2022 February Flash Fiction Challenge: Day 7

Prompt: Write about a workplace drama.

I had spent the last 24 hours pulling my fellow co-worker and best friend since high school ass out of the proverbial fire. He had been tasked with coming up with the client proposal for the next big gaming company that SIA was hoping to join up with and according to Bennett his computer had completely deleted everything.

Knowing Bennett I knew he was completely full of it and it was more likely that he had either spent the weekend drunk, stoned, and playing video games or all of the above and had completely forgotten about the proposal. Knowing him for as long as I had and being what I would like to think was a good friend I accepted the project even though I knew damn well it would mean I would be working 24 hours straight.

I did it though and I have to say I was rather proud of the proposal. I actually felt confident this would show the higher ups that I could be tasked with more pressing matters than just gameplay testing. I was capable of more than people gave me credit for but that was the story of my life. I had shot Bennett a copy of the proposal after he texted me to ask how it had gone and I thanked him again for passing the project on to me. What had been his fuck up had ended up being my triumph.

Or so I thought.

Bennett had thanked me again for taking the project and basically saving his ass and told me the meeting would be at 10:00. I could have sworn I remembered it being said that it would start at 9:00 but I didn’t question it. I was on too much of a high from a job well done. I walked into the office that day with a certain amount of pep (as my mom would call it) in my step and looking far more put together than I think I had ever looked at my time with SIA.

You can imagine my surprise as I reached to open the conference room door and instead found it swinging out towards me, nearly slapping me in the jaw.

“You missed a great presentation,” Carlos said as he passed me.

“Bennett totally nailed it,” Trevor added as he followed after Carlos.

I stood there like a statue holding the door as the meeting participants dispersed until only one remained. I entered the room and slammed my padfolio down on the desk so hard Bennett nearly jumped out of his skin as he turned to see me.

“You son of a bitch,” I growled through clenched teeth. I was going to lose my job today, or go to jail…or both.