Tabitha's POV
I was so unlucky these days. Nothing went smoothly.
I went to the Secretary Department, and when I came back, my colleagues mobbed me. They accused me with particularly harsh words.
Trying my best to remain calm, I said, "I didn't even see Mr. Greenwood in person. All I did was hand the proposal to the Secretary Department. How could I possibly upset him?"
"Nothing ever happened when any of us submitted the proposals. Yet he's upset this time. Drop the act. You can't get away with this," they kept blaming me. Obviously, they were gonna throw me under the bus.
So, this was the so-called workplace, where scheming phonies gathered.
Sonia said with a stern face, "Tabitha, your probation period is three months. If you want my signature, you know what to do. Right?"
"Yeah." I knew what she meant; they wanted me to take the blame.
The elevator doors opened, and Alvin walked out.
Upon seeing him, Sonia turned nervous at once.
Alvin said, "Stop wasting time. Mr. Greenwood is waiting for you."
Sonia and I went to Derek's office together.
Standing at the door, Alvin said, "We're here."
Then he pushed open the door. "Mr. Greenwood, they're here."
After that, he turned around and left.
Sonia was wearing high heels, and her legs were trembling as she walked clumsily. I had to try my best not to laugh out loud.
"Mr. Greenwood, you wanted ... to see me?" Sonia stuttered.
Meanwhile, I looked at a person cleaning a bookcase in the corner. Janitors usually cleaned at regular times, and they wouldn't show up during Derek's work hours.
Derek valued his privacy more than anyone. He'd never allow anyone to clean when he was working.
I sized up the janitor, who was stooped, thin, and dark-skinned. She hung her head, and I couldn't see her face clearly.
With a thud, an ashtray smashed at my feet, startling me.
Terrified, Sonia dropped to her knees and slumped on the floor.
Derek looked at me. "Have you seen enough?"
Only then did I snap back to reality. At the same time, Derek threw the proposal in front of Sonia.
"See the proposal you came up with. Even a three-year-old can do better than this!" Derek was so mean.
This was the first time I saw him in the workplace. Turned out that he was not only mean to me.
Sonia was scared out of her wits. She said hastily, "The proposal is... Tabitha, explain to Mr. Greenwood."
She turned around and looked at me. Seeing her pleading yet threatening gaze, I said, "Mr. Greenwood, what's wrong with my proposal?"
Derek squinted his eyes. "Yours?"
I had only been working for two days, and it was such a critical proposal. Normally, even if I participated in making it, Sonia wouldn't put me in charge. After all, it directly affected the department's rating of this quarter and our year-end bonus.
Obviously, she wanted me to take the blame.
I wasn't a fool, of course. "I contributed."
"To what?" Derek asked.
I pointed at the design and said earnestly in Sonia's expectant eyes, "I printed the paper for the design."
Sonia gritted her teeth and said in a low voice, "Tabitha, stop joking when Mr. Greenwood is present. You printed the paper? Wasn't it you who proposed it?"
Yesterday afternoon, when the department had a meeting, since I had just joined, Sonia didn't even let me sit in.
I wasn't here to work anyway, so I didn't give a damn at all.
Yet now, she wanted to make me the scapegoat.
Before I could speak, Derek tapped the fingers of his right hand on the desk, looked at Sonia, and asked, "You're saying that your department's proposal was done by a newcomer?"
"Yes." She stood up, hunching her back with a flattering expression.
"Alright then. She'll replace you and be the group leader from this second on."
Her expression changed drastically. "Mr. Greenwood, but... That's not quite appropriate, is it? She's a rookie, and she hasn't made any contribution to the department. And I heard she barely has any sales experience..."
Derek slammed the desk, making a deafening sound, and stood up. "You know she's a rookie? And you still left a multimillion-dollar proposal to her? You think my company doesn't have any capable employees? You think sales working here for years aren't as good as her? You really think you get to fool me?"
Sonia was trembling all over in fear, stammering, "Mr. Greenwood, I... I..."
"Go back and do it again. If I ever see such rubbish again, you and your entire group will be kicked out."
"Yes." She quickly picked up the planning proposal.
I left with her.
Why did Derek do this? What did he want?
Back in the Sales Department, Sonia immediately pulled me into her office.
She smashed the proposal onto me.
"Go to the Personnel Department to handle your resignation. Now!"
I sneered, "I did nothing wrong. Why should I?"
She grimaced and no longer bothered to pretend. "Why? Because fools like you don't get to be in the workplace."
"Simply because I refuse to be the scapegoat, I am a fool? Do you really think Mr. Greenwood would buy it? Or you think he's as stupid as you?"
She slammed the desk abruptly. "Tabitha!"
"If there's nothing else, I'm leaving. By the way, I've signed with the company. Wanna fire me? Better buy the company first."
I left without looking back.