She looked me up and down with undisguised contempt. "Or... you can apologize right now. Admit you were wrong, beg for forgiveness, and I might consider letting you stay."
That arrogant posture. That tilt of her chin.
A hollow numbness spread through my chest. Whatever loyalty I had left evaporated like morning dew.
"Fine," I said evenly. "Have the company issue my termination notice."
A flicker of uncertainty crossed Joanna's face. She frowned, but her sharp tongue didn't falter. "Playing hard to get? You think I won't do it?"
She marched to the printer, grabbed a termination form, stamped it with the official company seal, and slapped it onto my chest.
"Pack your trash and get out! I want to see what kind of job you can possibly find with that attitude!"
I walked to my desk in silence.
Two years. I had spent two years of my life here, yet everything I owned fit into a single medium-sized box.
The elevator doors slid shut behind me. A wave of melancholy washed over me as I stepped out of the building. My initial ambitions when I joined this company had ended in an unceremonious firing.
My phone buzzed. Blake Rowe had rejected my resignation request in the system.
He called.
I let it ring.