"Trinity! A call for you, from the boss!" a tall man wearing a navy-blue pair of pants and a white long-sleeved with a distinctive logo on his chest called out to a woman sitting behind the desk, typing something on the computer.
Upon hearing her name, Trinity raised her head with question marks over her head, wondering in her head why the boss was calling her at such a time.
It was closing day. They were closing for the year, so they were all in the middle of finishing the remaining work that hadn't been finished yet.
If there was anything that the boss wanted to tell her, why didn't he do so when they met earlier in the morning when they were getting their salaries and year-end bonuses?
Could it be that he got more work to give her again?
Just thinking about how her boss loved giving her loads of work, she started having a foreboding feeling.
However, she couldn't keep the boss waiting. So, she could only stop what she was doing and go to him.
Without further ado, she nodded her head towards the man, a colleague she had been working with for nearly a year now, signifying that she had heard him.
Trinity pushed the chair beneath the desk and rolled onto the back. She then stood on her feet, revealing her not-so-short or tall stature. She stood at 1.6m tall and was light in complexion.
She straightened out her blue shirt with the same logo as that of her colleague. Without thinking much, she started walking towards the door, wondering what the boss had in store for her.
However, unbeknown to her, the moment she exited the door, her colleagues looked at each other with an unknowing gaze. If she was in the room, she might have sensed that there was something wrong.
Unfortunately, at that time, she was sitting in front of the man who had employed her for almost three years. A man she was grateful for. After all, if it wasn't for him giving her a chance to work at his company, it might have taken ages before she could find a place to work; where she could use the knowledge, she learnt at university.
Sitting with the boss was never an easy thing. It was always nerve-wracking, especially not knowing what he wanted from her.
Nonetheless, she still sat there with her mouth shut, waiting nervously and anxiously for him to say something.
The man in front of her looked at her with a calm gaze as he played with a pen on the desk. His demeanor was as if he wasn't in a hurry to express what he wanted to say to her. So, she could only wait there patiently until he was ready to say something.
And that moment arrived much faster than she anticipated.
"Trinity, how long have you been working here?" he suddenly asked her, making her wonder where this was going.
However, not suspecting anything, Trinity naively answered, "It's nearly three years, sir," with firmness in her tone.
The boss nodded his head, acknowledging that fact.
Thinking that something good was about to come, maybe news of a promotion, Trinity adjusted her sitting position. After all, the longer one stays at a company, the higher the chances of getting a promotion or a salary increase.
Dreaming wasn't a crime. She couldn't help but be excited.
However, what the boss said next made her blood turn cold as a wave of confusion and disbelief washed over her.
"It is with great regret that I have to let you go, Trinity!" the boss regretfully said, though he didn't look apologetic at all.
'Why is this happening suddenly?' she wanted to ask that out loud.
After all, she didn't remember not giving the company her all. Whenever there was a task to be done, she would do it in time without any mistakes. Being an accountant wasn't an easy thing. The numbers were very delicate. One single mistake and everything would go awry.
Not only was she good at her job, but she was very fast as well. The reason why her boss loved giving her too much work. So why the sudden firing?
She couldn't help but look at him with a questioning gaze, unable to voice out her grievances.
However, when the boss opened his mouth to explain himself seeing her questioning gaze, Trinity felt like a joke.
"You have been using and wasting the company's resources for your side hustle. Since you love screenwriting so much, I think it will be better for you to concentrate on that and not affect my business!" the boss stated calmly, his words very piercing and quite revealing.
He knew what she had been doing, but how could he know? Though there was some mix-up with what he was saying.
Trinity, at hearing his words, was at a loss of words. How could she even defend this?
As she was thinking of explaining herself to him, the boss didn't give her a chance as he added, "I am just telling you and not discussing with you. Here is the severance pay owed to you for the period that you have been working here. I …."
The rest of what he said, she could no longer hear it as she dumbfoundedly looked at the thick envelope in front of her.
She was getting fired for a crime she didn't commit.
She didn't deny that she had something to do with the writing community, but when had she ever written scripts at the office?
Who was framing her?
Who wanted her gone to use such a lame excuse?
Her blood went cold as she thought of the people, she had shared the office with for so many years.
How could they report something so untrue to the boss and make her lose her job just like that?
It wasn't like she was the only one with a side hustle, so why the cruelty?
However, looking at the boss she revered so much before, her heart stilled and the palms on her thighs balled into fists at this unfair dismissal.
How could she be just dismissed like that for something that she didn't do?
However, when she thought about her foreigner status, she inwardly smiled grimly, thinking to herself, 'Even if it's unfair. What can I do?'
The law was a bit lax towards foreigners. Even if she wanted to take this matter to court, she might end up losing more than she bargained for.
At least, the boss was generous and even gave her what she was owed. He was at least more considerate than others.
However, now that the job had been lost, what was she going to do?
As she left the office in a dazed state, Trinity felt like the world was going to end.
Especially when she thought of that person.