Inevitable Ever After

Part 9

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Next time I'll make it a date.

A date.

Date – date – date – date. The word keeps repeating in my mind in Jared's stupid voice since last night along with the sound of that chuckle.

He is messing with me, isn't he? It's another form of his manipulation. He has to have an ulterior motive. I don't think I've ever said even a single nice word to him. Why would he want to go on a date with me? What's wrong with his head?

What's wrong with mine?

I can't stop thinking about it.

A knock sounds from the office door, snapping me back into my body, staring at my computer screen without any memory of what I've been doing half the day. Looking at the same blank file for a couple of hours, probably.

"Do you have a minute?" Charlie says as he steps in, uncomfortably fidgeting at his glasses.

"Sure. What's up?"

"I just – well – I got a notification that Mr. Schneider cancelled the reservation for the big screen." He gestures around himself, like the device should be standing somewhere out in the hallway.

I need a moment to follow. The big screen. The movie screen. The one we usually rent for external events in the big meeting room, because the projector there has a rather low quality. Which we will need for the presentation during the story telling event.

Which we won't need according to Mr. Schneider, because a multimedia presentation is too fancy for reading a fairy tale to children.

Which shouldn't be an issue anymore, because Jared should have talked about that to Mr. Schneider.

"Ah – okay," I say. "Ahm, don't worry about it. I'll take care of it."

Charlie frowns, maybe because I don't sound very convincing. Even Amber throws me a questioning look over the computer screens between us. I raise from my chair and leave both of them behind on my way to Jared's office.

He's not there.

I call him. He doesn't pick up. I call again, and again only voicemail. "Did you talk to Mr. Schneider about the presentation?" I text him. Wait. Regard a black feather on the floor. Pace up and down in his empty office. Wait some more. Consider stealing the Rubik's Cube Jared always plays around with during online meetings. Try to call again. Still no answer.

Bastard.

Whatever happened to 'tell me if something comes up'? How am I supposed to tell him anything if he doesn't answer his stupid phone? It was a lie, wasn't it? Only one of those things people say without any meaning. Polite words, when in truth they couldn't care less.

Same with 'I owe you'.

He passed an uncomfortable task he didn't want to do on to me and now he is off to God knows where doing God knows what – probably snatching away my promotion – while I am stuck dealing with the shitshow he left me. Even worse – he tricked me into believing he would actually help, when in truth he never had any intention to. He didn't assign me anyone form his team for help. He obviously didn't talk to Mr. Schneider. He probably planned to let me down from the start to gain an advantage. Next to someone who struggles and fails everybody looks better.

And idiotic me is wondering if he would date me.

I could punch myself.  

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