After a month of continuous overtime, my dark circles were worse than a raccoon’s. I finally managed to complete the project successfully. I was eagerly waiting for a promotion and a raise. The manager called me into his office. “Flora, you’ve been doing great lately. Keep up the good work.” I nodded frantically, waiting for more. ? Silence. I waited a bit longer, still silence. “Is that all?” I asked. The manager seemed to snap out of a trance. “Oh right, I almost forgot the main thing.” I knew it. How could there just be verbal praise? “Here are the materials for the new project. You’ll be in charge again. Try to wrap it up in a month.” Looking at the pile of documents half a foot high, I felt as sick as if I’d eaten something rotten. “Wasn’t I supposed to be promoted to supervisor after completing this project?” The manager got up from his chair and walked over to me, patting my shoulder. “Flora, you’re still young. You’ll have plenty of opportunities. Besides, this is just a small supervisor position. After you complete a few more projects, I’ll apply to headquarters for an exception to promote you to manager.” I didn’t buy his empty promises at all. “So who got it this time?” “Erin.” A newcomer who’d been here less than six months. “Leslie, what do you mean? You’re not promoting me but a newbie instead? Did you hit your head or something?” The manager wasn’t just my boss but also my boyfriend. He knew better than anyone how hard I’d worked for this promotion opportunity. Forget about holidays, I’d been working around the clock. “Leslie, you’d better give me an explanation, or no one’s going to have a good time.” Leslie’s face darkened. “Flora, this is the company. I’m your superior. Just follow orders.” Then his tone became more soothing. “Flora, I’m your boyfriend. How could I hurt you? I worked hard to get this project for you. You’ll get your rewards later, okay?” It’s always next time. “Stop making empty promises. I’m not falling for it.” When I returned to my desk with the documents, Erin was receiving congratulations from our colleagues. As soon as she saw me, she rushed over and hugged me. “Flora, I’m so sorry. I don’t know why the boss chose me. We all thought it would be you. You’re not mad at me, are you?” “I’ll go ask the manager right away if there’s been a mistake.” I pushed her away irritably. “Sure, why wait? Go ask him now.” Erin’s expression changed. She lowered her head and said nothing. After a while, she sent a message in the group chat saying she wanted to treat everyone to dinner. Instantly, the group chat was filled with congratulations. It was so annoying. “Flora, you’re coming, right? I want your blessing the most. If it weren’t for your constant help, I wouldn’t have had this opportunity.” “Everyone says you’re stupid and incompetent, but now it seems you’re quite smart. You know you don’t deserve it.” “Erin, weren’t you going to ask the manager? Why haven’t you gone yet? It turns out your gratitude to me was all fake.” I deliberately softened my tone, sounding pitiful. Erin stood across from me, speechless, her face awkward. She really thought everyone would fall for her fake act. How ridiculous.
In the evening, Erin treated our department to dinner at a restaurant that cost $50 per person. She was really generous. With good food, everyone was naturally happy. Only I was out of place. “Flora, it’s all in the past now. Don’t act like everyone owes you something.” I rolled my eyes at Leslie. “My salary this month is incorrect. I didn’t get the project bonus.” Leslie turned away, pretending not to hear. I felt a sense of unease rising in my heart. I pulled Leslie over. “The project bonus was $3,000. Why didn’t I receive a penny?” Seeing that I wouldn’t let it go, he said, “The project is Erin’s, so naturally the bonus is hers too.” No wonder she was being so generous today. I lost the promotion, I can bear it. I lost the bonus, I can bear that too. But losing both the promotion and the bonus? I can’t take it! Leslie saw that I was angry and leaned in to whisper a warning in my ear. “Control yourself a bit. We’ll talk about this later.” I threw a glass of red wine in Leslie’s face. “Control myself? Screw you!” The previously lively private room suddenly fell silent. Everyone stared at us in confusion. Leslie struggled to contain his anger. “Haha, it’s nothing. Flora just lost her grip on the wine glass. Please, everyone, carry on.” Erin was the first to react. She quickly grabbed some napkins and started wiping the wine off Leslie’s face. “Flora, you’re a grown woman. How can you be so clumsy?” I used to think she was cute, having just graduated and with a baby face. Her soft-spoken manner made me instinctively want to take care of her more. Now I see I took care of her too well. Even my boyfriend is hers now. Just look at how intimate they are. If there’s nothing going on between them, I’ll eat my hat. Erin finished wiping Leslie’s face and was about to say something to me, but I spoke first. “Don’t yell at me. I’ve been afraid of dogs since I was little.” Leslie slammed the table and stood up, pointing at me. “Flora, when will you stop? Everyone’s here to celebrate Erin’s promotion. Don’t ruin everyone’s mood with your emotions.” Siding with an outsider against his girlfriend, Leslie really outdid himself. I busted my ass off, and now all my achievements have been stolen. I’m supposed to swallow my blood and tears and happily celebrate for the person who stole my bonus and position? My life is just as valuable as hers. I’m not happy today, so no one else gets to be happy either, especially Erin and Leslie. I knocked down Leslie’s hand pointing at me. “Your happiness is none of my business.” Then I turned to Erin, “No merit, no hard work. I don’t know what shady methods you used, but since you got it, keep your tail between your legs. Don’t act like you’re so capable. It’s disgusting.” Erin’s face turned red, unable to come up with a retort for a long time. She only knew how to play the victim. “Flora, I know you’re upset about not being chosen. You misunderstand me, but I don’t blame you.” Then she reddened her eyes, tears welling up, looking pitiful. Seeing this, several male colleagues began to criticize me. “Flora, you’re going too far. We’ve known Erin for so long. We know what kind of person she is. The company must have its reasons for choosing her.” Erin usually sweet-talks these guys, calling them “brother” this and that, acting cute. These men in the department just eat it up. “Yeah, you’re so generous. Since you completed the project, why don’t you give her the credit? I remember last month’s bonus was $2,000, right? Transfer it! Do it right in front of me! Let me learn what kind of reason it is.” I stood on the chair, looking down at the male colleague, holding his phone up to his eyes. The male colleague stood there woodenly, not speaking or taking the phone. “Use your brain before you open your mouth next time.” I turned to another male colleague who had criticized me. “I know you don’t speak well, but you don’t have to spew garbage with your mouth.” Seeing my increasingly arrogant attitude, Leslie put on his leadership act. “Flora, I order you to apologize to Erin right now.” “I’m not in customer service. I’m not good at apologizing for things that aren’t my fault.” After I finished speaking, Erin’s tears came pouring down. Even while crying, she didn’t forget to disgust me one more time. “I’m… sorry. It’s all my fault… for making everyone unhappy.” I didn’t forget to keep fanning the flames. “That’s right, it’s all your fault.” “Flora, if you don’t want to eat, just get out of here.” Who says I don’t want to eat? When someone else is paying, why wouldn’t I eat? Not only will I eat, but I’ll eat well. I called the waiter over to order more dishes. When he came in, his eyes darted frantically between us. After all, at our table, some people had iron-gray faces, some had black faces, some were in tears, and then there was me with a smile I couldn’t hide. Today, I offended a lot of people at this dinner without realizing it. Sorry, I’ll dare to do it again next time. You need to know that although I can’t make everyone happy, I can make everyone unhappy.
After venting my anger, I felt refreshed. I even slept more comfortably that night. In the morning, I was in such a good mood that I put on makeup before going to work. I had barely sat down at my desk when Leslie called me to his office. “Why didn’t you answer your phone last night?” I lazily sat on the sofa. “I don’t like listening to dogs bark.” “Flora, do you have to make things so tense over such a small matter?” Such a small matter?! This man is actually still my boyfriend. My mistake. I slapped Leslie across the face, then grabbed his hair with both hands. Leslie bent over in pain, and I took the opportunity to kick him twice. “A small matter? I work my ass off every day not for money, am I here to pray? You give my bonus to another woman, and you have the nerve to tell me it’s a small matter.” “Leslie, you seem to have forgotten one thing: there are no small matters when it comes to your girlfriend.” With that, I let go of Leslie and gave him one last kick in the stomach. Leslie roared in pain. “Flora, we’re done.” “If we’re done, I’m the one dumping you. You and Erin have been hooking up for a while, haven’t you? You two do look more compatible than us. Cupid’s trash sorting seems quite on point.” Leslie dusted off his shirt. “I’ve had enough of you for a long time. You have no femininity, all you know is work all day.” “You’re not qualified to criticize me.” I rolled up my sleeves. Today, if I don’t beat Leslie into submission, my name isn’t Flora! “Leslie, I think you need a beating!” We started fighting in the office. Although as a woman I’m naturally at a disadvantage in terms of strength, I have long nails, I can scratch and pull hair, and I’m not afraid to bite. I’m quite fierce. Due to the commotion, colleagues came to check on us. Erin was the first to rush in. Seeing the nail marks and blood on Leslie’s face and neck. She spread her arms like an eagle protecting its chicks, standing in front of Leslie. “Flora, if you’re angry, take it out on me. Don’t hurt the innocent. Leslie is just following the rules.” You asked for it. Come at you it is. Just as I was about to act again, a female colleague I’m close with pulled me away. “Flora, you’ve beaten him and cursed him out. If you keep going, you’ll be the one who suffers. The manager is clearly paving the way for his girlfriend.” I looked at her in confusion. Has my secret relationship with Leslie been exposed? But is this how you pave the way for your girlfriend? “Erin doesn’t know how to do anything. If she hadn’t latched onto Leslie, she would have been fired long ago.” “When did you find out they were together?” Seeing my confusion, the female colleague looked shocked. “They’ve been subtly flaunting their relationship on social media for almost a month. Don’t tell me you didn’t know?” Very good. I, the official girlfriend, only found out yesterday. Now I just want to transform into a monkey in the park and slap both of them.
My colleague and I opened Erin’s social media at the same time. On my end, only two posts were visible: one was about working overtime last month, and the other was yesterday’s, with a picture of the HR appointment and text thanking the company and colleagues for their trust. But on my colleague’s end, there were over a dozen posts. [Text: Someone said dining with me should be at a romantic place. Picture: An atmospheric French fine dining restaurant.] Looking at the date, I was working overtime writing the proposal at that time. This restaurant is a popular spot for couples online. I had mentioned it to Leslie before, but he said these trendy places were overpriced and not worth it. In the end, we ate hotpot downstairs. [Text: Collecting moments of accessible heartbeats. Picture: A photo of them making heart shapes at an art exhibition.] Although only one hand is visible, the watch on Leslie’s wrist is the one I gave him. Looking at the date, that day I was at the company revising the proposal. Leslie said it still wasn’t good enough. [Text: Just one look, and someone bought it right away. Picture: The latest iPhone model.] Looking at the date, Leslie gave it to Erin the day after I gave it to him. At the time, he had hinted that his phone was broken but he couldn’t afford a new one. I had just gotten paid, so I bought it right away. When I saw he wasn’t using it, I asked about it. He said it was stolen when he went out. He felt very guilty about it, and I was planning to buy another one when I got the bonus this time. For the first time in my 25 years of life, I doubted my own intelligence. Girls, spending money on men will bring you bad luck for eight lifetimes. Looking through the posts one by one, my fists were clenched tighter than a fish-killing knife. At this moment, I wanted to transform into an octopus so I could slap Leslie and Erin eight times at once. Just as I was thinking this, Erin returned to her desk. When our eyes met, she glared at me fiercely. I used to think this young girl was quite cute, but now I realize she’s actually quite ugly. Especially when I saw the phone she put on her desk. That phone was bought with my money! My money! Money! I can’t take it anymore! I snatched the phone from Erin’s desk and stormed into Leslie’s office again. Seeing me, Leslie’s eyes visibly showed fear. I handed the phone to his desk. “I found the stolen phone. Let’s call the police.” Before Leslie could speak, Erin, who had followed me in, questioned me first. “Flora, why did you grab my phone?” “Leslie said you stole his phone. He’s going to report it to the police.” “What are you talking about? This is my phone.” Leslie lowered his head, not daring to speak.
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