exchange. So I can't think of a reason why you need to do that to me, Jelly."

"I am so sorry, Snow. I know I hurt you. I fell under my act of evilness due to jealousy. I feel like the company does not need me anymore. I always feel that there is someone better than me, and it makes me useless. I made a mistake and I really admit it. I hope that you will forgive me and give me a chance to clear your name," Jelly said.

"I always forgive people, Jelly. Who am I to not forgive you? Please do not do this kind of bad behavior again. Learn from your mistakes. Instead of thinking of your validation or importance to our company, focus on yourself. You cannot improve if you keep on looking and watching someone else progress," Snow said.

Jelly held Snow's hands and looked like she was begging. She said, "That's why I promised Sir Patrick and Ma'am Joffiel that I will resolve this issue that I made. I sincerely apologize for what I have done to you, Snow. It won't happen again, I promise."

Joffiel saw that there was visible green light on Jelly. Jelly's apologies are sincere and came from her heart. However, the red color is still more dominant. What matters for Joffiel is that Jelly is starting to change. A small progress for her is still a progress.

"Apologies accepted, Jelly. Please just clear my name. My husband and my best friend will not like it if they would learn about the issue and might file a case against you. You know that this kind of act is a crime that can be punished. Don't let it be your karma. Spreading issues about someone that are not true and your basis is just your imagination will lead you to jail. It is like fake news or false accusations on someone so be careful next time," Snow reminded.

Everything that Snow has said is true. Jelly can receive complaints against her. This is what Joffiel wants to avoid since the company will be on bad terms if their employees are filing a case against each other. This means that their bosses are not checking their employees.

"I was not thinking right, I am really sorry. I will apologize to our team by telling the truth," Jelly said.

"Thank you, Jelly. I will trust you that you are going to tell the truth. I don't want to be stressed about this again. I want to believe that you are sincere," Snow said.

"Thanks to you too, Snow, for giving me a chance to make things right. I promise not to hurt you again," Jelly said.

Snow hugged Jelly. Even Snow knows that Jelly has a bigger problem. Ruining someone else's life is not good in the Creator's sight.

"Jelly, do you have a problem? You can open to us so that we can help you," Joffiel interjected.

Jelly bites her lower lip to avoid crying. She can't help it but to cry.