Finance, Planning, PR—people from every department crowded around, gushing gratitude and pledging loyalty.
Their faces glowing. Nothing like mine.
The moment I walked in, the smile slid off the boss's face.
"Alright everyone, back to work. Last shift before the holiday—let's finish strong."
The crowd filed out. He gestured for me to sit.
"What? Not happy with your bonus?"
I kept my voice level. Barely.
"No, I'm not. If we're distributing based on contribution, then our Tech Department—"
"Stop right there."
He cut me off and took a slow sip of tea.
"Looks like that message I sent you was a waste of time."
"You've been in management for years now, and you still have zero perspective. Your bonus is low and instead of reflecting on yourself and your team's problems, you come in here complaining it's unfair?"
Something snapped inside me.
Perspective. Perspective. Always with the "perspective."
Back in the middle of the year, when the company did its annual salary adjustments, everyone got raises. Everyone except us in Tech. Not a single cent.
I'd asked why.