In the middle of a high-level meeting, Brandon Gates' new assistant threw an entire cup of latte into my face in front of everyone.
"You're a slacker who does nothing all day but play games in the office. How dare you question my proposal?"
"You're fired! Get out!"
I wiped the latte from my face and stood up slowly, my gaze falling on Brandon.
He frowned, but deliberately avoided my eyes and stayed silent.
A slow smirk tugged at my lips as I pulled out my phone.
"Dad, did you hear that?"
"She told me to get lost."
——
On Monday, I was engrossed in a game when there was a sudden knock on my office door.
"Miss Lafferty, Miss Stone is calling all managers for a meeting in the main meeting room in ten minutes."
Jamie from the administrative department stood at the door, speaking in a hurried tone.
I didn't even look up, my fingers flying across the keyboard.
"Not going. Too busy."
In the half-year I'd been with the company, I'd never attended a single meeting.
Not because I didn't have to, but because I didn't want to.
"But … " Jamie hesitated. "Miss Stone specifically stressed that no one can be absent today. She said it was Mr. Gates' order."
My fingers froze. A moment later, my game character was obliterated by the boss.
As the screen faded to gray, I cursed inwardly and shut the laptop.
When I arrived at the meeting room, it was already packed.
The moment I walked in, several people shot me odd looks, whispering among themselves.
"Why is Miss Lafferty here?"
"Doesn't she always skip meetings?"
"Who knows? Miss Stone probably specifically requested it."
"Miss Stone has been picking on her. I bet there's going to be a show today."
***
I couldn't be bothered with the gossip. So, I picked the furthest corner seat and sat down, pulling out my phone to continue my game.
After a full half hour, Brandon and June Stone finally arrived late.
June was holding a stack of documents in her hands with a smug smile on her face.
"Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend this meeting."
Brandon scanned the room, his gaze landing on me for less than a second before moving on.
"Today, Miss Stone has an important proposal to announce."
June cleared her throat and began to present her "revolutionary" marketing plan eloquently.
I half-listened while scrolling through my phone, but the more she spoke, the more ridiculous it sounded.
Not only was the proposed budget absurdly high, but it had absolutely nothing to do with our company's actual market.
"So, I believe we should invest 80 million and dominate the high-end market within three months!"
June concluded passionately.
Then, a smattering of applause broke out in the meeting room.
I couldn't hold back any longer. Without looking up, I interjected, "Eighty million for a bunch of useless exposure is worse than throwing the money off the company roof. That would be more of a gimmick and attract more traffic."
The meeting room instantly fell silent.
Brandon's brow slightly furrowed.
"What did you say?" June's voice sharply rose.
Only then did I look up and slowly reply.
"I said, your plan is full of holes."
"First of all, your target audience is way off."
"Second, you chose all the wrong marketing channels."
"And last, your ROI calculations are just plain wrong."
"Spending 80 million on this plan is basically flushing it down the drain."
"Actually, no. At least flushing it would make a sound."
June's face immediately turned crimson.
