Chapter 6: The Confidential Document

• Ashley
• I woke up and checked the time as usual.
• Nothing is as usual.
• I am definitely fired.
• I suck.
• I should die.
• I think I should stop cursing myself and call him to apologize.
• I took my phone and hastily dialed his number. I know he must be boiling in anger by now. Oh god, he is not even picking the phone. I am doomed. I AM TOTALLY DOOMED. It is fucking 9:17.
• He picked it up but the line went silent.
• “Um… sir,” I said in a low tone.
• He didn’t reply for a moment but then exhaled loudly. “In my cabin in 10 minutes”
• “Yes, sir” I replied and the call ended.
• Woah. Just when I thought that everything was going amazing, suddenly I have to go through all this because of my stupid sleep.
• I ran all the way to my bathroom and then changed my clothes. I barely combed my hair when I called a cab.
• Which cabin, by the way?Headquarters?
• I called him but he didn’t pick up. I don’t know any other cabin of his anyway, so I went to the headquarters.
• As I reached the reception, I saw Kate.
• “Hey Kate,” I said to her.“Um… hello Ashley. Are you alright?”
• “Don’t I look alright…?” I glanced at myself.
• “No, you are fine. But I don’t think boss is” she said and a shiver ran down my spine.
• Damn.
• I ran to his cabin and knocked. I entered and I saw him working on his laptop. As he saw me, he closed his laptop and looked at me completely. The look on his face told it all, I am done.
• “Sir, I can explain—”
• “You overslept?” he asked in a certain demanding tone.
• “Yes sir” I confessed. “I don’t know, my alarm—”
• “Didn’t ring?”
• “Yes, sir…” I looked down.
• “Sit down” he instructed and I took a seat across him.
• “Are you my PA or someone else’s?”
• “W-What do you mean, sir?” I suddenly didn’t like the way he talked.
• “The TBCCD’s security was compromised,” he said and kept his elbow on the table as he leaned forward. “And you are suddenly late today”
• “The Brown Company’s Confidential Document? It is… I-I have nothing to do with that, sir” I felt extremely bad at the allegations.
• “Really, Ms. Ashley?” he leaned back. “You were and are the only one who saw it”
• “Sir… I…” I didn’t know how to make him believe. “I… I swear I didn’t do anything”
• “Swearing is a sin, Ms. Ashley” he stood up. “At least when you are lie-swearing”
• Was he for real? Till yesterday everything was going just fine and now suddenly he is blaming me for a security breach in his confidential documents? I can’t believe this man! He was… I thought he trusted me. Like I did.
• “I don’t know how to make you believe…” I scoffed and stood up too. “But one thing is for sure. I am not doing this job”
• I turned around but as I neared the gate, it was locked. I turned around; he had locked it using his phone.
• “Talk, Ash,” he whispered. “Friendly advice”
• “I-I can’t believe this. Are you threatening me? Gosh,” I stood at my place.
• “I am not, Ms. Ashley. But I just wanna know… who do you work for?”
• I stood as I found myself scoffing. Work for?
• “Isn’t it you who I work for?” I stated the obvious.
• “See, Ash, do it the easy way”
• “You know what, Mr. Brown?” I said as I again took the doorknob in my hand. “I really thought you trusted me. Like I did”
• “It is difficult to trust people, Ms. Ashley, and I told you on the first day, you can’t trust anybody,” he said leaning against the table.
• “I trusted you, sir, I did”
• “But I couldn’t, okay? You can call them trust issues or whatever!” he almost yelled.
• “And I also had those, you know?” I yelled at him back. “It is very difficult for me to trust someone after everyone left! Everyone just left! After I was harassed at my job! It was hell difficult to trust you!!”
• I kept a hand on my mouth as I realized, I got too deep in my words. This was personal. I shouldn’t have spoken that.
• I kept my hand on the knob and tried opening it, but apparently, it was still locked. I didn’t know, I was embarrassed and I wanted to run away. The room fell silent after he heard me and slowly, I heard the door open and I ran away.
• I ran down to Kate. I want to resign. I ruined everything and moreover, he blamed me. He doesn’t trust me. I can’t be his PA if he doesn’t.
• “Hey, you alright? Why are you crying?” she asked and I realized that I was really crying.
• “N-Nothing, Kate. I wanna resign” I told and she looked taken aback. “No, don’t, Ashley. I know he has a quite bad temper but you really shouldn’t—”
• “Please” I cut her off. I can’t listen to all this.
• “If that’s what you want, Ashley” she sadly took out one paper and I saw the title, Resignation Document. His signs were already there, only I had to fill the form.
• I filled in my details and the date. I was about to sign when I heard him.
• “Don’t sign it Ash, please” he said and I was shocked.
• Was he really asking or rather ‘pleading’ me to not sign these documents? Even after he thought that I am betraying him? Why?
• I heard footsteps approaching and he snatched the paper from my hand. He looked at me and then tore the papers.
• “You work under me, Ash,” he said. “And I say you are not leaving”
• “But…” I sobbed. “Why? You don’t trust me and moreover, you think I did that. I of all people?”
• He looked down and threw the papers in the dustbin and came to me. He looked in my eyes.
• “I apologize for that”