23

By Tuesday, Jean was back at work and so was Jason. Jean got to work with full functionality while Jason was bothered as to why his boss and friend was suddenly giving him a cold shoulder.
Unsurprisingly, he was called into James’ private office on the sixteenth floor of the building. He dry-swallowed his pills quickly while he was on the elevator ride up; this meeting definitely wasn’t to discuss figures. When he got out of the elevator and stepped on the flush blue carpet, he cleared his throat to announce his presence. James who was standing with his back to him turned his head.
“Sit down, Mr. Lawson.” He said in a flat voice.
Mr. Lawson? Jason thought as he sat down in one of the chairs while James sat down in his chair directly opposite him.
“You’ve been doing a quite impressive job around here, Mr. Lawson.”
“Thank you.” Jason’s voice was dry and it wasn’t because of the air conditioner. The comment seemed too sinister to be a compliment and so was James’ expression.
“But I have to ask you a rather bothering question. Am I allowed to?”
“Of course you are.” Jason tried to clear his throat but it seemed constricted.
James stood up and was at Jason’s side of the huge mahogany table in four long strides. Intimidated, Jason leaned back in his chair while James’ eyes cornered him.
“Now, Mr. Lawson, I'm going to take my words one by one and I expect that a sharp man like you will understand me.” James didn’t wait for a reply, “What. Is. Going. On. Between. You. And. Jean?”
Jason almost laughed at the absurdity of the situation. At that point, he realized that he had no reason to feel scared or intimidated; James was just jealous. He straightened up to reply.
“Firstly, Mr. Cobalt, that is my personal life and you have no business whatsoever with it.” He started, “Secondly, Jean and I are friends and business partners. Thirdly, I see no point in why you are interrogating me like this on issues which do not concern you and neither do they affect you.”
James seemed not to hear any other word apart from ‘friends’.
“Friends? How can you say you’re ‘friends’ with Jean? Jean doesn’t have friends. That’s one of the reasons why she has made it so far in the industry.”
Jason gave a small smile and said, “I guess I broke a record then. She’s a wonderful woman and the person or people who made her lose her faith in humanity are nothing but wicked idiots.”
James’ hand itched so bad. He didn’t trust the smile Jason had on his face and he was very sure a few punches would wipe the smile away. Instead of going to the physical level, James just calmed down knowing that the surprise he had for Jason would worth more than a few punches in the face.
“Yes, I'm an idiot,” he said, watching Jason’s eyes widen, “an idiot who has a little package for you right over there.”
He pointed at the coffee table in the middle of some sofas where there lay a small brown envelope. Jason eyed him suspiciously before almost running to grab the envelope. He tore it open and gently brought out the single piece of paper that was inside. He looked at James who was grinning like a Cheshire Cat before unfolding the letter.
He read through it once. Twice. But he still couldn’t manage to understand the contents fully. He looked up at James and held the letter up.
“Me? Fired? Why?” he asked in disbelief.
“Can't you read? The reason is clearly stated there.” James said gently stroking his small beard.
“It says because I have not been able to meet the expected attainment in my duration here.”
“Good. Now I see you’ve not forgotten your alphabet.”
“That’s a goddamn lie, James.” Jason was now livid at the injustice, “You just said it yourself that I’ve done a really good job.”
“Prove it then!” James shouted, “Prove it. Because you have no evidence to present that I ever said that. You know damn well that that security camera is just for show, it doesn’t work, I do whatever I want here. You also know damn well that this place is soundproof. So nobody can hear our conversation.”
Jason was dumbfounded. How could James do this to him? And all because he was friends with Jean?
“You know what, I will let you keep your job on one condition: you stop being friends with Jean and make sure you stay away from her.”
At this point, Jason was irate. He didn’t know when the words started flowing out of his mouth:
“You know what? You have no right to tell me what to do and what not to do. You may have been my boss but not anymore. And in fact, I was on the hook; you ARE a wicked idiot. You ruined an excellent woman and you should feel ashamed of yourself. I have no idea what the hell you did to her but I know that she’s never going to forget it. She cries in her sleep and wakes up because of nightmares. I'm pretty sure those nightmares are just so full of your disgusting face. Right now, James, you irritate the crap out of me. I used to think you were a strong man but seeing you stoop this low because of a woman who doesn’t even want to see your face. You’re an outright shame to manhood for your actions in the past and this afternoon.”
James slammed his fists on the mahogany table, feeling the pain and vibration move up to his scapula. He needed that but it wasn’t enough. Only Jean ever talked to him that way and Jason definitely did not have the right to speak to him the way Jean did when she was mad or even remind him of what he and Avery did to Jean. His red eyes looked up but Jason’s back was already turned and he was ready to leave.
Jason turned his head at a forty-five-degree angle:
“And one last thing, James,” he said sinisterly, “you can keep your wretched job. I'm gonna go print a resume now and apply it to one of the biggest firms in the country.”
James’ face changed instantly.
“Yes, you guessed right,” Jason said, “I'm going to work for Jean and there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it. You know you can never rule her.”
With those last words, Jason strode out of the office. James collapsed into the chair Jason was previously sitting in and rubbed his temples. He was so stupid. He had just given Jason the information that he was connected to Jean’s past with the assumption that Jean had already told him. He had been so clouded with anger that he didn’t realize that Jean was not a person to open up so easily under the circumstances she was under.
He regretted his decision but he would never admit that out loud. He felt urged to run down the stairs and drag Jason back but his ego wouldn’t let him. He wished he could beg Jason to forgive him because he was his only friend and also because he was never really angry at Jason. He was just jealous that Jason could be welcomed by Jean but he never would be again. The person he was actually angry at was himself; he wasn’t even angry at Avery for anything. She had worked for what she wanted even if it was negative and he had been stupid enough to fall, even if he was under influence. He was angry at himself and the more stupid decisions he kept on making, the worse he felt. His mind was like a complicated, bitter lattice and until he made at least one right decision, it wouldn’t start untangling.

Wednesday was ‘interview day’. Jean took a deep breath as she prepared to face level upon level of stupidity, determination, ignorance, and desperation. She sat down in her chair in the interview room and pressed the button to call on the very first applicant.
She didn’t have to bother with asking for resumes because Peter had taken care to make sure all the people in that waiting room were qualified. All she had to do was test their wits and make sure they were up to the challenges that would be presented to them.
The first applicant entered and she straightened up, ready to turn into nothing but fire and ice. She glared the young lady down and gestured for her to sit down. She obeyed.
“Miss. Osmond, I see your resume is quite impressive. But tell me, how was your daily routine when you worked with Realsons and Co?”
“Well, ma’am-“
“Do NOT call me that. I am twenty-eight, not sixty. Please.”
“Sorry Miss. Taylor.” She looked at Jean and when Jean nodded, she continued, “My daily routine included coffee runs when it was scheduled to be my turn, a check of e-mails early in the morning before I spent the rest of the day analyzing the database programs and making sure the software wasn’t corrupted at any point in the day. I also blocked potential scammers and kept the firewall as strong as possible.”
The lady didn’t answer like a programmed machine; Jean liked that. Most people already knew their answers to the questions and read them out of the back of their heads. Despite this, she kept a face as strong as granite. All she needed to confirm was one more question:
“If the company is on the verge of complete collapse, would you stay and help out or would you leave and get a job at a better place using our company as an addition to your resume?”
The lady seemed to hesitate for a while but Jean knew what she was looking for: brutal honesty.
“To be honest, Miss. Taylor, I would actually go for the latter option.”
Jean was actually quite taken aback but she tried to control herself. She admired a person who would speak their mind no matter the consequences such truths could evoke. With her view of humanity, Jean had expected the applicant to stick to the option that would get her the job. With a little smile, Jean let the lady know her results immediately as she always did.
“I am impressed by your brutal honesty and dare I say, bravery. I need people like you here to face the greatest challenges.”
The lady’s eyes widened at her realization.
“Yes, you got the job. See you here at eight o’clock sharp on Monday morning. Just meet Mr. Oaks outside, he will take you to get your medical report, I.D card, and some other things. Congratulations Miss. Osmond. Welcome to Taylor’s Incorporated.”
She gave the lady a quick handshake and sat back down. She could hear her squeals from outside but pressed the button beside her to call on the next applicant. She checked the list; thirty-four more people to go. It was going to be a long morning.

Thirty-four people down, nine jobs had been given and there was only one to go. Jean was so tired that she didn’t even bother checking the name before calling on the final applicant who must have been last minute. She quickly stood up and walked over to the dispenser to get some water for her saliva supply. With the plastic cup still on her lips, Jean turned around and nearly choked when she saw who was sitting in the chair opposite hers.
“Jason? What are you doing here?”
“I'm here for an interview, Miss. Taylor.” He said simply and politely.
“Miss. Taylor? That sounds so weird coming from you.” She snorted.
“I know right. But you’re probably going to be my boss soon so I'm practicing.” He said, wiggling his eyebrows.
Jean almost laughed but then she remembered her decision and carved her face back in stone. She sat back down and started the interview with all formalities.
“So, Mr. Lawson, why did you leave Electro?”
“Well, you see, the owner was my very good friend. But then he got angry cuz I made a friend. He wanted me to leave that friend but I told him to butt out of my personal life. He wouldn’t listen and fired me instead.”
Jean felt sick inside but she left her face in the same state. James was a sick bastard.
“Okay then. But can I ask you what you can add to this corporation?”
“I’ll add my devoted effort and time to the continuing success of the corporation. My experience with Electro means that I have the tactics needed for the survival of this corporation. In addition to that, my connections in the engineering world at large can give the corporation an added advantage in factory planning and building.”
Jean frowned. The man would indeed be an added advantage and he did have a good reason for leaving Electro. She was still going to kill James later on. With an exasperated sigh, she put out her hand for a handshake and Jason looked at it weirdly.
“Congratulations, Mr. Lawson,” she said with a roll of her eyes, “and welcome to Taylor’s Incorporated.”
With glee, Jason took her hand dragged her up into a full-blown hug. Jean was shocked and quickly pushed him away. Their relationship was now a purely professional one and the friendship could be involved in it. Jason was quite taken aback by her sudden withdrawal and opened his mouth to speak. She didn’t wait for his words before walking past him and leaving the room.
Outside, Peter greeted her with a small smile and she tried to return it.
“Please take the results from the table in the interview room, Peter. And endeavor to make sure that all arrangements are made for them to resume on Monday, including the orientation.”
Peter nodded and started typing furiously on his PDA.