Chapter 300 Sudden Realization
"I can't believe Susan's that kinda person."
An older lady at work gave the younger one a playful slap and said, "Are you dumb? She works her magic on the guys. How were we supposed to see it? Alright, let's get back to it. Almost time to clock out!"
Susan heard them fixing their makeup and then heading out.
Hearing their convo, she had a lightbulb moment.
No wonder none of the gals at the office wanted to hang with her. Fiona had been trash-talking her all along.
Fiona was a real snake, spreading those rumors around. She wanted everyone to ice her out and push her out of Pioneer Accounting Firm.
Thinking about it, she clenched the tissue in her hand tight.
She figured Elliott's constant harassment was Fiona's doing too. Right now, Susan hated Fiona's guts and was kicking herself a bit. When she saw Fiona was the head of Group Six, she should've bailed on Pioneer Accounting Firm, dodging this whole mess.
But it was too late for regrets. She had to deal with it now.
Susan knew she was in a tight spot. Fiona was close to getting what she wanted: Susan wouldn't get a permanent gig, and she was getting harassed by Elliott and shunned by everyone.
Right now, Susan wanted to storm into Fiona's office and call her out.
But she couldn't lose her cool. She had no proof Fiona was spreading rumors, and she had taken on the Capgemini Software Company budget case herself.
Susan ran her fingers through her hair. How did she end up in this mess?
After a bit of inner turmoil, Susan knew she had to keep going.
So, she walked to the sink, splashed some water on her face, and went back to the office with a fresh attitude.
As soon as Susan walked in, the women who were chatting and laughing went quiet and got back to their desks.
Elliott had finished cleaning the break room and was chilling at his desk with a magazine.
Susan sat down and pulled out a professional book to read.
But there was no way she could focus. The office vibe was suffocating. She wanted to bail right then, but she wasn't one to give up easily.
Just then, Fiona's office door opened.
"Susan, get in here!" Fiona called out and went back inside.
Hearing that, Susan got up and, without thinking much, walked into Fiona's office.
Standing in front of Fiona's desk, Fiona tossed a stack of papers in front of Susan.
Susan looked down and saw it was the budget proposal for Capgemini Software Company she had given Fiona two hours ago.
While she was still trying to figure it out, Fiona said, "The Capgemini Software Company project lead just came by. He's not happy with your budget proposal!"
Hearing that, Susan frowned a bit, but it wasn't a total shock. So, she reached out and picked up the budget proposal.
Then Fiona added, "It's the weekend. Get the budget proposal revised by next Monday morning, and I'll pitch it to the Capgemini Software Company folks. This is your last shot. If they still don't like it, I'll hand it off to someone else."
Susan knew that no matter how many times she tweaked the proposal, the Capgemini folks wouldn't be happy. Fiona would just pass it to someone else, but no one would want to touch it. If it got rejected again on Monday, she'd probably have to pack up and leave Pioneer Accounting Firm.
"Any questions?" Fiona asked, sounding annoyed when she saw Susan just standing there.
"No," Susan replied.
Even though Susan knew Fiona was playing her, she felt stuck.
"Then you can go," Fiona said, looking back at her computer.
"I don't have questions with the budget proposal, but I need to talk about something personal," Susan said.
Fiona seemed ready for this. She looked up and sneered. "You wanna clear things up about you and Elliott? That's your business. I can't control who you get involved with, but don't stir up trouble at work. You've switched jobs enough times; you should get this by now."
Seeing her smug smile, Susan felt a surge of anger. Fiona was truly vile, using every dirty trick in the book. She was way more devious than Amelia.
Susan then said coldly, "Fiona, you've got some tricks, I'll give you that. But your scheming won't last forever. Just wait for your karma."
With that, Susan grabbed the budget proposal and turned to leave.
Susan didn't want to argue with her; it would just make her look foolish.
She'd remember today and definitely get her revenge someday.
Fiona, not one to back down, stood up and shouted at Susan's back, "At least I'm your superior now. You should watch yourself. I'm doing better than you right now!"
Hearing this, Susan frowned and immediately turned to Fiona, saying, "You should add a time limit. You're temporarily my boss and temporarily doing better than me."
Before Fiona could snap back, Susan opened the door and walked out.
As the head of Group Six, Fiona wasn't about to chase after Susan to argue.
After work, Susan squeezed onto a bus with a thick stack of documents in her arms.
Sitting on the bus, Susan felt torn. Should she admit defeat and get booted, or give it one last shot?
Looking at the budget proposal in her arms, she wondered what difference another revision would make. Capgemini Software Company would still be unhappy because their issue wasn't with the proposal itself.
Thinking of Fiona's smug attitude, Elliott's harassment, and her colleagues' disdain, Susan decided to give it one more try.
But this time, she couldn't just make surface changes to the budget proposal. She had to find the root of the problem. She needed a game plan.
With this in mind, she quickly called Isabella, asking her to dig up detailed info about the family of Capgemini Software Company's owner. Maybe she could find a way in from there.
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