The One I Hated Episode 3 – Joy Ifunanya
The next day at work, as I walked into the hall, everyone stood as usual, I watched as Charles regarded me for some seconds before dragging himself up.
I hissed and made to go into my office when he committed again
“Melody, there is a document….”
I turned sharply
“What’s that you just called me?”I interrupted.
“Melody”. He repeated.
Imagine the impetus!. Is this guy not a psycho?.
“Charles, do I have to remind you each day I come to work that I am your boss?”. I asked.
He shook his head.
“What makes you think you can call me by my first name?”. I continued.
“I’m…..he shrugged
…sorry, just that your dad introduced you to me as Melody”.
“Enough!, That he introduced me as Melody to you, doesn’t give you the right to call me that. I am your boss and the sooner you accept that fact, the better for you”. I shouted.
I walked out angrily. This guy is really turning me into a captious boss, which I know I’m not.
“Dad should have just let me pick my assistant myself”. I muttered.
My first two months of assuming the office of the MD was filled with violence because at a point Charles started returning the energy. He no longer apologizes when I try to caution him and it would always take him time to stand while I walk into the hall.
There are other times, he would rush into the rest room once he noticed my car driving into the premises. Days like that, I would have to wait for him in the hall to come out before I go into my office.
As far as I was concerned, he owe me that respect… I’m the boss, right?
We fought everyday. From the hall to the inside my office. He was always getting on my nerves
And Douglas, another male employee was not helping matters, he turned to an informant to me, when I didn’t ask him to
“Charles didn’t come to work on time today…he was sleeping on duty….he took unofficial calls more than five different times before closing time….”.
These and more added to my hatred for Charles.
There was a time I had to give him a query for leaving office before closing time.
“I was very sick that day”. He had explained.
But I was not going to buy that cheap excuse, there is a clinic in the company and every employees could be given free medical treatment, even the least of them, not to talk of the… so-called assistant.
His punishment was a day suspension or rather….one day of peace in the company.
The funny thing was that, if any other employees committed a crime for which I had fought Charles, I always overlook it. It only becomes an issue when Charles was the cuprit.
There is no place we haven’t fought. It later turned into a norm.
I made sure to have enough breakfast every morning before work just to be able to face Charles.
We had fought at a national conference and in the middle of a board meeting which led to the cancellation of our multimillion naira deal with another company..
I just couldn’t tolerate him at all.
Dad too was not helping matters. He always laughs each time I bring home complaints about that guy. He just didn’t understand how serious it was!
It was after we fought at the airport on our way for a very important business meeting, that dad did something I wasn’t expecting… a decision I never knew would affect me badly….
