Part 2

It seemed Sasha hadn't managed to vomit everything out. She didn't even have time to request a day off and hurried to the hospital for gastric lavage in a taxi. Our colleagues were concerned and visited her.

Sasha, with a straight face, just explained, "Maybe I ate something bad. I've been feeling nauseous."

"Wow," I said with a knowing tone beside her. "You sure you're not pregnant? By the way, Sasha, you're not married yet, are you?" I tilted my head, blinking at her, then glanced at a certain male colleague across the room.

Our company frowned upon office romances, but Sasha was secretly dating our boss, Yves Simpson, who already had a girlfriend. Did she think I didn’t know?

“What are you talking about?” Her face turned bright red. “Stop spreading rumors about me.” She pretended to be innocent, stammering, “I don’t even have a boyfriend. There’s no way I could be pregnant.”

Despite everything, Sasha didn't give up and kept trying to poison my cup. She thought there were no cameras near my spot. Little did she know, I had already set up a hidden high-definition video recorder on a nearby shelf, capturing her every move.

I watched Sasha's antics while sipping on bottled water I bought daily. Once it was out of my sight, I wouldn't touch it again. During our Monday meeting, Sasha didn’t complete her task, so I called her out on it. Her boyfriend got mad and publicly accused me of being unkind. No surprise there, she picked a boyfriend who knew how to stir things up. By the afternoon, the whole office was buzzing about the fake sisterhood between Sasha and me.

“She learned a lot from Sasha, but after stealing her knowledge, she acts like she doesn’t know her anymore.”

“Once promoted, she thinks she’s superior. People in power are like that.”

“But Sasha’s work just isn’t up to par. In the workplace, you shouldn’t mix work ability with personal relationships.”

“This isn’t about work ability,” Sasha whispered to them, sounding hurt. “Do you know the relationship between the General Manager and Cassandra? How do you think she got hired?”

Part 3

Soon, word spread that I was promoted to junior assistant to the general manager. This was because I had to report on a large project multiple times, which meant frequent trips to the general manager's office. As people saw me going in and out of his office, their looks became more and more contemptuous.

"Oh, she's got connections!"

"Wonder how much she had to 'pay' for that salary."

"Better not say anything. If she gets mad, she might get us kicked out."

I dealt with these insults quietly. When the general manager asked how I was doing, I just said, "It's fine, Mr. Jones. No worries."

I'd never been one to silently take crap and I definitely didn’t like to rely on others to fight my battles. If someone messed around with me, I would only feel better when I hit back hard.

At the latest quarterly work report meeting, I called out Sasha and her team, professionally critiquing their performance. I highlighted their poor work efficiency, high return rates and negative customer feedback.

I took the final assessment form and called in one of her team members to fire her.

“What? Why me?” she blurted out.

She'd been with the company for six years and had a decent salary. Finding another job with the same pay would be tough.

“Ms. Murphy, my assessment isn’t the worst, right? Why not dismiss Sasha instead of me?”

Performance-wise, Sasha was indeed at the bottom, but she had Yves backing her up. Those who got the axe had no such protection.

“The company’s performance evaluation isn’t just about numbers. You've been gossiping during work hours and your work quality has seriously declined. This violates company policy.”

She realized right away that this was a personal vendetta. But even if it was blatant revenge, it was based on solid reasons and evidence. She couldn’t find a flaw in my argument.

Flushing with anger, she said, “This is not fair!”

She knew Sasha was the cause of the gossip and everyone had recently learned that Yves was Sasha’s backer. Sasha was just jealous because my backer was more powerful and this poor woman ended up as collateral damage.

"What are you looking at me for? Don’t you know your level?" Sasha, who had been friendly with her before, now wore a contemptuous expression. "Pack up your things and leave quickly! Don’t make a fool of yourself here! It’s not like I harmed you!"

The woman was lost of words, packing her things at her workstation while Sasha began gossiping about me with other colleagues. Unfortunately for her, everyone saw her true colors and ignored her.

"Cassandra, do you think stirring up trouble can make you stand out in the company?" Sasha shouted, waving her fists, dropping the pretense entirely. "I will tell Mr. Jones you have another man! If he knew you are cheating, he won’t spare you!"

"Oh, really?" I smiled lightly, noticing the woman behind her suddenly holding the packed box and smashing it onto Sasha's head.

"Bitch! It's all your fault! Why pretend to be pure and innocent?" she shouted. "You have an affair with Mr. Simpson! What a pathetic side chick! I’ll tell his girlfriend right now!"

Part 4

The woman’s yelling spread throughout the office. Sasha's head was busted open, blood streaming down. Soon enough, Yves's girlfriend showed up and they both went after Sasha like wild animals, shoving her into the bathroom toilet, splashing sewage on her face and then laying into her with punches.

Nobody dared to step in and Sasha's cries only seemed to attract more violence. It wasn't until the cops showed up and hauled the two girls away that Sasha finally got taken to the hospital for treatment.

On her tenth day in the hospital, I went to pay her a visit. The moment she saw me, she threw a water glass to the ground, the pieces barely missing my feet.

"Don't think I don't know! You're using Shelly to come after me, right?" she accused.

I just gave her a small smile and came clean, "Yeah, still feel like being another woman?"

"Pfft! Yves's girlfriend isn't all that sweet or caring. Only him and I are the real deal. Even if she got to him first, so what? If he has to choose, he's picking me!"

She acted all proud, like she didn’t even know the meaning of the word "shame".

I couldn't help but chuckle at her reaction as I tossed a document onto her bed.

"Take a peek," I said.

She opened it and found her resignation notice along with Yves's letter. The company rule was clear: in an office romance, one had to hit the road. With Yves holding a top spot, he obviously wasn't keen on quitting. So, when push came to shove, he chose to let her go.

[We’re not a good match, Sasha. I made a mistake with you. You should find a better job. I know you’ll find something great with your skills,] his letter read.

Sasha was livid, tearing up the letter and cursing Yves for leading her on. She angrily told me to get out.

The next day, she caused a ruckus at the company in hospital clothes, accusing Yves of being ungrateful and demanding he take care of her. She even threatened to jump off the building if he didn't.

Little did she know, I had struck a deal with Yves beforehand. If he got rid of Sasha, the company wouldn’t hold him responsible for his past wrong-doings.

Sasha stirred up trouble for a few days and saw Yves's cold and heartless side. Feeling defeated, she ended up applying for a job at a neighboring company.