With hesitant steps, Addy walked towards the screen and bend over to watch.
Three ferrets danced merrily to an acoustic version of a popular hip song on the screen.
Addy stared at the video in utter confusion before facing the man in front of her. "What's this?"
"Good question." Her boss said as he propelled his body forward and leaned against his desk using his forearms. "But I'm afraid I don't have the answer to it. In fact, I am going to throw your question back at you- what is this Ms. Addler? One of my employees, whom I will not disclose showed me this morning."
She still puzzled took another glance at the screen. "Er... it seems like a ferret dancing to a song. These type of videos got popular a few years back."
"Ferret?" Confusion dawned on the boss's face as well. He quickly rotated the monitor back towards himself and wildly clicked on his mouse, presumably closing the video.
He cleared his throat, flustered and rotated the monitor towards her once more. "Th-that wasn't the one. Look at this. Miss Addler, I want an explanation!"
Addy took a look again.
Another video was playing. This time it was displaying one of those terrible life hacks. The people in it were silently trying to seal toothpaste inside ketchup bottles using polythene and glue gun while chirpy music played in the background.
Addy shifted her eyes at her boss. The little crumb a mere centimetre above his lips was once more noticed by her. "It's a life hack... I think."
The boss appeared even more confused than before. His face twitched as he saw the screen. "I swear meddling with my gadgets is my daughter's favourite pastime."
Again, the monitor screen faced her. She was ready to watch something utterly nonsensical when she realized what was playing. It was a CCTV footage and not just any footage- it was playing out her encounter with the strange man and kid from last night near the capuchin enclosure.
"Did you know that they crawled into the zoo from the rhino hole?"
"I do."
"You do? And what have you done about that?"
"Nothing."
"Nothing? You saw strangers crawl inside the zoo and you just let them go?"
"It did seem like the child accidentally entered the zoo and her guardian followed in search of her. So, I didn't see any reason to hold them back." Addy half-lied. She did hold them back last night to get their contact information but it was solely for herself and she was not planning to share.
"Hmm." He began tapping on the marble paperweight in front of him. "Even if we set that issue aside for the time being, what about your recent behaviour with your colleagues? I have been hearing complaints."
Addy sighed. "You mean Kevin complained again? He complains about everyone. Am I seriously going to get in trouble for that?"
"That he does." He bobbed his head in understanding. "But it wasn't just him."
"Can we please cut to the point... sir!"
"Yes, we can." Her boss smacked his lips in annoyance, bringing her attention back to the tiny crumb above his upper lip. "You are fired."
Addy paused for a second, taking in his words. "Really? You are going to do that?" She pointed at herself. "I mean fire me?"
The boss nodded in agreement expecting her to break down and beg for her job back like the ten others he had fired this morning.
Instead, Addy grabbed the chair in front of him and took a seat. "Wow!" she muttered with a brilliant smile as if she had just been freed from a life of slavery and not terminated.
Addy was bamboozled. She was having a hard time processing what had enfolded. She knew that the book she was inside had ended when the character she was playing got fired from work. It was not because of her mistake. The boss was carrying out mass termination of employees as they were losing money but that was not supposed to happen until another three months.
When Addy first entered the book six months ago, she had tried every way to get fired, from messing up her assigned work to screaming at fellow colleagues but all her mistakes were forgiven in the name of being a 'newbie' and no matter how terrible she behaved, she seemed like an angel compared to Kevin and his rotten personality. So, she had given up, diligently following the words of the book to work day and night and awaiting the day when she would get fired. And now when she was not even trying, her boss actually fired her. Does that mean she succeeded?
Addy closed her eyes as her mind buzzed. Was she finally free? Will she be able to go back home now?
"Miss Addler?" Her boss asked in caution trying to decipher her emotions.
With new found strength Addy stood up. "Thank you!" she said to her boss with an earnest smile.
Taken aback, he cleared his throat in discomfort. "Hmm and your payment for this month would be transferred to your bank account."
Addy smiled again as her eyes kept darting towards the crumb near her boss's lips. She wanted to smack that crumb off so bad. "That's so thoughtful of you! Anyways, thanks again."
He nodded in reluctance as he watched her leave, both relieved and confused about her reaction. Did she hate working here that much?
As Addy left the room, her eyes landed on something. An idea struck her. If she was going to leave, she might as well leave with a bang! Or should she say with a whoosh?
Grabbing the vacuum cleaner from the hallway, she went back inside.
Her boss was surely surprised when he caught sight of her re-entering but quickly composed himself. "Do you have anything else to say, Ms. Addler?"
"No. It's something I want to do." She stated as she turned the vacuum on and placed it right in front of her ex-boss's face.
WHEEEE~
The poor man tried to safe himself from the onslaught using his hands but his desperate attempts went futile. It felt like his face was being sucked in by a monstrous octopus.
Addy watched in satisfaction as the stubborn crumb from his face was dragged inside the vacuum cleaner. "Done!" She exclaimed with a triumphant smile and left with the vacuum cleaner hanging from her shoulder like she had just won a battle leaving a startled and traumatized boss behind.
Throwing the vacuum cleaner back in the hallway, Addy ran outside as far as her legs would take her. She was free! She was finally free!
So, if everything flew according to plan, she would be back in her world the moment she stepped out of the premise of the zoo! That's where the book had originally ended.
With a heart full of hope, she rushed past the exit sign of the zoo and closed her eyes. Any moment now, she would be back to her own world!
Addy opened her eyes. She wasn't back. No worries- she tried again. And again and again.
After the seventeenth attempt, it finally dawned on her. Ha! How naïve of her! To think she would be able to escape so easily!